Suppose we applied Affirmative Action principles to bake sales?

[Chuckiechan]

Want to buy a cookie? If you are a white male, that'll be $1; for white females, 75 cents; blacks, 25 cents. The price structure is the message.

It's really hitting the fan about this!

http://www.americandaily.com/item/3997

[Mickwish]

I fiond it fascinating that some so called places of higher learning, where intellectual stimulation is supposed to be encouraged, have such down these demonstrations.

Are school administrators getting so worried about potential violence that they will suppress demonstrations of differing points of view? That's sad, and is a bad indicator for where schools may be headed if that's the case. Shall we close down the politics and philosophy departments now?



Cheers
Mick

[Beemer]

When a more advanced society meets a lesser advanced society, the more advanced society takes over the lesser. This happens all through history.

With our more civilized society here in North America we have offered benefits to those we have won wars over or those cultures we have wronged. This helps to melt these other societies into our society. It was an incentive.

In all cases these benefits should be stopped as it is long over due. Everyone should now be considered equals. We all get a share in the pie. An equal opportunity share that is. No free lunches just because of a cosmetic or racial difference. White, Black, Red, Male or Female.

Everyone, especially the ones who felt offended, should be buying the $1.00 cookie to prove the point that they are equal to all others. (If this is really what they want of course.)

Cheers!

[RayH]

Most of the ragging against Affirmative Action is a bunch of bunk. First, there is an assumption that minorities are by definition unqualified.


Affirmatilve Action was never intended to put unqualified people into positions. It was to counter, "I can't find no qualified minorities!"

Many standards are changed because sometimes the standard is found to be an invalid measurement of success.

[Epidemic]

Perhaps in its purest form you are right RayH.

However there have been plenty of examples from the addition of points to applicants requirements, to flat out quota allotments.

I think that equality works now and that the detriments of Affirmative action outweigh the benefits. It was a necessary evil AFAIAC in the 70's and early 80's. But the perceived unfairness of it detracts from even the qualified people, raises annimosity, and generally is bad.

Besides the fact that I think that any residual prejudice is actually not against race but against class. There are plenty of white trash folks who can not afford to send their kids to college and who do not have the advantages of a solid middle class upbringing. As such any assistance should be not on the basis of color but of income. At least that does not unfairly benefit people with equally bad start in life over eachother based on skin color.

[Theophylact]

It's not as though we don't have "affirmative action bake sale pricing" now, you know. My professional society, the American Chemical Society, has different membership fees for students, professionals, and retirees, based on assumptions about ability to pay; there's no means test.

[RayH]

There are all kinds of affirmative actions. So we should be very careful as to what's irking people.

Men have lower SAT and grades than women. But men are admitted to colleges ahead of women.

In California, the enrollement of Asians into certain campuses have had to be limited, lest they overwhelm the UC/State University system. Cal Berkeley and UCLA would be 95% Asian if test scores were the only critieria!

But also the Deans of the varous schools and colleges have a prerrogative list that lets them admit the children of buddies regardless of any qualifications. This one is more serious than the typical affirmative action.

But, there are many minorities that resent affirmative action because it makes them look like they're unqualified. But Connie Rice and Sec of State Powell support affirmative action.