Just for the record, I've been reading all of your posts this week, but I couldn't actually think of anything coherent to contribute, so I kept my mouth shut.
I really don't give a shit about the whole racially diverse campus ideal. I mean, it's a great idea in theory, but it has an uncanny resemblance to Communism. They're trying to ensure fairness for everybody, but not only does that raise some people up, it also brings others down.
I'm thinking of a metaphor for Communism that I read once, that seems to apply itself rather well to affirmative action too: if you're a student with a 4.0 GPA, but there are also students who are failing (I'm imagining a 0, but I don't know if that's possible), then would you support averaging it all out and ending up with a 2.0? By all rights you've earned your GPA, and it's the same with earning your wealth and prosperity - no matter if you were born with intelligence/money or not - and you should get to keep it. (It's why I support capitalism, despite all its flaws.)
My point in this is that no one should get into a certain college just because of their race - that is just as unfair as not getting in because of their race. Admissions should be judged solely on merit (which of course they're not; money has a huge say in it), even if it means that there are more whites and/or Asians getting in than other minority groups. Especially in America, where everyone is supposedly created born equal - and I know they're not, but the opportunities that the U.S. tries to give everyone are damn close to being "born equal" - race should have no say in the matter.
I don't think I'd support a form affirmative action based on socioeconomic status, as it still gives preference to a certain group of people - in this case, the poor. The bias is still there, but instead of aiming for a racially diverse campus, they're aiming for an economically diverse campus. The same thing would still be happening, except that the poor student would be accepted not based on merit but on the fact that he is - well, poor.
You start getting the feeling that the higher-ups really don't care at all about the diversity of campuses; they just do it to look good, which in turn means that they get to keep their jobs for another term (assuming you're talking about politicians here). And to the average (white, majority, middle-class or above) person who probably wouldn't look much into it (as it doesn't affect them as much), it does look pretty good.
Conclusion: I don't like affirmative action at all. Of course, I am just as biased as you are, and probably influenced by my parents, who also argue heavily against it. I wouldn't say that it is ultimately "bad", but I'd at least argue that it's a very dark shade of grey.
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regna
I COMPLETELY AGREE.
Date: 2008-08-08 03:48 am (UTC)I really don't give a shit about the whole racially diverse campus ideal. I mean, it's a great idea in theory, but it has an uncanny resemblance to Communism. They're trying to ensure fairness for everybody, but not only does that raise some people up, it also brings others down.
I'm thinking of a metaphor for Communism that I read once, that seems to apply itself rather well to affirmative action too: if you're a student with a 4.0 GPA, but there are also students who are failing (I'm imagining a 0, but I don't know if that's possible), then would you support averaging it all out and ending up with a 2.0? By all rights you've earned your GPA, and it's the same with earning your wealth and prosperity - no matter if you were born with intelligence/money or not - and you should get to keep it. (It's why I support capitalism, despite all its flaws.)
My point in this is that no one should get into a certain college just because of their race - that is just as unfair as not getting in because of their race. Admissions should be judged solely on merit (which of course they're not; money has a huge say in it), even if it means that there are more whites and/or Asians getting in than other minority groups. Especially in America, where everyone is supposedly
createdborn equal - and I know they're not, but the opportunities that the U.S. tries to give everyone are damn close to being "born equal" - race should have no say in the matter.I don't think I'd support a form affirmative action based on socioeconomic status, as it still gives preference to a certain group of people - in this case, the poor. The bias is still there, but instead of aiming for a racially diverse campus, they're aiming for an economically diverse campus. The same thing would still be happening, except that the poor student would be accepted not based on merit but on the fact that he is - well, poor.
You start getting the feeling that the higher-ups really don't care at all about the diversity of campuses; they just do it to look good, which in turn means that they get to keep their jobs for another term (assuming you're talking about politicians here). And to the average (white, majority, middle-class or above) person who probably wouldn't look much into it (as it doesn't affect them as much), it does look pretty good.
Conclusion: I don't like affirmative action at all. Of course, I am just as biased as you are, and probably influenced by my parents, who also argue heavily against it. I wouldn't say that it is ultimately "bad", but I'd at least argue that it's a very dark shade of grey.