Marcos

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Posts by Marcos

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  16

  What is Race?

  by Marcos in

  1. jw
  2. friends

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  is race really a valid concept or is it more of an arbitrary distinction based more on skin tone and/or culture?

  marcos (open to learning)

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  Marcos

  Aluminutty and Wednesday,

  I didnt know that I was up with current knowledge! But, I had heard somewhere that that was the case; that is to say that there is no such thing as race. I also base my belief on what is stated in the Bible.

  I had mentioned before in another post that most of the nations I have visited are very race conscious. Japan is a pretty good case in point. I was asked several times what it was like to live in such a racist country as the US. My reply was that it is much like living in Japan. SHOCK! The Japanese believe that racism does not exist in Japan. It does. Against ethnic Koreans, Chinese, Vietnamese, Caucasians and, especially against Japanese (hyphenated) Anything.

  Japanese Americans, Canadians, etc. are given a very hard time when they try to live in Japan. They look right but they dont act right. They dont speak Japanese right. They are often regarded as traitors for having been born in another country.

  Caucasians are patronized to death. Non-Japanese are regarded as mentally defective.

  In reality, not all Japanese are this way. But, it is common enough to become very irritating after a while. BTW, I love Japan and the Japanese (all on a case-by-case basis). But the point is, what they think doesnt exist is very evident (racism).

  Mulan,

  I still remember black Kingdom Halls in the 60s and the attitudes of the white brothers. And the Society MANDATED it even when the laws of the land changed. Not for long but combining Kingdom Halls was discouraged if not forbidden for a time. As I remember, someone wrote to me from my parents KH in Texas while I was in Bethel to tell me how they had finally combined with the colored congregation and how that person knew I would be happy to hear it. I was but thought it should have been done sooner.

  In Bethel I saw the racist treatment of the black brothers as well as the attitude regarding all who didnt speak English. Knorr once stated (please correct me if I am wrong) that since there were only a few witness families in China that the whole race (nation) would be destroyed at Armageddon. If they didnt want to be destroyed they should learn English! And, somehow I seem to remember some implied criticism of the few witness families something akin to him saying that they should work harder. Maybe just my faulty (read: old) memory.

  Marcos
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  16

  What is Race?

  by Marcos in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  .

  is race really a valid concept or is it more of an arbitrary distinction based more on skin tone and/or culture?

  marcos (open to learning)

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  Marcos

  A very thoughtful post, LyinEyes.

  Native American on both sides of my family too. Strange it didn't show up in me! Diabetes a family problem. Studies done with the Pima Tribe in Arizona (now called Ton O'odham, I think) indicated that when they went back to a traditional diet of foods found and raised in the desert (lower calories, etc.) they not only became less obese, they also stopped being plagued by the traditional "Indian" diseases like diabetes. I am simply relating my memory of what I read. Anyone feel free to correct me. My point is that many who were subjected to reservation-style treatment suffered from diseases that had been almost unknown to them before. The people were changed from a more limited and traditional diet to what the US government gave them (a lot of white flour and lard). Umm, fry bread, one of my personal favorites! No joke.

  One of my great aunts who lived in northern Louisiana made a comment once that I still remember. She said that she wasn't prejudiced at all. Even though her oldest daughter married a non-white guy. He was Italian. Still makes me smile.

  My mom and her family were also cotton pickers. As a consequence, out of 14 kids, all of those who didn't die in WWII died of some form of emphysema due to exposure to cotton dust (DDT) further complicated by smoking. My two surviving aunts both have breathing problems. I am fairly close to one and recognize the symptoms of emphysema although we have never discussed it. I think the other one has it too. My mom died a painful death from the same disease.

  Environment and heredity can be such a b**ch.

  Marcos

  Edited by - marcos on 16 January 2003 15:10:44
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  16

  What is Race?

  by Marcos in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  .

  is race really a valid concept or is it more of an arbitrary distinction based more on skin tone and/or culture?

  marcos (open to learning)

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  Marcos

  Thanks Wednesday,
  
  I agree with your points. In reference to the susceptibility to certain diseases of certain "races" (perhaps you are referring to diseases such as sickle cell anemia?), I agree. However, certain families within racial groups also show certain susceptibilities do diseases that do not show up in the general population of the same racial group.
  
  Can it be said that these "exceptions" are simply the result of genetic diversity among humans in general?

  Marcos
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  16

  What is Race?

  by Marcos in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  .

  is race really a valid concept or is it more of an arbitrary distinction based more on skin tone and/or culture?

  marcos (open to learning)

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  Marcos

  Hi Golden Girl,

  Variety is great! And I don't think that we will ever all be the same.

  Yeah, I would like some clarification on the word race. Is it real or is it just an arbitrary concept?

  Thanks,

  Marcos
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  116

  Would You Marry A Person Of A Different Race?

  by minimus in

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  yes....no.....why??

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  Marcos

  Hey Bug,

  What you say is true. Census probably did make a political judgement. But it really doesn't alter my contention in this case that "Latino" is not a race. It is a culture.

  Marcos
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  16

  What is Race?

  by Marcos in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  .

  is race really a valid concept or is it more of an arbitrary distinction based more on skin tone and/or culture?

  marcos (open to learning)

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  Marcos

  Is race really a valid concept or is it more of an arbitrary distinction based more on skin tone and/or culture?

  Marcos (open to learning)
• 
  116

  Would You Marry A Person Of A Different Race?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  yes....no.....why??

  ?

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  Marcos

  Do we confuse race with culture? IS there such a thing as race?

  As far as I know, all human beings are genetically compatible. The children of the various races are always fertile (barring certain defects that occur even within the same race). So, is the concept of race no more than normal variations, which will occur when people are separated by time and distance?

  For instance one poster, presumably Caucasian, commented that he had married a Latina. I had mentioned in another post that the US Census had ruled that Latino is not a race but a culture since it spans a group that varies from black to white and shades in between. I dont base my life on much of what the actuaries assert to be true but I think the point is valid. An Anglo-Saxon who marries a Latino is not necessarily race-mixing as far as I can see. In Mexico the dominant population is mestizo (mixed indigenous people and Hispanic sometimes with an admixture of black). In countries like Argentina for example the largest number of people are 100% European descent and white. We are all Hispanic.

  Hispanic is a culture (with hundreds of regional variants). I think, and I may be wrong but, I believe such things as a distinctive smell relates more to the foods one customarily eats rather than to race. I say this because in my limited experience I have seen this to be true. I lived in Japan for a few years. Among themselves, the Japanese refer to Caucasians as bata kusai, that is in a liberal translation, they stink of butter. American GIs referred to the Japanese girls with whom the cohabited as smelling slightly fishy. But these differences seem to disappear as the person is acclimated to the new culture. I am sure this is true because it was my experience that, even on a crowded train, I would become immediately aware of any recently arrived foreigner because even I could smell them from the other end of the car.

  When I return to Mexico after having been out of the country for a time, many people have a slight odor of tortilla. Not kidding. It is not unpleasant, just noticeable. I should say that here, the corn tortilla is the staff of life. In other parts of Mexico, many people also eat flour tortillas. Most people here seldom eat them.

  Personally, I believe that all of us have cultural prejudices. It seems to be normal, I see it where I live, I have seen it in Japan, and never failed to notice it in the US. Seems to me that this prejudice, when not carried to an extreme, is what holds cultures and national groups together.

  None of my comments should be construed as a slam against anyone who has posted. I simply wonder about how you view the concept of race. Is it really a valid concept or is it more of an arbitrary distinction based more on skin tone?

  Marcos (open to learning)
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  116

  Would You Marry A Person Of A Different Race?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  yes....no.....why??

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  Marcos

  Minimus,

  You almost always ask the best questions! My hat is off to you. You are a real champion at getting people to discuss things. You get me to thinking about things.

  Having said that, I would like to post a couple of comments here and then I am going to post another related thread. Forgive me in advance if it appears that I am copying you but, dammit, you create more questions in my mind. And thanks!

  Marcos
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  Congruency and Self-Justification

  by Marcos in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i made a mistake in the previous version of this post.

  i presented too much information at the beginning!

  if anyone is interested in my opinion, i will re-post it below.

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  Marcos

  Exactly, Brummie!

  I dont think the WT and Congruence can be said in the same statement.

  I do agree. How, indeed, could we have congruency based upon the example we were given by the F&DS? As a disclaimer, I have to say that I seldom observed the shunning required by the WT even when I was in Bethel. I do admit, however, that it was partly because of my arrogance! I felt that somehow I COULD actually help those who were df'd.

  When my father was df'd, I never once hesitated to talk to him or to love him. Same with my mother, same with both of my brothers. I thought it was a stupid policy then and still is. Congruency (and adhereance to Bible principles) would seem to demand human (Godlike) kindness toward any other human being.

  But, I'm kind of goofy anyway.

  Marcos
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  2

  Congruency and Self-Justification

  by Marcos in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i made a mistake in the previous version of this post.

  i presented too much information at the beginning!

  if anyone is interested in my opinion, i will re-post it below.

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  Marcos

  I made a mistake in the previous version of this post. I presented too much information at the beginning! If anyone is interested in MY opinion, I will re-post it below.

  Do you agree or disagree with being congruent in your conduct? Dont you think that it is best to teach by example rather than to preach? Would you provide some examples?

  Marcos (of the Still Learning How to Post Class)

  P.S. Don't you just LOVE that "Edit" button?

  Edited by - marcos on 15 January 2003 23:22:57

  Edited by - marcos on 15 January 2003 23:24:27

  Edited by - marcos on 15 January 2003 23:47:18

  Edited by - marcos on 15 January 2003 23:49:5