A point about inequalities...

[Satoh]

So how many of you immediately thought I was bashing high school arithmetic? One? Two? None? Well if you did then you get a

big fat slap in the face for thinking such garbage!



No my friends (and people I have inevitably alienated, too) I am here to make a point about public service announcements... If you live in America (the north one at the least) and you have a television, you have seen one... likely more. Probably a few of you in those other countries as well, you know I love you too... (more actually... your collective braincell count is higher).

Anyway, these announcements generally involve some message of helping others, like encouraging your "disabled" friends to apply for clubs and activities or possibly something about accepting people who come from different walks of life...

Well you know what?

That is the opposite of equality!

How, in the name of the great, combo breaking Obama(No really that combo needed breaking, this is a complement), is it equal that I should help people with their social lives and free time activities... when I'm NOT encouraged to do the same for the attractive demi-genius girl who's in 3 of my college classes and I actually give a crap about?

Why should I open doors for the guy in the wheelchair, when I don't go out of my way in such a fashion for people I actually know? How is that equal...? Why should I interfere with the lives of the woman with one leg when I wouldn't do the same for one with two? That isn't equal! Equal would be not giving a sh*t about the random crippled man any more than I do the random perfectly un-crippled man...


Also, the term "disabled" is somewhat misleading... being in a wheelchair doesn't necessarily mean you're disabled... For that matter, there are supposedly physically disabled people, who can do a hell of a lot better at physical things than I ever could...

Why aren't there such public service announcements about helping the guy who goes to class every day only to loathe waking up each morning simply due to the monotony and absurdity...?

You want equality? Give us a government grant program that applies to the fat, unskilled, and lazy because they're fat, unskilled, and lazy. That would be equality, because then everyone applies to it.


The phrase comes to mind: "I don't hate (insert group of people) specifically, I hate everyone equally."

It's the simple truth that the people you hate are treated differently from those you don't, and you sure as hell can't like everyone... so the only option for true equality is to hate everyone...


Now tell me... the concept of equality in these messages, is a flawed one to begin with, but regardless so... is true equality really worth it?



Don't get me wrong now, I'm not supporting bigotry, I'm just making a point about phrases and concepts commonly and carelessly thrown about over this world...

I think it is a good thing to help people if they are having trouble... but if they are perfectly able and willing to do it themselves... do they need someone else interfering? If someone asks for help, be it directly or implicitly, help them... if they don't... then no one can rightfully blame you for not. Obviously some people will say they don't need help, but their situation will scream otherwise... this is where your ability to make your own decisions becomes important.




In case anyone is wondering... I loathe public service announcements.. because they don't do any sort of service for the public by interrupting our programs only to be ignored like any other advertisement.

I am not spreading a message of hate, but of conscious thought! Remember that. Make your own decisions on who to treat how, and don't base it on how a soothing voice on a TV says to...

[The Seer of Shadows]

I know this thread is about inequality... but you're needlessly brutal to PSAs.  I mean, there are plenty of Public Service Announcements out there that are worth watching because they actually communicate something that you'll remember for a while.

Examples:
A Condom Commercial
Another condom commercial
A random anti-smoking ad <---This one makes little sense, but it's funny.
PSA about behavior around children <---Not funny.  If you laugh at this, then you are sick.

But about inequality... if someone is in a wheelchair and unable to move his legs, doesn't he deserve just a little bit of help?  If you want equality, then either everyone has to be in perfect shape or everyone must be equally disabled.  Life's unfair to those people who get disabilities.  Those people become limited in the things they have to do on a day-to-day basis, and I can only imagine how depressing that must be.

Actually, if you want perfect equality, we should really start by improving the standard of living in Africa.

[Satoh]

It sounds to me like you're getting my point exactly actually.

I know people in wheelchairs... some of them do appreciate a little help, and they will ask for it when needed. I also know some who loathe it when people fall all over themselves to do them service...

The point of my message was that (regardless of whether I got it across properly) help is good, but unwanted/unwarranted help is not doing anyone any favors.

Life is unfair, but it is also unfair to assume that because someone does not look capable, they are not capable. Not everyone without leg movement is truly "disabled". A lot of people have learned to cope, and are just as able as others in their daily activities.

Again, my purpose is to make you think for yourself, and not take everything you see or hear for granted. Sure, if you see a man in a wheelchair struggling to get through a door or something, you can offer to help... but if you see him skillfully open, pass through, and close the door... he probably doesn't need your help.


I suppose what I'm really getting at, is be subtle... don't become a floormat for people to step all over... (walking isn't the only thing people can lose)
If someone obviously needs help, help. If not obvious, you can ask, but don't leap into it without doing so... Just as you would with anyone else... that is my point.

[Kudistos Megistos]

So, to these people, equality means equality of outcome, rather than equal opportunities?

Satoh, what you think of affirmative action in US universities?

From what I've read about it, it seems to come from a hilariously simplistic view of the world that is obsessed with race. Fortunately, reverse discrimination is illegal in Britain AFAIK, although the current government is doing what it can to change that; hopefully they won't have done any lasting damage by the time they get booted out next year. Reverse discrimination for university places is supported by some here, but most think (quite rightly) that the inequalities are economic rather than racial, so affrimative action would support poorer children, regardless of colour.

[Satoh]

I think I don't know enough about how 'affirmative action' is supposed to work to comment.

However, I do not think race should factor into anything... except medicine. Different diseases are more effective on people of certain races, as do different treatments... and thus medicine should follow the most efficient course.

[obesebear]

So, to these people, equality means equality of outcome, rather than equal opportunities?

Satoh, what you think of affirmative action in US universities?

From what I've read about it, it seems to come from a hilariously simplistic view of the world that is obsessed with race. Fortunately, reverse discrimination is illegal in Britain AFAIK, although the current government is doing what it can to change that; hopefully they won't have done any lasting damage by the time they get booted out next year. Reverse discrimination for university places is supported by some here, but most think (quite rightly) that the inequalities are economic rather than racial, so affrimative action would support poorer children, regardless of colour.

I'll answer here.
Affirmative action can suck it.  My good friend's dad has been at his company for some 15 years.  Recently he trained the newest employee (a black guy) on how to do what around the office.  Guess who got promoted a few months later.  Yep.  Black guy.
Why, might you ask?  Because of his skin color.   

Oh and it wasn't at a university.  This was a regular ol' business.  Because South Carolina insists on still implementing affirmative action 

Businesses need to discriminate.  Hooters would go out of business if they didn't.
And there are plenty of other examples, but I don't want to appear racist. 

[Timu Sumisu]

the problem with this idealistic equality is the method. Some people seem to think helping people in wheelchairs is equal, others have issues with race and whatnot, however regardless of the reasoning there remains the fact of how to deal with it. equality does not blend well with liberty, as they end up on opposite ends of a scale. The more people have control over their lives, the less they will work to promote equality, prefering self advancement in some way (note i am not speaking of absolutes, but general reactions). should everyone be "equal" per se, they'd have to be controlled to a fairly great degree to keep them in "equal order", however, if they are led in such a way, then there is automatically a group who lead them and are therefor not equal to those led by them. There are infinite tradeoffs and inconsistencies to how equality can be implemented to society, and the best we can do is find the balance we want and try to make it happen.

[Kudistos Megistos]

The problem with idealistic anything is that it comes from a complete ignorance of the world and (very often) human nature. A lot of people with strong ideologies have an unbelievably stubborn and childish attitude that reminds me of King Cnut and King Darius ordering around the sea. What I think goes through their mind is "this is how I want things to work, therefore, this is how they are going to work, and I'm not going to let facts or common sense get in the way". In this case, they want fairness and equality to be achievable by something as simplistic as affirmative action (or something similar), therefore they are going to make it work by affirmative action. Of course, it isn't as easy as that, but you try telling them...