prejudice on the internet

stupidity is the only word for this and I encounter it far to much, a person sitting with a group of people will assume that the people around them feel exactly the same way as them and will make an offensive statement like 'I don't mind gay people providing they keep their distance' like they feel they are so different that the people they are saying it to couldn't possibly be gay.
or a group of gay people in a club making anti straight comments.
the presumation that everyone thinks like themself.

if thats not stupid, then this really is and I see it time and time again on here and granted some comments are designed to get a rise but a lot are just through plain bloody ignorance.
homophobic comments in random thoughts, hetraphobic comments in the gay forum, racist comments, anti women comments, people complaining about over weight people- like there is a filter if someone is insulting to people that are over weight, because they are not themselves only slim people will read it and agree with them or maybe I'm just giving to much credit, most likly these comments are made by people that don't give a damn about how their words effect others
S

 

i challenge my friends when they make remarks about gay/women/drug users/immigrants...those 4 topics come up a bit. i'll say my piece - i know they won't change their mind, i've been saying the same things for 4 years.

i know people who want to punch a gay man if he hits on them - i dont' know why they can't just say that they aren't interested in men and just walk away, i dont' know why it angers them.

i know people who say a women is a slut just because she likes to have sex...but you bring up a comment about a guy and he's "da man" for sleeping around. makes no sense.

immigrants - great topic, i know people who say that people who aren't originially from the US shouldn't be here. and i know peopel who would just love to set up shop on the beach with a 50 cal sniper rifle and just pick off the immigrants trying to get in the US. really sad.

but yea, i say my piece, and then leave it at that.

 

prejudice is prolific, no matter where you go.

The internet makes us brave because you can't see who we are, can't take any action beyond words in reprisal. It's "ok" to hate on the net because no one else is real, right? You couldn't possibly impact someone else's life. *sigh*

 

I love you guys.

I really do.

Every one of you.

 

Even the fat gay immigrants?

 

The majority of it stems from ignorance and laziness. Now what I find cute about this is that there is such an idea as being prejudice against those who are prejudice themselves. Just because a person is homophobic doesn't immediately make them a bad person. People fear what they do not understand. Hence the ignorance part. Still doesn't make them any less of a person.

The laziness plays in part on both sides, the way I see it. Laziness on the part of the prejudice by failing to educate themselves on statistics and interworkings of various other communities, and laziness on the part of those who are being prejudged for failing to stop bitching and take an active role in the educating of those who are prejudice.

The rest of the problem lays in the fact that we still feel the need to segregate by label. This man is gay. That man is black. This man is an immigrant. I am white. He is short. He is tall.

People fall in to two categories as far as I'm concerned. Men and Women. That's all I try to see, although I'll be honest I don't always succeed.

 

Even (corrected to show my proper support for all entities encountered or otherwise) the fat gay immigrants.

I'm no hypocrite!

 

We're never going to eradicate prejudice... I believe the human animal in general is incapable as well as unwilling to mentally navigate out of the mental comfort zone which assumes that those around believe the same as him or her... we assume that the conclusions and judgments we have come up with are so self-evident that anyone with a working brain will think the same. Rarely does one among us consider that he may be wrong.

Add to that the fact that people seem to have the need to "educate" others with their opinions and attack those people against whom they harbor biases. The real fallacy is that they're virtually guaranteed never to be successful in convincing others that they are right. The only thing that that expressing prejudice can possibly do is to insult the prejudiced person. Becoming upset at another's display of ignorance can only reward them by confirming that they got a rise out of you.

When tempted by the opportunity to "share" my own biases I think about a saying attributed to Mark Twain, "Better to keep your mouth closed and be thought a fool than to open it and remove all doubt"... By remaining silent I'm more likely to learn something than if I'm only interested in seizing a brief lull in conversation so that I can ram my own opinion down an unwilling throat.

 

You sexist...





hahahaha...

 

i'm not serious enough to be prejudice

simple fact is, everyone has bias and prejudice pre-set in their minds from the way they are raised...it is something that is extremely hard to over come and it's possible that no one ever truly over comes it...

 

"Especially" indicates you are bias in favor of fat gay immigrants over non-fat gay immigrants.

 

I couldn't agree more. Unless a person is of Native American stock all the rest of us are immigrants or the ancestors of immigrants.

Of course illegal aliens are not the same thing and are criminals and should not be confused with immigrants.

 

And even native americans came here from elsewhere if you wanna get technical about it.

 

Actually you are quite correct they crossed the land bridge from Siberia to Alaska during the Ice Age.

My point was that they were established here in North America before the Europeans showed up.

 

yes we all have prejudice, the important thing is to recognise it and reflect on it.
my friend has this idea that dutch people are the perfect race and that if she could get out there and live she would never be unhappy again.
even though she isn't being negative here this is still a prejudice, because she is making a sweeping statement about one complete group of people
S

 

I was shocked by the verry same things on here as well because this is Hippiedom.....we are all supossed to be brothers and sisters and love one another.....this is not the place for hate .....or at least thats what I thought when I came here.

 

it's so prevalent that i don't even bother bringing it up every time i hear a friend or family member say something bigotted. i'm not the mind police. i think the fact that i don't join in and get "that look" should be enough on the subject. i know a lot of people who are otherwise fine human beings who have some ridiculous hold-over bigotries. bigotries that wouldn't stop them from helping said victim should they be stranded on the side of the road. i can live with that degree of idiocy. what i can't live with is the mean bigots who go out of their way to hurt, insult and harm.

 

People cannot be blamed for having prejudices, especially here in the US. Most people lack the fundamental education and intelligence to realize that prejudice is silly. It is much easier for most people to blame others for their problems, and sadly, they are not taught that this is a wrong outlook on life.

Do not point your finger at people like that, THAT's laziness. Educate them, talk to them... show them that it's all good. I've converted plenty of fanatical Republican redneck Christians into not so fanatic middle of the road individuals.

If someone hates gays, expose them to good gay people. If someone hates blacks, expose them to good black people, if someone hates fat people, teach them how there's more cushin' for the pushin'

 

People where I am at are only prejudiced against people who aren't hippies.

As already stated, the important part is to recognize you have prejudices but try to overcome them.

 

Prejudice is bad. You shouldn't take the piss out of people.. like little midgets and stuff. Their people too.. even though they look silly