Minorities

[Rlib]

I find it slightly worrying when reading through posts here I come across a phrase like 'us therians' or 'those nature hating humans'. Sometimes it can be nice to think of yourself as part of a minority united against the evil everyone else but ... everyone else doesn't actually hate therians. At least anymore than they hate blacks, Indians, Jews, Muslims, Bhuddists, martians, wee little men and basically everybody who isn't like them. So in the end the everyone else is actually just a collection of different minorities. So I don't see much point in being angry at people any more than you really need to.

Very incoherent, I know, but hopefully somebody else will explain better what I was trying to say.

[DarkWolf]

This seems more of a focus on philosophy (A system of values by which one lives - in this case the values regarding attitudes towards minorities) than it does Therianthropy.

[WhiteCrowUK]

I guess one of the powers of the internet is it makes it so much easier to find "people like me" - which can be a mixed blessing.

Certainly the things we are drawn to make us slightly outcast - and I would bet everyone here has been bullied at one time or another in school or work for being a little different.

Its nice to know you arent alone. But you have to find a balance. In many ways we're just like the classic super hero. We have a kind of exotic side to us, which allows us to explore places mentally and emotionally which few people are open to.

But we also have to live out our Bruce Wayne/Clark Kent side, of just being a regular person who does all the mundane things everyone else does.

[MorganaFang]

I guess one of the powers of the internet is it makes it so much easier to find "people like me" - which can be a mixed blessing.

Certainly the things we are drawn to make us slightly outcast - and I would bet everyone here has been bullied at one time or another in school or work for being a little different.

Its nice to know you arent alone. But you have to find a balance. In many ways we're just like the classic super hero. We have a kind of exotic side to us, which allows us to explore places mentally and emotionally which few people are open to.

But we also have to live out our Bruce Wayne/Clark Kent side, of just being a regular person who does all the mundane things everyone else does.

Beyond nicely put *is such a sucker for comic analogies*

[WhiteCrowUK]

Beyond nicely put *is such a sucker for comic analogies*

Okay so I have a somewhat Glassian world view! :D

Actually you look at comics and you find that the ones which endure do so because they are only really classic mythological figures with a sci-fi twist. Hence Superman is just an outer space Thor, and Batman an urban Robin Hood.

Damn - its late and I'm going into uber-geek mode! ;)

[LycanSpectre]

Attitudes towards minorities go hand in hand with stereotypes. Especailly when you are talking about racial stereotypes.

If anyone has heard about this flap here about Sister Souljah and her controversial speech she was paid to make, then you've heard of my University. Anyway, now the KKK is demanding that the university hire one of their speakers to come and "address the students". And now, predicatbly, the entire campus is up in arms over racism. All white people are bieng labeled as KKK lovers, despite the fact that many of us have attended the protests against the KKK. It seems like all the black people now hate white people. The stereotypes are extremely unfair, and very irritating. Not to mention the fact that they are all completly WRONG.

The moral of the story: Dont judge a person my the color of thier skin! Judge them for who they are!

Why can't we all just get along?

[Cephas]

Dont judge a person my the color of thier skin!
Or by the number of typo-demons sitting on their shoulders! ;)

[COLONV]

KKK STINKS!Consider myself an anti-racist from the heart.

[Aquilan]

Steriotypes can't be helped. Lets face it, we are all xenophobes, no matter what. Take me for instance: I love foxes, I like wolves too. My dad was even named "Fox" (Todd) But I hate dogs. The big ones anyway. Even if they are domesticated, I'm scared of them, and I'd rather not have them around. Doesn't mean steriotypes are right though. I still do my best to accept my history teachers huge dog. *shivers*

[COLONV]

Steriotypes can't be helped. Lets face it, we are all xenophobes, no matter what. Take me for instance: I love foxes, I like wolves too. My dad was even named "Fox" (Todd) But I hate dogs. The big ones anyway. Even if they are domesticated, I'm scared of them, and I'd rather not have them around. Doesn't mean steriotypes are right though. I still do my best to accept my history teachers huge dog. *shivers*
But you aren,t afraid of the small ones,right.

[Aquilan]

Nah, I own a small one. He's a corgi. ^^ So cute!

[DarkWolf]

Please keep on topic.

[Hellcat]

Please keep on topic.

I think it is on topic providing one accepts that sterotyping and minority "bullying" go hand in hand. I'm thinking that the next question will be two ask why its that aquilan stereotypes large dogs into a fear group and all small dogs into hey cute group. When nine times out of ten it is actually the small dogs that are nasty nippy little bleeders :D My guess is your response to large dogs may be reactive from a previous experience with a large dog? Or perhaps its something you've learned from a family member who has suffered a bad experience from a large dog? Not necessarily a bite, but perhaps knocked down by an over friendly dog when you/family member were a child.

If thats the case one could say that people only "bully" minorities because they have had a bad experience with a member of that minority. This isn't always the case. People are often judgemental about things they do not understand, or they simply fear, what they do not understand they fear, and what they fear they will either run from or attack. Hence some therians resolve into their therianism and gives a middle finger salute to humanity- not because they don't understand humanity, they just can't/won't accept that they are a part of it. By bullying humanity they feel they are holding it as far from themsleves as possible, and thus are in control of (what seems to them as) an otherwise scary situation.

[DarkWolf]

Hellcat: my response was mostly to Aquilan.

[WhiteCrowUK]

If thats the case one could say that people only "bully" minorities because they have had a bad experience with a member of that minority. This isn't always the case. People are often judgemental about things they do not understand, or they simply fear, what they do not understand they fear, and what they fear they will either run from or attack. Hence some therians resolve into their therianism and gives a middle finger salute to humanity- not because they don't understand humanity, they just can't/won't accept that they are a part of it. By bullying humanity they feel they are holding it as far from themsleves as possible, and thus are in control of (what seems to them as) an otherwise scary situation.

I would just like to say thats one of the best paragraphs I've read here! :D

Its true though - when "the human race" marches to a beat which you seem unable to do anything about, it is too easy to distance yourself from it all, to alienate it. And though you are putting on a hard face of being tough and better, the real reason underneath is that you're a lot more sensitive than you'd let on.

[COLONV]

I would just like to say thats one of the best paragraphs I've read here! :D

Its true though - when "the human race" marches to a beat which you seem unable to do anything about, it is too easy to distance yourself from it all, to alienate it. And though you are putting on a hard face of being tough and better, the real reason underneath is that you're a lot more sensitive than you'd let on.As an act of cowardly better said.

[wolf_feahters]

Alot of the minority bashind come's from the want of people to be together. Such as this site. The White Wolf community. The Vamp community, ect...

When one person you trust start's saying something suck's, such as a movie, book, food, you start to feel the same way. Even if you have never read, seen, eaten that thing.

Human's are nothing more then a herd. That's what make's group's such as the KKK, Black Panthers, ect. so powerful. When one man can control other's trough power and fear, he's more likly to make more recruit's.

You also have to look at the paper's. Even though labled "libral" by most right wing member's of the goverment, the paper's are good at making the minority's look bad. Large case in point, a group in Florida in the late 90's that was named the "Vampire Clan". Four teen's from Kentucky got to much into the White Wolf "Vampire: The Masqurade" game. After this, everyone that played in a White Wolf game was sterotyped as "Vampire wannabe's who'd kill their mother".

Sterotyping is humanity's way. It'll take a lot to change it.

[DarkWolf]

When one person you trust start's saying something suck's, such as a movie, book, food, you start to feel the same way. Even if you have never read, seen, eaten that thing.I find that partly funny, I don't know anybody who would base an opinion of something solely on the word of one other person.

If the opinion was shared by the many, a large group of people who had seen the movie or read the book, then you may start to believe them to some extent because while "individual" people can be likeminded sometimes. But even so, most people I know would still understand people are different, and may have different opinions on the same thing, regardless if one person, or a million, said that movie/book sucked.

Yes we have stereotypes and so on, but most stereotypes are taken likely. Large groups, such as KKK or whatever, aren't big simply because the people who join think they have to - many do so because they share the same views or opinions.

EDIT:
And it's "ETC" why does this simple abbreviation get typed so wrong, and so consistently that it can't be a mere typo? It is "etc" it abbreviates: "et cetera" - latin for "and the rest".

Sorry: Pet peeve.

[WhiteCrowUK]

I find that partly funny, I don't know anybody who would base an opinion of something solely on the word of one other person.

In the real world its only a few people who really set public opinion. If you want to know about a film, you tend to read one or two reviews (which are basically someones opinions), you dont picket outside the cinema asking for an en mass set of opinions from people who come out of the film - at least I hope you dont.

Likewise history is full of examples of people doing as a single man suggests. Moses leading the Israelites out of Egypt etc. Hitler managed to get a lot of people to follow his opinions as well.

In my opinion, when you do start basing your opinions on the word of another person, that person is showing leadership traits.

Of course though in these cynical times its hard to believe a word anyone says.

[DarkWolf]

If you want to know about a film, you tend to read one or two reviews (which are basically someones opinions), you dont picket outside the cinema asking for an en mass set of opinions from people who come out of the film - at least I hope you dont.
Must just be where I am then, because around here nobody gives a damn about "reviews" and if we have curiosity about the movie: we just go see it ourselves. It's a couple of quid, nobody minds losing a couple of quid no matter how bad the movie is: because we always leave content that our curiosity is satiated.

Again I stress this is probably just the towns and villages I have lived in, and my experience with the people. If we want to form an opinion on a movie: we go see it. :shrug:

[WhiteCrowUK]

Must just be where I am then, because around here nobody gives a damn about "reviews" and if we have curiosity about the movie: we just go see it ourselves.

Well I live about 20 miles from the nearest cinema (which is a real pain) - so I know when I see a long list of films, I'm only gonna be able to see a few of them at the cinema proper.

Alas I felt the need to ignore opinion and see the Matrix sequels on the big screen (was a let down they were) ...

[COLONV]

What that have to do with minorities.