philosophy/sociology – Medusa kisses

October 16, 2021November 1, 2021

Racism in America: Values & Myths

As Americans, we cherish the values of equality and opportunity (which are enshrined directly and indirectly, respectively, in the U.S. Declaration of Independence ). Thus, we have a responsibility to create and maintain policies and culture which ensure equal opportunities and freedom for all who inhabit this great country.

However, based on consistently disparate outcomes, we have some problems with these values in practice. Some racial groups (e.g., Black Americans), when compared to White Americans, are disproportionately affected by: low graduation rates; high arrest/incarceration rates; low representation in senior leadership; high poverty; & low household wealth.

The explanation for these ongoing racial disparities can be found either in the idea that it’s something inherent to each racial group, such as culture or biology, or, in the idea that our policies and culture have created a system of disadvantages for some racial groups versus systematic advantages for other racial groups. These 2 potential explanations represent “racism” and “antiracism” respectively.

May 28, 2021June 3, 2021

Diversity & Inclusion for Hiring

In the wake of the 2020 Movement for Black Lives, and continued attention in 2021, many companies and organizations are championing racial diversity. Those taking it seriously (and not just paying lip service) are evaluating diversity and inclusion within their employee base, and considering changes to recruitment and hiring.

Some background on me: I have a professional interest in hiring (20 years as Quality Engineer for a popular Hiring Software) and personal passion for empathy and diversity. Following the racially charged events of spring 2020, thousands of work colleagues (including me) became engaged with diversity/antiracism discussions and events at my very large company. At work, I co-facilitated an anti-racist book club (through 7 books) and was a panelist in several livestream events discussing race relations in America.

Therefore, I consider myself to have an elevated perception into diversity hiring. Following are 6 recommended areas for improving diversity throughput in your hiring process (see also references at the end):

Increase Outreach, Reform Background Check Process, Focus on Skills (Over Means or Fit), Limit Salary Consideration, Anonymize Candidate Data, Build Culture of Inclusion

December 21, 2020

Antiracist Letter Template

Having participating in 4 different antiracist book clubs (so far), I created the following template in response to, “what can I do?” questions that inevitably come up when people’s eyes are opened to the long history and pervasive present of racism & white supremacy. The template is intended for contacting companies that you do regular business with (e.g., bank, phone company, cable company, subscription services) in order to A. let them know customers care, B. push them to be transparent about their practices and C. push them to be better in countering racism.

December 14, 2019December 14, 2019

Aces Wild (Asexuality & Queerness)

Where does asexuality fit within the queer spectrum? Nowhere? Everywhere? Although not myself asexual, I find this an interesting question because I’m also an outlier, albeit in a different way.

First, some definitions:
Asexuality is defined by a non-temporary lack of sexual attraction (e. g., someone who rarely, if ever, experiences sexual attraction or desire).
Ace is a shortened version of “asexual” and commonly used for self-identification among those who are asexual, similar to terms like, “gay” or “straight.”

For an ace perspective / definition (and a really good doorknob analogy), check out Echo Gillette’s YouTube video: Coming out as asexual.

“Queer” was a term originally used by mainstream people to circumspectly or pejoratively refer to those they considered homosexuals; later, queerness was reclaimed by gay. lesbian, bisexual and trans activists (becoming known as the LGBT community).

June 22, 2019June 27, 2019

Antichrist Christians

It is absurd yet true that many self-styled “Christians” exemplify attitudes and beliefs antithetical to the teachings of Jesus Christ, and thus are “antichrist” (which I’m using here as an adjective meaning “opposing Christ” and not as a noun in the sense of “evil prophet” as is more commonly used).

I understand the key themes of Jesus’s teachings to be love, helping others and humility. He made a point of being kind to those most hated in his era: tax collectors, prostitutes and lepers. He disparaged the wealthy and the self-righteous, instead encouraging compassion and simplicity. Many of his parables center around helping strangers in need.

Unfortunately, many self-proclaimed Christians espouse opposite behaviors: intolerance, self-righteousness, cruelty and greed.

March 26, 2019March 26, 2019

All the rage: capitalism

I haven’t posted in a long while, in strong part because I’ve been angry / frustrated / distressed about the current result of decades of government-distrust-mongering and neoliberalist capitalism. Result being that our government is dysfunctional, non-representative and financial disparities are wider than ever. Which has led to widespread disenfranchisement and higher susceptibility to manipulations and lies.

Capitalism, at its root = Competitive Greed

If we could strip away the glamour of that C-word, and an outsider were to consider the concept of “competitive greed” as a baseline for an economic system or government, they would not expect it to result in social good nor any sort of balance; rather, it would result in few winners and many losers in the “game.”

August 31, 2017

Black Lives Matter: a Primer for Whites

Dear White Person (& North American),

If you’re confused or upset by the “Black Lives Matter” movement, please first try translating it in your mind into “Black Lives Should Matter As Much as White Lives.” That’s what it really means; it’s just the shorter version is catchier.

The problem is that much of our society acts as if black lives don’t matter*, unlike white lives, which clearly do matter to everyone. So the Black Lives Matter movement sprung up as a way to protest the “don’t matter” ideology (& especially the consequence-free murders of black folk). Continue reading “Black Lives Matter: a Primer for Whites”

August 27, 2017August 27, 2017

Reclaiming the Conversation: “Alt-right” = Bigot-right

One thing social traditionalists are brilliant at is re-branding their “anti” positions with positive or neutral terms, such as Pro-Life (vs. Anti-Abortion/Anti-Sex), and now “alt-right.” Those of us who reject their ideology can also reject their terminology.

To my recollection, “alternative” as a category-defining adjective became widely popular in the early 1990s as a description for a modern variation on rock music, “alternative rock” (or “alternative” or “alt-rock”), then later a similar modern variation on country music, “alt-country.” With the “alt-right,” the so-called “alternative” is an ideology of extreme bigotry, seeking to mainstream a class-by-race/sex/ethnicity system, which is their mythologized* version of the American past, where any White Heterosexual, Non-Jewish Man is born to social & economic domination.

For music styles, “alternative” or “alt-” is a neutral indicator of a different flavor in a classic genre. For the political extreme right, “alt-” is an attempt to imply a modern and neutral variation, but this variation is anything but neutral. Continue reading “Reclaiming the Conversation: “Alt-right” = Bigot-right”

July 31, 2017July 31, 2017

Don’t Feed the Greed

Capitalism is the premier greed-based economic system, which takes no heed of consequences in the pyramid-game of asset accumulation (profits, products/goods, wealth, etc.).

Industry members, news media & critics alike often talk about the corporate side of things: predictions or goals for ever-increasing profits, share price valuation/manipulation, workforce reduction (& other methods of pushing down the price of “human capital”), material costs, supply chain innovation, etc.

However, it’s not just the magical “persons” known as corporations who are driving the race to the bottom, but also the real people who buy things. Yes, the consumer side is also greed-driven; we are trained from childhood to want as many things as we can get, and at the cheapest prices. Continue reading “Don’t Feed the Greed”

June 6, 2017June 10, 2017

Reclaiming the Conversation: “Cowardice”

Whenever there’s a new terrorist attack such as the May 2017 attack on Ariana Grande concertgoers in Manchester, I hear myriad voices proclaiming it “cowardly” or an act of “cowardice.” I always thought this was strange. What in particular about a suicide bomber coincides with the meaning of “cowardice”?

From dictionary.com, cowardice is: “lack of courage to face danger, difficulty, opposition, pain, etc.”

Suicide bombers are perhaps the ultimate facers of danger, difficulty, opposition, pain, etc. Even non-suicide terrorists face substantial danger and difficulty. If anything, terrorists virtually fearless; one wishes they were more fearful (fearful enough not to do such horrible things). Continue reading “Reclaiming the Conversation: “Cowardice””