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From: mms1646@acf4.UUCP (Michael M. Sykora)
Newsgroups: net.politics
Subject: Re: Discrimination and Affirmative Action
Message-ID: <1340120@acf4.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 28-May-85 00:09:00 EDT
Article-I.D.: acf4.1340120
Posted: Tue May 28 00:09:00 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 30-May-85 08:09:59 EDT
References: <266@unc.UUCP>
Organization: New York University
Lines: 41

>/* carnes@gargoyle.UChicago.UUCP (Richard Carnes) / 10:12 pm  May 26, 1985 */

>But why on earth is it wrong to require that each person have a fair
>chance to be hired, free from the handicap of racist and sexist
>attitudes?

Because such measures interfere with the employer's property rights,
and, perhaps, the employer's right to hold racist and sexist opinions.

>  And what way is there to ensure that this is accomplished
>other than some percentage standard, short of preventing the employer
>from knowing the race or sex of the applicant, and short of that day
>when racist and sexist attitudes will be rare?

There is no other way.  In fact, the method you have proposed, i.e.,
"some percentage standard," cannot accomplish this either, because
percentage standards necessarily discriminate against people on the
basis of their race, sex, etc., and are, therefore, rascist, sexist,
etc. by definition.

>Saying that the approach of affirmative action and equal opportunity
>laws is identical with that of the KKK is just beneath contempt.  The
>Klan is a racist group devoted to "racial purity" and persecution of
>blacks and others.

He didn't write "approach," he wrote "attitude."  However, I agree that
the attitudes are significantly dissimilar.  I believe Cramer was saying that
these two attitudes are similar in that they both treat people as members
of a group as opposed to individuals.

> . . .  One wouldn't have thought that such transparent
>arguments in favor of racial and sexual inequality would be put forth
>by college-educated adults; that is, before one became familiar with
>the troglodyte preserve known as the Netnews and its large population
>of Missing Links.

Oh, shut up!

>Richard Carnes, ihnp4!gargoyle!carnes

						Mike Sykora