Mea Culpa: Careful What You Wish For

So earlier I was complaining that I don't get enough death threats. I still don't, but I did earn the ire of half my readership.

When I reposted this video from Where Are My Keys?, he took it to mean I was directly calling him a racist. I want to apologize for this, but the way I'm going to do it probably won't mend any fences. I gotta make the distinction between conscious and unconscious racism here. Very few people are conscious racists. Lewis Farakkhan, David Dukes, the Taliban; they actively believe that members of another race must be stopped and are actively campaigning for it. Almost everyone else, including me, is unconsciously racist. Rationally we know that all people are created equal, but when presented with someone who looks or acts different enough we react with aversion, or fear.

The video is a case in point. The people who made it chose to concentrate entirely on black homeless people, even though you could see some homeless white folk in the background. Why did they find the black subjects more compelling? Unconscious racism. Why is the video spreading now? (I hear Drudge is having trouble keeping up with the demand) *

I'll say it now, the black element isn't the only reason people would spread this video. I'm a little queasy about the idea of registering homeless winos to vote too. And I'd rather the wino vote was spread a little more evenly across party lines. And while the founding fathers preferred that the electorate was educated and engaged, it's a guideline and not a law. (Also, no one is following these guys into the booth. Nothing is stopping them from grabbing their ride and free pizza rolls and then voting for Ron Paul.)

But if the video had made these points using more white folk and less black folk, I bet it wouldn't be as viral as it is. And I bet almost nobody is consciously  thinking "all black people are homeless" or "all black people vote for Obama" or "If Obama wins he'll only help the blacks." But on some level, in the back of our brains, as a sub-routine, it's running. And that's why this will be bigger than the Dan Rather letter without even trying.

Couple of hundred years of evolution may finally put a stop to it, but it ain't happening this month.

So MD and GWK, I'm sorry you took away from the post what you did. The only consolation I can offer you is I'm insulting myself along with ya, so we should ALL hate me.

Hey, since I'm attempting an apology, could you at least consider me a gracious asshole? It'd mean the world to me.

* No I don't. Drudge can't keep up with the demand for this.  Its authenticity is not established.