Crash, Michael Richards and a police shooting in San Antonio

Editor's Note: This sat on my desktop for a long time 7/8 finished. I couldn't get the end right without being preachy myself, and I'm still not, um, comfortable making a sweeping generalization about older people. Sort makes me a prejudice against older people, and you know, I'm getting to be one of those myself!

My first Netflix movie selection was Crash, last year’s academy award winner for best picture. Watching award winning movies is one of thing you do to tell yourself not a simpleton. You know, you can talk about watching a movie like that to feel like you’re in the sophisticated crowd. Unfortunately, chances are, most of your friends are busy watching Duece Bigalow movies, and don’t know about Academy awards. Anyway, after I watched (actually, during) Crash, I said, real people just aren’t racist like that anymore. Before you protest, hear me out. In my rose-colored world, racism really is highly unusual, so I keep hoping.

One of the things I love about the military; racism is seriously frowned upon and there are fairly equal opportunities for all races. We attend yearly training. More importantly, I’ve never heard a senior military leader say anything remotely racist. It doesn’t happen. Racist comments or behavior can end the career of the highest general down to the newest Airman. Sure, statistically, our promotion rates may have some discrepancies, and I’m not sure all races are equally represented in all positions (read fighter pilots, the only position that counts). But as an organization, prejudice and racism just aren’t part of service. Serving next to people of all races sort of dampens the fertile breeding ground of racism by replacing ignorance with experience and wisdom.

Some other reasons for my rose-colored view of racism in America have to do with living in San Antonio. In San Antonio, white people are out-numbered by the “minority” Hispanic population. If you started spouting racist epithets about Hispanics, you would offend someone pretty damn fast. Chances are, even if you are talking to an obviously “white” person, they could be married to a Hispanic person, or they work for one. Either way, it’s pointless, ignorant behavior. I just don’t see race. Like the man said, I prefer to judge people by the content of their character. While people certainly fit stereo types (I’m white and nerdy…), you can’t know anything about them until you meet them. Even more evidence of the folly of prejudice, genetic studies have show greater variability within races than between normalized, averaged genetic differences between the so-called races. Finally, one more thing, I’ve been around the Deep South a little, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi . I’m sure the old racism isn’t dead, but I’ve seen many mixed race couples greeted warmly by everyone else in the community. Nobody gives it a second thought anymore; it’s just a part of life. In my world, racism seems like dying issue.

So, this was my thesis, this old-school racism is just hold-out from the baby boomer generation. In other words, you have to be over the age of about 38-45 to spout stupid things about Jews like Mel Gibson or even stupider things at comedy clubs like Kramer. Younger people just don’t even think that way. Indeed, Kramer’s little episode was a step in bursting this little bubble of mine. He falls safely in that too old to really get it block. Of course, these generalizations can quickly lead you down the wrong road. Look all I’m really saying is that the younger generation isn’t going to have the same hang-ups. They were raised in a different environment.

Then I read a story that happened right here in San Antonio. Some policeman shot a man (black) because he “had something shiny in hands.” Apparently, there was a crime reported earlier in the evening, and this gentleman “matched” the description. I say matched, because he was black, close enough for the San Antonio Police, I guess. Look I know these guys have a tough job, but seriously, we don’t have many “black” gangs here in Texas, most of the gangsters here are Hispanic.

Then I watched Crash. Crash raises some excellent question about race I don’t disagree with. Prejudice is almost the natural state of human behavior. While Crash points our lingering prejudices, what was life like in pre-history? What are other countries and cultures like? I suspect that as a group, they are much more racist, prejudiced and small minded than most Americans (there I go again, get out your brooms for my generalizations). I really want Crash to be a caricature of our world, a typical preachy Hollywood version of America. Is it close to caricature or not? I guess I don’t know.

But I do I know love Netflix. Check out my Queue in the links.