I don't get it, even as I do
Jan. 26th, 2017 02:43 pmRod Dreher over at the American Conservative has a hair-pulling pair of letters today from readers that he has entitled Creating The White Tribe. Let's forgo the important observations that there has been a "white tribe" in America since at least Article 1, Section 2, paragraph 3 of the United States Constitution ("Representation and direct taxes shall be apportioned ... according to a whole number of free persons ... and three-fifths of all others persons.") and look through these complaints.
His first writer complains that he's "very lower middle class," and yet "If you listen to the left, I'm swimming in privilege." Another says that the "histrionics on the left have made me more racist, more sexist, and more homophobic than I've ever been in my entire life."
LBJ's observation still rings true: "If you can convince the lowest white man he's better than the best colored man, he won't notice you're picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he'll empty his pockets for you." These men are looking for someone to pick their pockets. The second admits he was already homophobic, sexist, and racist, the recent show of strength by others has only made him more committed to his straight, white, masculine view.
Neither writer has ever been told that he has to speak for his entire group, or had someone come up and say, "Why do white guys riot after they win a baseball game?" or "Why do white guys commit so much domestic violence?" Cops have never used their skin color as a proxy for a threat. If they get violent with the police, the odds of their coming out alive are signficantly highter. Now they're being asked to defend themselves, and... they can't. They just can't. The best they can manage is a pipsqueak, "Well, I'm not the bad guy here, I can't be, I'm poor."
So what? Black people are overall more poor. Women are overall more poor. The system maybe isn't serving these guys, but it's actively suppressing others. If you don't think that's privilege, well, I don't care about your problems.
I wanted to say I get these guys. And in a way, I do. I understand the wish for "the warm embrace [of a white tribe] that tell me it's okay to be a white guy." But I'm also a man with morals and ethics that tells me that there's a difference between heritage and kyriarchy, and mistaking one for the other is what got us here in the first place.
His first writer complains that he's "very lower middle class," and yet "If you listen to the left, I'm swimming in privilege." Another says that the "histrionics on the left have made me more racist, more sexist, and more homophobic than I've ever been in my entire life."
LBJ's observation still rings true: "If you can convince the lowest white man he's better than the best colored man, he won't notice you're picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he'll empty his pockets for you." These men are looking for someone to pick their pockets. The second admits he was already homophobic, sexist, and racist, the recent show of strength by others has only made him more committed to his straight, white, masculine view.
Neither writer has ever been told that he has to speak for his entire group, or had someone come up and say, "Why do white guys riot after they win a baseball game?" or "Why do white guys commit so much domestic violence?" Cops have never used their skin color as a proxy for a threat. If they get violent with the police, the odds of their coming out alive are signficantly highter. Now they're being asked to defend themselves, and... they can't. They just can't. The best they can manage is a pipsqueak, "Well, I'm not the bad guy here, I can't be, I'm poor."
So what? Black people are overall more poor. Women are overall more poor. The system maybe isn't serving these guys, but it's actively suppressing others. If you don't think that's privilege, well, I don't care about your problems.
I wanted to say I get these guys. And in a way, I do. I understand the wish for "the warm embrace [of a white tribe] that tell me it's okay to be a white guy." But I'm also a man with morals and ethics that tells me that there's a difference between heritage and kyriarchy, and mistaking one for the other is what got us here in the first place.
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