A Minority View: Fiddling Away the Future

[Run To State]

http://http://econfaculty.gmu.edu/wew/articles/15/FiddlingAwayTheFuture

 

Thoughts?

[born2reign]

It is a very interesting read.

 

I think the author may be confusing some issues while asking some very thought provoking questions.

 

For instance, I don't think any politician would argue that they are digging up Gen. Forrest's bones to improve the social, economic or educational issues raised by the author. I would argue the same can be said of examining the terms used by media.

 

He forces you to think about questions of crime, family structure, and education within the black community- all of which are valid.

 

Maybe the answers to why politicians took the specific action with Gen. Forrest or the media examination lie in the opportunity to develop trust with the black communities of both politicians and media. Maybe the actions are seen as an olive branch, of sorts, to help build the relationships between the varied constituents to help push forward the other work that needs to be done.

 

Definitely an interesting read from Dr. Williams. Studying the works of Dr. Tony Shapiro would offer a great juxtaposition of viewpoints; black professor vs. white professor, economic specialist vs. sociology specialist- stimulates some great discussion, certainly.

[Lawnboy13]

I like reading Walter Williams stuff. Does he still have a column in the Sunday Cincinnati Enquirer?

[ggclfan]

I have always liked Walter Williams because he just tells it like it is. He is right on the main point. As long as the black family unit typically does not include a father figure, overall the black community is going to struggle...and that has nothing to do with white people.

[Run To State]

@born2reign, what are your thoughts on this comment from his article? BTW, I agree with a lot of what you said in post #2 .

 

The bottom line is that even if white people were to become angels tomorrow, it would do nothing for the problems plaguing a large segment of the black community. Illegitimacy, family breakdown, crime and fraudulent education are devastating problems, but they are not civil rights problems. There is little or nothing that government or white people can do to solve these problems. The solution lies with black people.

[born2reign]

@born2reign, what are your thoughts on this comment from his article? BTW, I agree with a lot of what you said in post #2 .

 

He is right to a degree. Exclusively ending all racism and racial privledge tomorrow does not solve any problems.

 

And, of course, minorities must be a part of any solution to racial divide in the U.S. The solution to racial divide won't exclusively come from minorities, however, because minorities do not control all of the systems that need to be revamped to reverse the conditions Dr. Williams described in the article.

 

I compare this situation to the legalization of gay marriage. Gays had to recognize the issue and fight against the inequity, but without pressure to change from non-gays in positions of prominence we, likely, do not see the momentum to address the issue. I don't know that any of the members of the Supreme Court are openly gay and their decision is the major push in this particular change.

 

I would imagine that there are very few, if any, major societal issues plaguing a segment of the population that can exclusively be solved by that segment of the population in a free market democracy like the United States.

[oldgrappler]

What Walter Williams is doing in a very poignant way is showing that the designated problem as defined by political leaders, the media generally, and the leaders of the civil rights movement today is not the problem that is truly affecting the African American community the most. Therefore, the solutions being touted have no chance of working. They do not address those issues that are actually causing all these problems.

 

We should be asking the question, "Why the breakdown in the black family?" What caused this? And did this then lead to other social ills? Maybe it is something that society has been doing and unless we stop doing it the problems will only get worse.

 

As Walter Williams, along with Thomas Sowell--also African American, has pointed out many times in his columns is that the African American family was solid up through the 1940's and there was a high level of employment. Black teens had a higher rate of employment than their white counterparts. Something happened in the intervening decades that has devastated the black family. That is criminal. Whatever that was, we should stop doing it.

 

Apparently, racism wasn't the cause of many of the social ills that now face African Americans because at the time when racism was in its most systemic forms throughout society, they did not have the major issues that now face them. I am in no way suggesting that the Civil Rights movement of the 60's was wrong or that it should not have been done. I am suggesting that what was done in the decades since has been counterproductive. BTW, the white family structure is also following suit. It is still behind where the African American family structure is but it is catching up and resembles the African American family a couple decades ago.

 

Williams' point is that we have NOT named the correct problem and therefore we won't find the correct solution. Trying more of the same and expecting different results, as the old adage goes, is insane.

 

We need civil rights leaders with courage to name it and then point the direction towards a solution and not say the things that will get them elected. As he points out, if African Americans are waiting for politicians to get it right, then they can expect more of the same. The solutions are not political. They are family- and community-related. Local people who have a stake in the outcome, solving local problems will be more effective. I doubt this could prove to be less effective than what has been tried. I think Williams makes a lot of sense.

[PurplePride92]

Walter Williams is an idiot.

[4chs]

I have always liked Walter Williams because he just tells it like it is. He is right on the main point. As long as the black family unit typically does not include a father figure, overall the black community is going to struggle...and that has nothing to do with white people.

 

I thought I recently read where the whole black fathers not being involved in their children's lives was more urban legend than fact, and was actually favorable when compared to white fathers.

[Hatz]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 24 million children in America -- one out of every three -- live in biological father-absent homes. Nine in ten American parents agree this is a “crisis.”

 

Father Facts

 

These are stats that are compiled by census figures that are only interested in the data of "at home" parents being counted and do not examine what "parents" are "doing" regardless of residency.

 

Below is a site that shows some pretty interesting stuff that digs deeper:

 

The Myth Of The Absent Black Father | ThinkProgress

 

In fact, in its coverage of the study, the Los Angeles Times noted that the results “defy stereotypes about black fatherhood” because the CDC found that black dads are more involved with their kids on a daily basis than dads from other racial groups:

 

 

Interesting numbers.

[Hatz]

Here is an article that more profoundly proclaims the stereotype:

 

72 Percent of African-American Children Born to Unwed Mothers - The Root

 

According to government statistics, 72 percent of African-American children are born to unmarried mothers. Dr. Natalie Carroll, an obstetrician who has dedicated her 40-year career to helping black women, feels that this is unfortunate. "The girls don't think they have to get married. I tell them children deserve a mama and a daddy. They really do. A mama can't give it all. And neither can a daddy, not by themselves," Dr. Carroll says. "Part of the reason is because you can only give that which you have. A mother cannot give all that a man can give. A truly involved father figure offers more fullness to a child's life."

 

 

I wonder if the discussion is in two different spheres:

 

1. Unwed mothers are on the rise.

 

2. Father's roles are initiated from outside the domicile.

[BigVMan23]

Walter Williams is an idiot.

 

 

Care to expand on that assessment?

[PurplePride92]

Care to expand on that assessment?

 

Nope.

[Jim Schue]

Here is an article that more profoundly proclaims the stereotype:

 

72 Percent of African-American Children Born to Unwed Mothers - The Root

 

According to government statistics, 72 percent of African-American children are born to unmarried mothers. Dr. Natalie Carroll, an obstetrician who has dedicated her 40-year career to helping black women, feels that this is unfortunate. "The girls don't think they have to get married. I tell them children deserve a mama and a daddy. They really do. A mama can't give it all. And neither can a daddy, not by themselves," Dr. Carroll says. "Part of the reason is because you can only give that which you have. A mother cannot give all that a man can give. A truly involved father figure offers more fullness to a child's life."

 

 

I wonder if the discussion is in two different spheres:

 

1. Unwed mothers are on the rise.

 

2. Father's roles are initiated from outside the domicile.

 

I see a lot of No. 2 happening today.

 

I also think it's fair to point out that the common occurrence of the black family being split up by slavery at least plays some part in this historical trend.

[ggclfan]

What Walter Williams is doing in a very poignant way is showing that the designated problem as defined by political leaders, the media generally, and the leaders of the civil rights movement today is not the problem that is truly affecting the African American community the most. Therefore, the solutions being touted have no chance of working. They do not address those issues that are actually causing all these problems.

 

We should be asking the question, "Why the breakdown in the black family?" What caused this? And did this then lead to other social ills? Maybe it is something that society has been doing and unless we stop doing it the problems will only get worse.

 

As Walter Williams, along with Thomas Sowell--also African American, has pointed out many times in his columns is that the African American family was solid up through the 1940's and there was a high level of employment. Black teens had a higher rate of employment than their white counterparts. Something happened in the intervening decades that has devastated the black family. That is criminal. Whatever that was, we should stop doing it.

 

Apparently, racism wasn't the cause of many of the social ills that now face African Americans because at the time when racism was in its most systemic forms throughout society, they did not have the major issues that now face them. I am in no way suggesting that the Civil Rights movement of the 60's was wrong or that it should not have been done. I am suggesting that what was done in the decades since has been counterproductive. BTW, the white family structure is also following suit. It is still behind where the African American family structure is but it is catching up and resembles the African American family a couple decades ago.

 

Williams' point is that we have NOT named the correct problem and therefore we won't find the correct solution. Trying more of the same and expecting different results, as the old adage goes, is insane.

 

We need civil rights leaders with courage to name it and then point the direction towards a solution and not say the things that will get them elected. As he points out, if African Americans are waiting for politicians to get it right, then they can expect more of the same. The solutions are not political. They are family- and community-related. Local people who have a stake in the outcome, solving local problems will be more effective. I doubt this could prove to be less effective than what has been tried. I think Williams makes a lot of sense.

 

Great post!