It was reported today that a West End play will be shown to an all-black audience. Amy Gallagher, the mayoral candidate for London’s Social Democratic Party said the plan was racist. She is reported to have said

This is definitely racist. Excluding anyone on the basis of skin colour in this way is racist.

Most people would agree with her.

We have here an example of cognitive dissonance; the self proclaimed anti-racists adopting a racist policy by barring certain people from the theatre because of the colour of their skin.

The theory of cognitive dissonance was first revealed to the world by Leon Festinger in 1957. According to TheoryHub. His theory was

Based on the belief that people strive toward consistency within themselves and are driven to make changes to reduce or eliminate an inconsistency.

His theory was that if someone held two views (or cognitions) which conflicted with one another, they would suffer psychological discomfort, and the individual would be motivated to act to resolve that conflict.

According to TheoryHub,

A considerable number of empirical studies have demonstrated how people seek out new information and external justification to support their position.

One such justification is provided by the notion that racism is reliant on a power dynamic. Take for example an article by ThoughtCo in which is discussed supposed anti-white discrimination. The author takes the view that anti-white discrimination does not exist, indeed it cannot exist, because black people do not have the institutional power to affect the lives of white people. QED, white people cannot be the victims of racism.

So there you have it; to avoid the psychological discomfort that comes from holding conflicting points of view simply change the definition of unhelpful words. Simple really.

#racism

Remind me, isn't the Conservative Party supposed to be racist? You know, the Party holding the leadership election, in which 3 of the 6 candidates are from ethnic minority backgrounds? Yeah, that Party.

#politics journal #racism

According to reports in the media the founder of BLM in America Patrisse Cullors paid her baby's father $970,000 for 'creative services', her brother $840,000 for security, and a fellow director $2.1m.

Money well spent, I'm sure.

I tell you what though, race baiting is a lucrative money spinner.

#racism

The arrant nonsense espoused by Critical Race Theory should be banned from schools

According to a report from the BBC the Education Select Committee have concluded that;

Poorer white children underachieve and have been “let down and neglected”.

The Committee's comments have been reported widely, but is this really news? This is after all, an issue that we have known about for years. As mentioned in my earlier post, Whose Lives Matter, as long ago as 2010 Nick Clegg, the then deputy Prime Minister, produced the report Opening Doors, Breaking Barriers: A Strategy for Social Mobility, where it was revealed that 20% of children received free school meals (FSM), and yet this group represented just 1% of Oxbridge students. This disparity affected children across all ethnic groups.

A further report completed for the Department of Education in 2015, Ethnicity, deprivation and educational achievement at age 16 in England, contains the following;

Among those entitled to free school meals (FSM) all ethnic minority groups achieve greater success than White British pupils. In 2013 relative to White British students the odds for Chinese pupils achieving 5 good GCSE's including maths and English (5EM) were 6.9 times greater, for Indian students 3.4 times greater, for Bangladeshi 3.0 times, for White other 1.6 times, for Black Caribbean 1.5 times and even for the lowest achieving minority group, Mixed White & Black Caribbean students, the odds of achieving 5EM were 1.26 times (26%) higher than for White British students.

The latest report from the Education Select Committee simply emphasises the point that children from deprived backgrounds continue to under achieve, that nothing has changed in the last decade. Furthermore, it is also quite apparent that white children from deprived areas are not privileged, anymore than the skin colour of a child from an ethnic background is akin to a disability. The arrant nonsense espoused by Critical Race Theory should immediately be banned from schools, and instead all children, regardless of their ethnic background, should be given the training and encouragement they need to make the very best of their lives.

22nd June 2021

#education #racism

The race baiters are only interested in fanning the flames. They have no interest in trying to heal the divisions.

The constant lecturing on race is becoming tiresome. The failure to even engage with the arguments raised by the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities is dispiriting. Why can its critics not even countenance the possibility that racism is not the sole explanation for the different outcomes between those of differing ethnic groups?

For example, where coronavirus is concerned, the data indicates that black and Asian people are affected worse than white. Is this racism? Black people suffer with sickle cell disease in far higher numbers than do people of other races. Many people from the Indian sub-continent are lactose intolerant. Could ones reaction to coronavirus, and the differing outcomes, in fact arise from genetics or customs?

Black women are reported to suffer disproportionality high levels of complications during pregnancy compared with white women. When the NHS is staffed in disproportionality high numbers by doctors and nurses of back and Asian heritage can racism really be the only possible explanation for the differences?

As for the point raised by the report that some poor white children are in a worse position than their black neighbours, for some that is simply heresy. The critics find it so much easier to attack the authors of the report than to accept that the authors may have a point.

As I have said before, the race baiters are only interested in fanning the flames. They have no interest in trying to heal the divisions.

21st April 2021

#racism

Amidst the mayhem and uncertainty, the government has proven to be next to useless.

We are now officially into autumn. The days are shortening noticeably, but it has remained warm and pleasant. The summer madness that has afflicted society also continues unabated.

This week has seen a growing number of people testing positive for the coronavirus, the numbers increasing at a rate similar to that experienced in February. However, the numbers being admitted to hospital has not risen at the same alarming rate it did in the spring. The experts cannot explain why this might be.

There are numerous local restrictions in place, and talk of another nationwide lockdown. An assortment of malcontents, opposed to lockdowns, face masks and vaccines, were out on the streets of London over the weekend to protest against the current measures and the consequent impingement on civil liberties. Some violence ensued as the police tried to control the demonstration.

The culture wars show no signs of ending. What I find odd is that we are told we live in a multi cultural society, that we should celebrate and embrace diversity, but it is only white/European culture that has to confront its history, that has to change. Say the same of any other culture, and you would be denounced as a racist.

Some footballers have taken the brave step of refusing to take the knee before every match, and of course they are vilified by some for doing so. Their refusal to kneel put me in mind of a paragraph written by Hannah Arendt in her book The Origins of Totalitarianism;

Men have been found to resist the most powerful monarchs and to refuse to bow down before them, but few indeed have been found to resist the crowd, to stand up alone before misguided masses, to face their implacable frenzy without weapons and with folded arms to dare a no when a yes is demanded.

The demands of BLM and their acolytes, expecting all to kneel before them, and dispensing swift and sometimes violent penalties against those who don't, is the very definition of totalitarianism. They have become the very thing they profess to oppose.

Amidst the mayhem and uncertainty, the government has proven to be next to useless. Their policies change from week to week, there is no consistency, no obvious route out of the current crisis. Boris Johnson is rarely seen and there is a complete lack of leadership. It feels as if the country is drifting. People are concerned, if not scared; the pandemic is out of control, we are worried about job security, and whether some will be able to keep a roof over their heads.

To continue drifting risks deepening the divisions within society. If Mr Johnson cannot provide the strong leadership this country needs he should step aside and let someone who has the capability take his place.

21st September 2020

#coronavirus #politics #racism

How can any right minded person think that castigating the people, culture and history of the host nation will bring an end to racism?

I wrote the following back in September 2018;

Apparently next week is Cultural Diversity Week, and it seems that my employer is wholeheartedly supporting this initiative. There will be videos and seminars, and no doubt every senior member of the management team will be issuing emails extolling the virtues of multiculturalism. I have no doubt it will also be one of the topics at the next training meeting.

The company is not alone, all big businesses are trying to portray themselves as woke, to ensure there is no backslash from the illiberal left, to ensure they can continue to sell products to those who self define as Communist anti-captilists. The irony of the situation.

The vehemence directed at persons or organisations that do not accept the diversity and multicultural agenda is fierce and one can understand why most feel it is easier simply to accept the dogma rather than question it. But does diversity training really encourage inclusion?

How can emphasising the differences help us forget the differences? How can diversity training reduce the notion of us and them that underpins racist attitudes? Surely the way to bring people of all backgrounds together is to emphasise those aspects that unite us. So in the case of our employment, the fact we work for the same business, we work as a team, we all have broadly similar goals and aspirations, and we all want to succeed.

It seems a simple enough notion to me, but I suspect mine will be a lone voice at next week’s meeting.

Two years on, and the madness continues. Now it is not enough to accept the notion that cultural diversity brings nothing but benefits. Now we must also accept that all white people are inherently racist, that we must apologies for the wrong doings of people long dead and that the history of the indigenous majority must be “decolonised”. Continued unchecked we will be expected to enthusiastically accept all cultures, with the exception of our own, which we will be required to denounce.

How can this be right? How can any right minded person think that castigating the people, culture and history of the host nation will bring an end to racism? It won't, but of course we know that isn't the aim of #BLM and its ilk. Racial disharmony is big business; just look at the amounts pledged to BLM UK, and you will see there are plenty of people who have a vested interest in promoting and continuing disharmony.

It is time, whatever your skin colour or racial background, to start pushing back, to stand as one against their destructive agenda.

8th September 2020

#racism

Don't they see the irony that they, from their privileged positions, are berating a society that gave them the opportunity to make a success of their lives?

I imagine that the white homeless people one sees sleeping rough in the city centres are so grateful to have enjoyed the benefits of white privilege. And I'm sure people from the BAME communities appreciate their skin colour being likened to a disability.

Have you noticed that those who preach about the evils of white privilege are very often celebrities of colour? Don't they see the irony that they, from their privileged positions, are berating a society that gave them the opportunity to make a success of their lives? Why can't those black people who have succeeded in business, sport, the arts, etc, tell us how they realised that success?

Rather than promulgating division and disharmony, I for one would much rather learn how they succeeded. They are exemplars of what can be achieved in modern Britain, and they could be an inspiration to all, regardless of racial or social backgrounds.

7th August 2020

#racism

The lockdown madness is set to continue for some time

In recent weeks the pubs and restaurants have been allowed to open. I have enjoyed visiting favourite watering holes, sitting around with friends and family talking and drinking real cask ales! It is though a little strange being served by staff wearing masks, but if that is the price we have to pay for a degree of normality, I can live with it.

As for the schools, can you believe that after being closed between March and July, they reopened for a couple of weeks, and then promptly closed again for the summer holidays. These are exceptional times, and I don't understand why the schools did not remain open during the summer and help the children catch up with their education. There is still concern about whether the schools should open in September. There is some speculation that pubs and restaurants may have to close again to offset the risk of schools opening. How one relates to the other, I do not understand, but the fear of a second wave has paralysed society. Are we now so risk averse then we cannot contemplate returning to work or allowing schools to open until such time as a vaccine is developed? Of course, a vaccine is not likely to be available for months, but already we are seeing daily reports of jobs being shed; the damage being wrought on peoples livelihoods and wellbeing will, if we are not careful, be so much worse than the effects of the pandemic.

Meanwhile, the virtuous left continue with their nonsense. White privilege, unconscious bias, decolonizing the curriculum, 2+2=5. I am tired of these charlatans trying to rip this country apart. How does it help society when one is castigated for being the “wrong” colour? How can the noxious bilge they spout break down racial division? Of course, it is obvious to anyone with a modicum of sense that all it does is stoke the flames, widen the divisions. The inflammatory rhetoric has consequences; over the weekend a black “militia” paraded through the streets of Brixton. I have no idea what point they were trying to make but some described the turn of events as sinister. I have to say they looked about as threatening as Dad's Army, but there may be some agitators out there who will want to respond in kind.

Social distancing rules are being ignored, parties and raves attended by hundreds routinely take place around the country, and if the police try and disperse the revellers, they get attacked. Respect for law and order is in places breaking down, and with another hot spell forecast for the next few days, I worry that we will see more disturbances if not riots. I suspect the lockdown madness will continue for some time yet.

5th August 2020

#coronavirus #education #racism

If we cannot agree on even the most basic objective facts, instead of reaching for the stars, mankind will be hobbled.

Can you do addition? What’s one and one and one and one and one and one and one and one and one and one?

The White Queen from Alice in Wonderland, asking what today is a very pertinent question. When academics are telling us that in certain circumstances 2+2=5, when numbers are described as a variable, or that “treating math as a universal upholds white supremacy”, one can't help but think we have disappeared a long way down the rabbit hole. To begin with I couldn't make up my mind whether the people making these ridiculous comments really believed what they said, or were simply having a joke at our expense. I had hoped it was the latter, but sadly it appears to be the former.

Either the well was very deep, or she fell very slowly, for she had plenty of time as she went down to look about her and to wonder what was going to happen next.

Much like Alice, we are left to wonder what will come next, although I suspect we have a long way to go before we reach the bottom of this well. The assault on western culture, science and history, the efforts to twist and distort all facts to fit arbitrary social justice templates will no doubt continue. Adherents of the new orthodoxy will try to push the advances of the Enlightenment to the periphery in favour of “other ways of thinking”.

I am under no obligation to make sense to you

The Mad Hatter was, well, mad, so we can make some allowances for his comment. The same cannot be said of those academics who try to persuade us that 2+2 can equal 5. If we cannot agree on even the most basic objective facts, instead of reaching for the stars, mankind will be hobbled. There will be no advances in science and technology, and development of the vaccines needed to fight future pandemics will grind to a halt.

In those circumstances, the future would be anything but a wonderland.

4th August 2020

#racism