Multiculturalism:
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GottaBigOne
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I'd say that the Ayn Rand Institute is making an argument against a straw man. They frame the debate between and "Advanced Industrialized" culture, versus a "primitive Tribal" one, and its not that simple. I don't believe that "Multiculturism" necessarily is defined as being the belief that all cultures are equal, and that is the straw man. All cultures are of some value, some less and some more, depending on what you happen to value. I do believe however that trying to preserve a culture is a legitimate feeling to have, although to me I believe that that is on par with unnecessary paranoia. The influx of immigrants, which is what I know this about, will not destroy a "host" culture, it will only change it. The change can be good, or it can be bad, but "destroy" is too strong of a word. Yes, the original culture will remain no more, but immigrants do not have a strong enough impact to totally anihilate a culture. There is a certain amount of assimilation that immigrants have to make. Industrialzed nations don't have to worry about witch doctors and tribal mentality. There's nothing to fear.
What I want to know is: how many of my people would rather be in a place where it's all black folks. I don't think there would be many. Also, I'm sure the lack of white women would drive some Negroes insane.
It'd be a smoldering grotto hell within a month.
It'd be a smoldering grotto hell within a month.
Is there a difference between pluralism and multiculturalism? I agree and disagree with both sides presented in your referenced articles.
To emigrate from one country to another, and then try resist any influence of that new culture, is absurd.
It would seem to me that the most desirable outcome would be to maintain one's cultural identity, but at the same time embrace the culture of one's new home.
Assimilation, "Borg-style," is not good. Neither is fascist isolationism. Why is it so difficult to teach children, "This is a tradition from our ancestors. That is a tradition where we now live. Both are good, learn and practice them both, be proud that you have not just one, but two (or three or sixty) cultures."
To emigrate from one country to another, and then try resist any influence of that new culture, is absurd.
It would seem to me that the most desirable outcome would be to maintain one's cultural identity, but at the same time embrace the culture of one's new home.
Assimilation, "Borg-style," is not good. Neither is fascist isolationism. Why is it so difficult to teach children, "This is a tradition from our ancestors. That is a tradition where we now live. Both are good, learn and practice them both, be proud that you have not just one, but two (or three or sixty) cultures."
orionsword57: "Multiculturalism seeks to obliterate the value of a free, industrialized civilization (which today exists in the West and elsewhere), by declaring that such a civilization is no better than primitive tribalism. More deeply, it seeks to incapacitate a minds ability to distinguish good from evil, to distinguish that which is life promoting from that which is life negating."
This portion of the Ayn Rand response is such rubbish that I'm frankly surprised that they would deem to publish it, much less believe it. As my grandmother once said when a member of our family married an Italian woman, "thank God we're getting some fresh blood... we've been getting awfully stagnant." To believe that different people have little to add to one's culture is so near sighted and in-bred, that it is an insult to all parties.
This portion of the Ayn Rand response is such rubbish that I'm frankly surprised that they would deem to publish it, much less believe it. As my grandmother once said when a member of our family married an Italian woman, "thank God we're getting some fresh blood... we've been getting awfully stagnant." To believe that different people have little to add to one's culture is so near sighted and in-bred, that it is an insult to all parties.
here's my favorite definition of multiculturalism: "Term used to describe many cultures and learning to get on with one another with mutual respect."
I think based on that definition, everyone would agree that multiculturalism is a good thing except for the single-minded people that live in the backwoods of wherever and think that their race is the supreme race. There is no supreme race.
We are all different and have different ways of contributing to society. I love that there are differences among races and people. If we were all the same, it would be a pretty damn boring world.
I grew up in a small town that was roughly 75% hispanic, 24.9% white and .1% black. The only culture I learned about was the hispanic culture. Then I grew up, went to college, married a navy man and "saw the world." I THEN learned that there were so many things I was missing out on.
B/c of my upbringing and the lack of culture I had as a child, I make it a point to raise my children with as many experiences as possible. I love that the school I send him to has several different races/cultures in it. I think it's wonderful that he is introduced to them all and hopefully will come across his appreciation for diversity a lot sooner in life than I did.
I think based on that definition, everyone would agree that multiculturalism is a good thing except for the single-minded people that live in the backwoods of wherever and think that their race is the supreme race. There is no supreme race.
We are all different and have different ways of contributing to society. I love that there are differences among races and people. If we were all the same, it would be a pretty damn boring world.
I grew up in a small town that was roughly 75% hispanic, 24.9% white and .1% black. The only culture I learned about was the hispanic culture. Then I grew up, went to college, married a navy man and "saw the world." I THEN learned that there were so many things I was missing out on.
B/c of my upbringing and the lack of culture I had as a child, I make it a point to raise my children with as many experiences as possible. I love that the school I send him to has several different races/cultures in it. I think it's wonderful that he is introduced to them all and hopefully will come across his appreciation for diversity a lot sooner in life than I did.
madame_zora
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She had a tough enough time explaining her ideas when she was alive to defend herself, I really don't see where this "institute" has done much to bring glory to her writings. I'd say "cult" would be a fair assessment. They take a few simpler ideas and attempt to broadly apply them to other topics, meanwhile the original intention is diffused and lost in translation. I'm sure she'd have had an opinion, I'm equally sure I'd not have agreed with all of it, but oversimplification was not usually something she'd be guilty of.
WE are the nation of civil unrest. WE are the country that reigns by fear. It's high time we took a good look within and took responisibility for our own misguided behaviors, we have other choices.
WE are the nation of civil unrest. WE are the country that reigns by fear. It's high time we took a good look within and took responisibility for our own misguided behaviors, we have other choices.
I, for one, propose that the issue here is not multiculturalism, fine sir, yet has more to do with stupidity.
If you don't mind my saying so, I think it would be in everyone's best interest if the idiots of the world saw fit to enstinguish themselves in a gentlemanly fashion.
If you don't mind my saying so, I think it would be in everyone's best interest if the idiots of the world saw fit to enstinguish themselves in a gentlemanly fashion.
madame_zora
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Then that would mean that I would have nobody to flip off on the roads and release my road rage on.
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Such a thread as this starts of with a handicap; not all people are using the same definition or understanding of all the vocabulary.
Before I go further, let me say that all people should be of the same value. Ranking cultures requires a prototype from which you mark deviations. It requires a person to already predetermine what a "perfect" culture is. So the "perfect" culture is in the eye of the beholder. In this case the eyes of several billion beholders that live in our world today.
Mulitculturalism is the concept that you can maintain your own traditions and customs and beliefs of a culture passed down while living within the scope of another culture or cultures. It is like a tossed salad. In days long ago assilimilation was the goal. This anology was given to me. Assilimation is like cooking a soup. It was said that America was "the melting pot of the world." Now we look at it from a different perspective of a tossed salad. While we have a new dish, the tossed salad, we also can see and pick out the parts of it. Such is multiculturalism. While we all are part of American or the country of your choice, we have distinctive components from our own ancestrial background as well as those people we have become associated with. Yet like the tossed salad, we can easily pick out the parts we don't want and leave them on the side of the plate.
Sources were asked for. I am using my memory of what was presented to our curriculum guide committee for the development of social studies cuurriculum in the early 90's in my state. Sorry I don't have a copy of the source.
I don't see how multiculturalism can be avoided in a free society with no real censorship of ideas and events. Technology has provided the opportunity of nearly everyone to interchange with componants of all cultures just with the televion that sits in our houses in addtion to the people we come into contact with.
While some may oppose multiculturalism, it is really what has been going on since humans have had civilizations. It is just happening at a much faster pace. The average person today sees more culture change in ten years than several generations of people saw in much earlier cultures.
Here lies the problem: Some want to halt change. It can be speeded up. It can be slowed down. It can't be stopped.
Before I go further, let me say that all people should be of the same value. Ranking cultures requires a prototype from which you mark deviations. It requires a person to already predetermine what a "perfect" culture is. So the "perfect" culture is in the eye of the beholder. In this case the eyes of several billion beholders that live in our world today.
Mulitculturalism is the concept that you can maintain your own traditions and customs and beliefs of a culture passed down while living within the scope of another culture or cultures. It is like a tossed salad. In days long ago assilimilation was the goal. This anology was given to me. Assilimation is like cooking a soup. It was said that America was "the melting pot of the world." Now we look at it from a different perspective of a tossed salad. While we have a new dish, the tossed salad, we also can see and pick out the parts of it. Such is multiculturalism. While we all are part of American or the country of your choice, we have distinctive components from our own ancestrial background as well as those people we have become associated with. Yet like the tossed salad, we can easily pick out the parts we don't want and leave them on the side of the plate.
Sources were asked for. I am using my memory of what was presented to our curriculum guide committee for the development of social studies cuurriculum in the early 90's in my state. Sorry I don't have a copy of the source.
I don't see how multiculturalism can be avoided in a free society with no real censorship of ideas and events. Technology has provided the opportunity of nearly everyone to interchange with componants of all cultures just with the televion that sits in our houses in addtion to the people we come into contact with.
While some may oppose multiculturalism, it is really what has been going on since humans have had civilizations. It is just happening at a much faster pace. The average person today sees more culture change in ten years than several generations of people saw in much earlier cultures.
Here lies the problem: Some want to halt change. It can be speeded up. It can be slowed down. It can't be stopped.
madame_zora
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Freddie, you hit the nail on the head. Multiculturalism and globalisation WILL happen, regardless of anyone's opinion of it, so this whole conversation becomes moot. With increased communication capabilities people will naturally gravitate toward each other more than away from. Yes, we will have cultural clashes and there will be holdout groups who seek in desperation to deny the inevitable, but to what avail? Evolution is an ongoing process, there is not stopping point. Anyone too stupid to understand that very basic point is free to go on banging his/her head, but life will move forward while they are hurting themselves anyway.
