Never Mind the Giant Flat-Screen TV...

[Homeslice]

Haven't read this thread fully, but considering who the average black person's role models are, what do you expect? Why should you study hard enough to earn a scholarship or grant, or even go to college in the first place, when your role models aren't telling you that that's what you should do?

(Not saying that going to college is always the answer...... it isn't.......But, when your role model is just an athlete or entertainer of some kind, the only thing it will accomplish is maybe make some kids work hard at sports or music, and that's cool if they make a legitimate effort at it, but we all know the odds of succeeding in those fields.....

[Amber Lamps]

Originally Posted by Homeslice

Haven't read this thread fully, but considering who the average black person's role models are, what do you expect? Why should you study hard enough to earn a scholarship or grant, or even go to college in the first place, when your role models aren't telling you that that's what you should do?

(Not saying that going to college is always the answer...... it isn't.......But, when your role model is just an athlete or entertainer of some kind, the only thing it will accomplish is maybe make some kids work hard at sports or music, and that's cool if they make a legitimate effort at it, but we all know the odds of succeeding in those fields.....

Well now we can all aspire to be President w00t!

[Tmall]

Originally Posted by Amber Lamps

Okay, real talk...I'm finding it a bit hard to understand why a white guy from Canada thinks he knows more about what it's like to be a black man in America than a black American.... It's like you're trying to tell me what it's like or the obsticals that I've had to overcome...and you'd know that how?

That's pretty racist of you... I grew up poorer than I'd say 100% of the people on here. But, I'm not black so my experience doesn't count.

[Amber Lamps]

Originally Posted by Tmall

That's pretty racist of you... I grew up poorer than I'd say 100% of the people on here. But, I'm not black so my experience doesn't count.

Dude your experience doesn't count because you're CANADIAN!!! You don't know squat about what it's like to live in this country white or black. This is like if we were talking about poor people in Haiti and I piped in with "How I know what they're going through because I was poor"...

[VatorMan]

OK-My 2 cents. I guess I hate that people feel entitled to assistance. Right now it seems we are paying people to STFU and stay the same. No amount of money will cause a person to get motivated to be better-just buy more shit.

Seriously-you want to change the way people act-move their ass out of their comfort zone. Like maybe N. Dakota or Nebraska.

[Amber Lamps]

Originally Posted by VatorMan

OK-My 2 cents. I guess I hate that people feel entitled to assistance. Right now it seems we are paying people to STFU and stay the same. No amount of money will cause a person to get motivated to be better-just buy more shit.

Seriously-you want to change the way people act-move their ass out of their comfort zone. Like maybe N. Dakota or Nebraska.

Personally, I think that welfare should have a time limit and definitely a benefits cap.

[VatorMan]

Originally Posted by Amber Lamps

Personally, I think that welfare should have a time limit and definitely a benefits cap.

I mean seriously-if someone threatened me with N. Dakota in the winter I would be highly motivated to get my ass in gear.

[Amorok]

You know, maybe it's because I'm still in but I tend to feel that there's no reason the military shouldn't be the best someone can aspire to. It certainly has been for me. As for economics, I come from a very impoverished part of the country. Growing up most of my family could be kindly described as poor white trash, a label that most of them still live up to to this day. However, that was a motivator, not an excuse for me. I believe the real problem is a victim mentality, one of entitlement where people think the world owes them something. Is this more of a problem in the black community? Maybe, maybe not, I don't know. I've met a lot of black and white people and have this attitude. Either way, that's the real issue, and until people in this country learn to start working for themselves instead of demanding things because they think they deserve them for nothing, things won't get better.

[Amber Lamps]

Originally Posted by VatorMan

I mean seriously-if someone threatened me with N. Dakota in the winter I would be highly motivated to get my ass in gear.

Dude, there are less than 1% black people in ND, do you think they'd want to change that? Besides, I grew up in Michigan, it may not be quite as harsh but it's no picnic in winter there either.

[Amber Lamps]

Originally Posted by Amorok

You know, maybe it's because I'm still in but I tend to feel that there's no reason the military shouldn't be the best someone can aspire to. It certainly has been for me. As for economics, I come from a very impoverished part of the country. Growing up most of my family could be kindly described as poor white trash, a label that most of them still live up to to this day. However, that was a motivator, not an excuse for me. I believe the real problem is a victim mentality, one of entitlement where people think the world owes them something. Is this more of a problem in the black community? Maybe, maybe not, I don't know. I've met a lot of black and white people and have this attitude. Either way, that's the real issue, and until people in this country learn to start working for themselves instead of demanding things because they think they deserve them for nothing, things won't get better.

I agree with this except that I think that it's sad that the military was your best opportunity in life...