@vy proof?

@volkris What do you want proof of?

@vy

Well mainly that it's the core political problem in the USA, but I'm also skeptical that this ever happened in the first place, not that that matters.

Mainly that this is the core political problem, because I don't think it is.

@volkris To imagine that such a thing is not possible in Alabama or anywhere in the USA is to confess to willful ignorance.

@vy

Never said it wasn't possible.

But over and over we see offhand claims like these debunked in the end, so why would I believe this one either?

Again, not that it matters, as the key point is that I don't believe it represents the core political problem, whether the anecdote is true or false.

@volkris I don't see claims like that debunked a lot. On the contrary. Here's what the Senator from Alabama said today explaining why he voted against the next chair of the joint chiefs of staff

"“I heard some things he talked about, about race and things that he wanted to mix into the military," he told @BloombergTV
. "Our military is not an equal opportunity employer."

@vy

Note that the senator's statement is entirely consistent with rejecting the tweet you posted.

Just because "the military is not an equal opportunity employer" doesn't mean one wants to cut off the nose of the program to spite the face of a targeted group.

The two positions aren't the same.

@volkris Not interested in weak rationalizations.

@vy

Ah, but I am!

Which is why I took time to hear yours!

I just wish you realized how weak your rationalizations come across, as you try to support that original position instead of considering that maybe, just maybe, someone was a bit wrong about the world today.

The weakness of your explanation as you tried to compare the senator's position to the original expression--whether it even happened or not--should really make one reevaluate.

@volkris The reality of endemic racism in the USA has been shown by not only lived experience and a host of studies, but by the frantic efforts to deny reality by those who benefit from racism either economically or in some other way. So please don't try this pretend objectivity that is really obfuscation on me. Thanks

@vy

Yeah, let's not involve objectivity or factual accuracy in this *eyeroll*

@volkris What precisely do you imagine is factual or objective in your argument? Your intuition?

@vy

My argument?

You're missing that it's your argument on the table here, not mine.

Your argument stands and falls on its own, and so far it's rested on weak rationalizations, false comparisons, and vague handwaving.

@volkris No. What's going on is that you have some emotional need to pretend that the US is not plagued by virulent white racism and so claim that your subjective doubts about the probability of racist remarks should mean something to me. But they're super familiar. The trope of racists pretending to be objective or even deluding themselves about it, is not new. In fact it's tiresome.

@vy I do so enjoy when people tell me what I think ::eyeroll::

But again, this isn't about me. I'm asking what you think, and I'm asking how you support your claims here.

That has nothing to do with me, it's your point that you're trying to make, and one would hope you would be able to provide solid support for your beliefs.

If you can't, it seems like maybe you should reevaluate your position. But again that has nothing to do with me.