Liam Neeson: Rape, Revenge, and Race Relations

[bennyboy]

Gae, tell me straight up-- you're a southern boy, and in your entire life, you've never said anything violent or seriously derogatory about black people, right?  Even when you were younger?

People can and do change....if they put in work as far as self-examination goes. Thing of it is, most people are simply not in the habit of challenging their precepts to any meaningful degree, because they really don't who they are or what the fuck they stand for outside of whatever boxes they check off. Overcoming deep-seated bigotry requires extremely sharp intellect, brutal self-examination, and a notable capacity for empathy. Few people possess all three of those things in spades. In my unbiased observation,  Khem, Gae or whatever he goes by certainly SEEMS like one of those types of people. I'm not even a particular fan of the guy, but it's quite obvious that he's not afraid of asking hard questions of himself and is quite capable of putting himself in other's people shoes.

I don't know what Khem feels or thinks, deep down, but since I'm not the thought police, it doesn't matter. Knowing his past, he could tell me almost ANY story about his interactions with racists or with black people, and I'd take it as autobiographical, and to some degree I'd take it as expert testimony. What I wouldn't do is take it as evidence of racism-- because I know that the past and the present are different things.

In contrast, all Neeson's essentially said is that he doesn't wanna kill black bastards anymore because it sucks FOR HIM to be that angry...Despite multiple opportunities to expound on his personal growth and how racist broadbrushing and the concept of "collective guilt" FUCKS UP people's lives in so many ways AND to have likely gained the respect of a hell of a lot more folks (including plenty of black people) in the process.

He said he was ashamed of his behavior. Sounds to me like growth.

---

In the new narrative, people opposed to racist ideology, and not racists, are "bullying".  Left is right and up is down..and it works.

Yes there are videos on youtube explaining how fascism is left wing, which is the opposite of the truth.

To me, it's a circle.  Extremist left and extremist right meet at this point of absolute intolerance, loss of freedom of expression or individual rights, and a general disregard for humanity.

Opposite that point of terror is moderation-- an understanding of the darker side of instincts, but an expectation that we are all working to overcome them.