Culture War

Culture War

I wanted to share a few of my thoughts to see if I can mediate the culture war if I can. There is no white grievance. The grievance lies with the BIPOC community, the poor and immigrants. Maybe some of my ideas could help people start productive discussions around solving the problems that confront us in a peaceful and democratic manner. These ideas could also help bring people back from any extreme positions that they might hold.

Key Takes

Black Lives Matter – They do. What is happening to members of the BIPOC community is horrible and I am truly sorry for what is going on. Unarmed people are being killed by the police and many officers are not being held accountable in court. It is a failure of the criminal justice system. The relationship between the police force and the communities is often like an occupying military force. Instead of being seen as an occupying force, officers should be seen and recognized as trusted members of the community.
Defund the Police – While I support Black lives and do not agree with what is happening, I also do not agree with the idea of defunding the police as a solution. There are legitimate cases for having a police department. We live in a world where rape, murder and theft are prevalent. I wanted to comment on this as the movement is important and calls to light a severe issue in our country. My thought is that what we need is a different kind of police force entirely rather than no police at all. One that is able to fight crime, adheres strictly to the motto ‘Protect and Serve’, and is accountable when they don’t. Here are some quick ideas on what this would look like:
1. More funding for police – used to hire other essential members of the force. For example Crisis Counselors and Social Workers would be useful to have and could ride along in domestic violence and mental health cases.
2. Unarmed and Armed Police Units – A shoplifting case typically doesn’t require you to bring in the S.W.A.T. team. The first response for most cases should be by unarmed units and we would call in the armed response units only when necessary. This is a proven model already used in Great Britain.
3. Better Psychological Profiling and Crisis Training – screening out candidates that “Don’t handle pressure well” or candidates who have predispositions to certain things (e.g. Racism or Hate).
4. Better accountability when officers do fail. One might correctly point out that the police do not need guns to kill people (think Eric Garner). When something bad does happen we can ensure better accountability by having “Virtual Juries of your Peers”. Jurors would observe the trial over a zoom call and would be selected from around the nation to ensure diversity and to avoid any local biases that might exist.
Blue Lives Matter – I once saw a video of a traffic stop where a man came out of his car with an Uzi machine gun and shot and killed the police officers. The dangers officers face on the job are real. However, while the killings of officers are a tragedy, it is sadly just crime. Some of the killings of unarmed members of the BIPOC community are racially motivated and all are a severe failing in the call of duty as an officer. What I teach my kids is that being a police officer is a position of elevated responsibility of the highest order. You are trusted to protect the community and to only use force when absolutely necessary. Black Lives Matter has the righteous grievance. I do empathize with the families who have lost loved ones on the job so I wanted to give a few ideas that could help:
1. Voting for candidates who will create jobs which will in turn reduce crime
2. Disarming America via gun buyback programs. For those who enjoy shooting as a form of entertainment, the shooting ranges can stay open for gun rentals. To the rest of gun owners, I would ask the following question: how often have you used your gun in a real life self-defense scenario? The answer is probably never. Fewer guns in our society mean a reduction in gun violence of all kinds. Having a disarmed populace in the country would also help in disarming police units (see my solution above for Defund the Police). A note: People could still own single shot rifles for hunting.
Abolish ICE – It is true that the current Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency has the additional task of enforcing racist migration policy and is a righteous grievance of the left. Only a small percentage of people entering the country have ill will. I once had a neighbor who migrated to the country legally and obtained a green card. After 5-10 years of living in the country, learning the language and working as a law abiding cleaning lady she still had not obtained full citizenship. I would ask the question “Why can she not become a member of our country?” Conservatives will want to redirect the discussion to people entering the country illegally, and talk about how they are breaking the law. While breaking the law is wrong, I would ask is it not our duty to help them? There is no shortage of space or resources here. I would also ask is our migration policy fair or just? In Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” he writes that it is our duty to uphold and follow just laws but to peacefully protest and break unjust laws. On the other side, speaking to the left – there are those that think that we should not have the immigration agency at all. To this group I would ask “Would you want to have Domestic Terrorists from the United States migrating to other countries?” There has to be a reasonable middle ground solution here that moves our world closer to equality and racial justice but still maintains security. Here are my thoughts on what just migration system would look like:
1. Those who wish to join our nation would fill out an application online in their home countries. The purpose of this application is a simple background check to screen for members of organized crime, terrorist groups and foreign intelligence agencies. Being a member in one of these organizations is the only valid reason to say no to someone.
2. I would imagine that since a lot of this information is already tracked, the background check would take a similar amount of time to complete as applying for a passport (around 4-6 weeks).
3. Once you have obtained your documentation you will then enter the country legally as a citizen.
4. For members of the above three groups who do enter the country illegally we would have humane detention facilities and methods to ensure children are never separated from guardians.
5. All are welcome to the United States
6. A note on Israel: my ideas above are primary for the United States however I wanted to talk about Israel. This land was given by God to the Jewish people in His covenant to Moses. It is not a state formed on ethnic identity. It is a state formed based on a religious identity and there are also others who live there too (e.g. Muslims in Gaza). Because of this, they would obviously have a different migration system in place to maintain their religious identity and their covenant with God.
Reparations – reparations for 500 years of slavery, genocide, and systemic racism can be given collectively via the Federal Government. Here is what this could include:
1. To eliminate the racial wealth gap a combination of:
  1. Cash payments to BIPOC Communities
  2. Rebuilding BIPOC Communities – distressed homes can be repaired or new housing can be built via public private partnerships. Home equity can be given to BIPOC residents as reparation that is more than just a one-time payment. Equity in one’s home is one of the greatest factors of wealth in the United States and a major driver of the racial wealth gap.
2. DEI at work to ensure a diverse workforce – sharing power and high paying jobs with others who are welcome members of our nation.
3. Fully funding all K-12 schools federally regardless of zip code so all children receive a good education (removal of local funding from property taxes).
4. Giving land back to Native communities peacefully over time (a few decades) until a sharing of land is obtained. Existing residents can be compensated fully for their property via Eminent Domain and move out on their own timeline.
Gender Equality, #MeToo – I believe that the genders are equal and should treat each other with mutual love, kindness and respect. #MeToo – I am sorry for how things are where bad actors are sometimes given the benefit of the doubt and women are not believed.
“Boys Will Be Boys” & What it means to be a man- Our culture is filled with expressions. These are catchy ways to get your point across quickly. However some of the expressions that we have in our culture could stand to be examined though the lens of kindness. Would Jesus use this expression? Is it true, helpful or kind? “Boys Will Be Boys” is one of those. A father driving down the road with two young children (both boys) in the back who are fighting endlessly – ignoring his pleas to stop – might throw his hands up in the air saying “Boys will be boys”. This is an example of a time where people use this saying but they really could stand to say something else. Because the truth is that most of the time the expression is used to overlook, ignore or justify sexist or misogynist behavior. In the example above, the father maybe could have said “I give up” or “You are driving me crazy”. If you are saying this expression for other situations I would examine those situations carefully – especially if it is your own boys that you are raising. As a parent, we are never to overlook bad behavior and that most certainly includes sexism and misogyny. What does it mean to be a man? Leading with kindness is the first thing that comes to mind especially when dealing with the opposite sex. What is a man’s worth (to society and women)? Speaking on a societal level, all humans are innately worthy. As stated elsewhere on this site the girl you want will primarily be into your kindness. Bonus traits for this hypothetical woman would be openness, honesty, and accountability. I label these as bonus traits because not everyone might have this foundation to start – but everyone can be kind. To close, I also want to note that children of both sexes should be raised to be kind, honest and responsible.
Toxic Masculinity & Raising Boys – This is a broad topic (you can research on Google) that is addressed indirectly throughout the entire site. However in addition to the above (Gender Equality and What It Means To Be A Man), I would also add that children of both genders (but especially boys) should be taught that it is OK to cry. In teaching this, I also make sure to let them know that I cry too sometimes. They also should be taught to share feelings with their parents, siblings and other trusted caregivers. The focus on boys is due to the extremely negative lens that our culture frames masculinity in, so they will need extra attention.
Abortion – The idea that life begins at conception is something that I have always held. I am not sure that there is any way to change someone’s mind on this issue. In 2010 I changed to a pro-choice position though to support women because life is hard. There are situations in life where people are not ready to have a child for various reasons. I thought this position was a kindness to these women. I recently have switched my stance back to allowing abortion only if the life of the mother is in danger because adoption is always an option. Once you are in a better place in your life you can then decide whether you want to reconnect with your child.
LGBTQ+
1. I understand that this is who you are and how you feel on the inside.
2. While these are sins (laws given directly from God to Moses) there are those who have chosen to repent in order to join church communities.
3. If you believe in God then come to church as you are with the intent to repent and work with your pastor through confession. I understand that this would be impossibly hard – God gives us all challenges. I struggle with anger and lust.
4. These statements are less about exclusion and more about getting right with God before you meet Him one day. He does love you, but to enter His house you must follow His rules. I understand this is how you feel on the inside – but everything in life is a choice. This would be a huge act of faith on your part. When He was here 2000 years ago you will find that there were members in the early church just like you – they saw and believed and chose to join the church because He is the savior of the world.
5. For political issues, the conservative political stances on these topics are what is biblically accurate. These stances are also formed according to the law that God gave to Moses. I understand that this is painful for you to hear.
6. How I teach my kids: Every LGBTQ+ history month I get a children’s book on this topic from the library. While reading the book we go over the following:
  1. Awareness of the community and that people in the community feel different on the inside.
  2. Because of these feelings people choose to live a different lifestyle than what God wants us to live.
  3. We are never to judge or bully but to stand up for those who are bullied.
  4. If someone wanted to join our church community we would welcome them and support them in their journey.
  5. If your kids show signs that they are in one of the groups in this community it is important to validate them – that their feelings are real. I would then make them aware of the spiritual and eternal consequences of their decision (separation from God) and show them love and support on their journey no matter which direction they take.
7. This was my best attempt to be kind and love the community but also be honest about what it would take to join God’s community.
DEI is Important – I used to work in Information Technology which is an industry that historically has struggled with diversity. I want to note that while working in IT I met many great people who were kind and intent on helping others. It is also a great industry to work in for those interested in computers. However, over the course of my career, I noticed that when hiring there were many Black candidates who were passed on. Even though they seemed qualified for the job after interviewing them, the reason given for not hiring them was “Culture Fit”. Some of the hiring managers even had the explicit goal of increasing diversity within the department, but qualified candidates were still passed on for reasons similar to the above. I feel guilty myself for not speaking up about this as these candidates should have been hired. This is a great example of implicit bias. Implicit bias (also called unconscious bias) is an automatic, involuntary attitude, feeling, or stereotype that a person holds toward a social group. These hidden preferences or prejudices operate outside of conscious awareness and can influence decisions, judgments, and behaviors without a person realizing it. Overcoming biases is one reason why DEI is necessary at work. The DEI department works with hiring managers to create a diverse workforce by providing the necessary tools, resources and information.
Inclusivity as a Value – we currently live in a world that was formed by 500 years of colonization, genocide and systemic racism. Because of this there is no right or wrong racial/ethnic composition to a community, neighborhood, company, or country in its current state. What is important is that that entity is open and inclusive to new members no matter their racial or ethnic background going forward. For example, if they are a company, they should actively be working on creating a diverse workforce in their hiring (see DEI is important).

Other Important Topics

Systemic Racism – since the abolition of slavery in 1865 there have been a series of systems put in place to keep the BIPOC community down and advantage white society. In the south this started with Jim Crow but it is not limited to the south. Systemic racism has existed in all parts of the country as well at the federal level. A couple examples include redlining and racist migration policy. The way I teach my kids this is to imagine playing a board game and one of the players keeps changing the rules so that they always win.
Color Blindness – While we should always be kind to everyone no matter who they are, this concept is used by conservatives to pretend that there is no issue in our society with regard to race. That we can just move forward with the status quo. Activists are trying to call to our attention that problems are still present and need to be attended to. Specifically that there are still inequities in our society and a lot of racial violence. While race is not real scientifically it has become real socioeconomically because it is a concept that has fully shaped the world that we live in today (500 years of slavery and systemic racism). Race is a concept created by European thought leaders during colonial times to divide and subjugate the peoples that they conquered. This is why it is important to join the fight for racial equality and racial justice – to help undo the wrongs of the past. Further everyone’s ethnic heritage should be noticed and celebrated.
Cultural Sharing in a Multicultural World: everyone’s culture is beautiful and should be passed on to the children. It is important though that we don’t fall into the same trap with this as with ancestralism (see this topic on the antiracism page). As an example, if we succumb to this kind of thinking, we could mandate that certain languages have to be spoken in certain areas of the world in order to preserve them – this is wrong. While it is sad for things do die out, it is natural for cultures to change over time. Certain things come and certain things go – this is how God intended it to be. My ex-wife is from Puerto Rico and I am from the United States. The idea that I had when we got married was that we would both present the best parts of our cultures and each speak our own languages to the children. Then the children would decide what to keep and what not to keep – what works and what doesn’t. This is a mutual sharing of culture and language and we are not forcing things on anyone. It is a natural progression of culture and language over time.
Cultural Appropriation – Sharing culture with others and passing on culture to children are undoubtedly good things. But in a world formed by systemic racism, one where Europeans and Whites have dominated and excluded others, the relationship between whites and other groups is less about sharing and more about taking. Sharing can only take place when the two parties are at a position of equality. This again is why it is important for people to right the wrongs of the past and to join the fight for racial justice.
White Privilege – Everyone’s life is hard. A white single mother of two, who is working two jobs to make ends meet has it hard and deserves a medal for juggling all of this. She still has white privilege. This refers to all the things that she doesn’t have to do or worry about because of her race in our society. Members of the BIPOC community have added stressors placed on them. For example in addition to the above stressors that our mother encounters (which are significant), they need to worry about racial violence and profiling from the police, inadequate access to healthcare and education, discrimination during the hiring process (an example was given above), being paid less for the same job as others, living in food deserts, microaggressions, etc. While there has been progress in our society (e.g. abolition of slavery and the civil rights movement), one needs to recognize that it was built for White America. This concept is a gentle nudge for white readers to consider life from other people’s perspectives even if your own life is hard.
Socialism vs. Capitalism and the Importance of a Mixed Economy – Some concerned with “Socialism” in our country are really concerned with authoritarianism. This is a valid concern but currently we live in a democracy. Other valid concerns with socialism include directly influencing outcomes (which I will discuss below). One will find that most countries in the world implement what is called a mixed economy. A mixed economy is a system that combines a free market with government control. Private businesses run most companies, but the government makes rules, collects taxes, and provides public services like schools and roads. An example of a country that has very little government control (all free market) is modern day Somalia. An example of a country that had no free market (all government control) is the USSR. Neither of these countries did well. Most successful countries have a balance of both in order to create prosperity for their inhabitants. The free market only exists because the government creates a space for it via rules and regulations (otherwise it would succumb to the will of crime-lords). The free market and social policy (government programs) are just tools in the tool box of the government (think hammer and screwdriver). In order to build a house successfully (the country) the government uses both tools appropriately. Just as you cannot build a house with only a screwdriver, you also cannot build a house only with a hammer. Both are needed and used in appropriate ways. It really comes down to selecting wise leaders who will successfully enact a good vision to solve the problems that confront us.
Systems Not Outcomes – To put an end to systemic racism we should focus on creating systems that foster equality (equal access to resources), inclusion and sharing rather than trying to influence outcomes directly. One might note that reparations constitutes as directly influencing outcomes (which it does). This is intended to make up for the past 500 years of slavery, genocide and systemic racism. Once things are reset to something fair, the focus should be on creating good systems that are fair for all people. I will give a few examples:
1. DEI at work to create a diverse workforce (sharing jobs with all)
2. #OscarsSoWhite – there is a problem. My idea would be rather than mandating who wins (outcomes), we mandate that there be a diverse set of judges (fairness).
3. Full funding for all K-12 schools at the federal level regardless of zipcode (removal of local funding from property taxes).
4. Universal access to healthcare and college education – creating a society that is as healthy and educated as possible
News, social media, podcasts – on the mental health page I spoke about this topic – It is a wake up call to monitor the negative effects that these entities can have on your mind. It also has some guidance on what to do about it if it is starting to wear on you. On this page I wanted to address another issue revolving around sources of information. Simply put – are the sources that you are getting your information from true, helpful and kind? It would be wise to pay attention to your news, podcast, social media influencer sources and to make changes as needed. It is OK to say “I am not going to listen to this person anymore or I am not going to get my news from this news channel anymore.”
Free Speech, Cancel Culture and Freedom in General – starting with the extremes, having unlimited freedom in society would allow individual citizens to own tanks, nuclear weapons, post instructions online about how to 3D print guns in their homes (ghost guns), and disseminate hate material online to the masses (which is currently happening on our tech platforms). On the other hand, societies whose leaders favored no freedom had things like government controlled media (they provide the content – no private artists), labor camps for political dissidents (no free speech), government assignment of your job, etc. It would seem that a middle ground would be wise. One where the populace is granted as much freedom as possible, but that freedom stops at the ability to hurt others with your words, thoughts, ideas, or actions. Official content moderation and regulation is needed to create this environment (both public and private). Existing creative content and works of art in our society that contain offensive content should be given an opportunity to change the offensive content rather than a complete destruction of that art, content or artist. I want to be clear that this is referring to content or art that contains a few offensive items, not content or art where the sole purpose is to be offensive or hateful. Artists or content creators that recognize that they made a mistake or did something wrong can be forgiven assuming that they make genuine changes to reconcile it (people can change). They then can continue on doing beneficial work for society. For those who are upset with offensive content I completely understand and you genuinely have a right to be upset – this is why unlimited freedom is not a good thing and there needs to be some sort of top down regulation/moderation.
Christian Nationalism – Jesus is a middle eastern Jewish man who also is God and savior of the world (God came to us in human form). He does not care what His followers look like in any way. He is the God of all people on Earth. I mentioned on the antiracism page that we are to work democratically alongside those from other religions (one true God but a difference in belief). That being said I will always vote for Christian candidates who adhere to Christian values.
Critical race theory (CRT) (from Google) – is an academic and legal framework stating that racism is systemic and embedded within American institutions rather than just the result of individual prejudices. Core concepts: systemic racism is real, race is not real and is a social construct, being ‘Colorblind’ is insufficient because it fails to address subtle or structural inequalities. I have addressed these topics above. Debate: Critics argue that the framework divides people into oppressor and oppressed groups or undermines foundational liberal ideals. The above critique leaves out the concept that White Americans can choose to be allies to the oppressed. The last part about undermining liberal ideals would need to be expanded on but racism most certainly is not one of these ideals. Canonical critical race theory is an advanced legal and academic framework studied in universities and is not part of standard K-12 school curricula.
Children’s K-12 History Education – Liberals should realize that not all of the history in the founding of our nation was bad. The founding of our nation brought in representational democracy, a constitution with a bill of rights for everyday citizens, and the American Dream (ownership of land and business – although mainly for white men). We declared our independence with the principle that “…all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights…” (although it still is a work in progress for equality and racial justice). We fought for voting rights for women (although we still have trouble with the glass ceiling). Our nation has fought against authoritarianism and human rights abuse world wide (e.g. against Nazi Germany/Japan in WWII, North Korea, the USSR during the cold war, against terrorism, and provided for significant amounts of foreign aid to those in need). Our nation from it’s inception has been the melting pot of the world, and the abolition of slavery and the civil rights movement were significant victories for racial justice. On the other hand, speaking to conservatives, not everything in the founding of our nation was good. Our nation was founded on genocide, race based slavery, and systemic racism. While all of the founding documents listed above were huge steps in the right direction moving away from feudalism and monarchism in Europe, they were still finite documents written by flawed humans. This is why we have the ability to amend the constitution – it was not meant to be set in stone. Finally, the history of our nation should be taught truthfully to our children so that they fully know the legacy that they are inheriting (both the good and the bad). This should include the perspectives of the oppressed communities (BIPOC) to ensure that accurate history is being taught – even if it is bad. Our country should admit when we do something wrong and reconcile it.

A War of Values

I make it a point to speak to my children about the history of our nation and whether it is good or bad. What I teach my kids (currently 6 & 7 years old) is that people from Europe came to the United States bringing people from Africa as slaves (against their will). They then killed the indigenous peoples that they encountered in the new land and overall a lot of bad things happened. It is important to know that there were both good and bad people coming from Europe but the bad people were the ones in control and took advantage of the situation which is why things went the way they did at that time. Amidst all the bad that was taking place, the European settlers did bring good things culturally and ideologically. The oppressed peoples also had good things culturally and ideologically. Over the course of history, a multiracial coalition has always been fighting to preserve the good and remove the bad. It is up to the good people of all races to come together and to stand up for what is right. Even though there are a lot of bad things in the history of our Nation this is our turn and our choice. Everything in life is a choice.

While it has been a constant battle in the United States, the things that we have been fighting for over history are good and the overarching trend is towards gender equality, racial justice and prosperity for the common man. From Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” he states For years now I have heard the word ‘Wait!’ … This ‘Wait’ has almost always meant ‘Never.’ Critics will say in defense of the status quo “It is too much change” or speak of the need for incrementalism rather than extremism. Incrementalism is fine for policies that genuinely require time (e.g. giving land back to Native Communities because it would require time to move people peacefully). From the above letter he also writes Justice too long delayed is justice denied. For things that could happen immediately, inaction solely gives credence to the philosophy of White Supremacy.

Here is what’s currently at stake:

Christian Values
Family Values
Democracy and Human Rights
Freedom – within reasonable limits
Corporations – brands, technology and products, not corporate structure
Standing up to authoritarianism/human rights abuse worldwide
Humanitarian aid worldwide
A mixed economy (capitalism and socialism together)
Open and inclusive environments, kindness and tolerance to those who are different
Protecting the environment
Fighting for gender equality, racial justice and prosperity for the common man

Here are some cool rock songs:

Here are some cool Hip Hop and R&B songs:

Finally here are some cool random ones: