by Scott Darnell
Daily Lobo Columnist
The following are certain areas of political/social life where members of a minority group are not only being protected by the federal government, but also aided by government or independent agencies in such a way that minority "protection" is causing harm or intense unfairness to the area's majority group.
Welfare: The majority of Americans live in the upper lower class, the middle class, or the upper class and hold down a steady job, while paying taxes to various levels of government.
The poorest Americans are protected by our government through programs such as welfare and a minimum wage, as our socio-economic minority group. Limited welfare and a minimum wage are very effective at protecting the poor from worker exploitation and poverty that may stem from joblessness or disability.
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However, our government has taken this "protection" too far in extending welfare to the point that poor Americans no longer feel pressured to fight the hard fight to find and hold down a job, indulging in our economic pie and boosting our tax revenues.
Our welfare state, as well as our rampant social programs that dole out the money of taxpayers to the poor, are injuring the majority of Americans. In essence, those who pay taxes.
An important question to ask is: Do the poor really benefit from intense welfare and handout programs, from this so-called active "protection?"
By demanding such a high tax burden in all the classes above their own, they may receive a more sizeable handout, but they will never receive enough money to move themselves into the next higher economic class. The tax burden in all other classes is simply too high for them to ever bear. Classes thus divide further and further, accomplishing the opposite of the greater equality of class access intended by welfare and other programs.
Anti-war protesters: Without a doubt, protesters against the war with Iraq, and in fact, even those simply opposed to the war, are in a minority in the United States. Of course, we use common sense and pay attention to our democratic founding and see that we must protect our right to dissent, as well as organize peaceably.
Unfortunately, these protesters and others have injured the majority (those not protesting) by shutting down streets and other forms of infrastructure across the nation; here, at the University, they managed to disrupt and impede the learning process with loud, resounding, inconsiderate drums.
Our government's overly loose interpretation of our laws has made police forces afraid of taking action against protestors that are breaking the law in some form or another. Without permits to march, they can't be in our streets - it's that simple. Without consent of a lot of higher-ups, they can't intentionally disrupt and impede the learning process - it's that simple.
Our law enforcement shouldn't be afraid of what the ACLU, or crooked, self-interested, lawyers may do if they spread a little tear gas around. The majority has to battle through the unnecessary impediments of the minority, failing to foster the atmosphere this nation was designed to create.
Affirmative action: It's an argument becoming more prevalent in today's society that our government and other agencies, such as the ACLU and NAACP, have gone too far in trying to protect minorities in the United States, but have instead served them a greater degree of opportunity than is afforded other Americans.
It's common sense that no one should be discriminated against based on race, ethnicity, gender, or on any outward characteristic that may set them apart from others.
There has to be equal protection against discrimination, with legal punishments stemming from non-compliance, but to place quotas for admission or hire on universities and places of employment, as well as enact other policies that separate and elevate minority opportunity above non-minorities, is to create an environment that only divides the races further.
The political correctness that stems from this legislation inherently makes us create a distinction between the races. It stifles the majority from being able to exhibit the same pride for their heritage or assemble based solely on race, as afforded to minority groups who can create race-specific student unions, for example. This is cause for resentment from those that come after us in life.
It's not rocket science - protect the minority without needlessly injuring the majority; we've crossed the line far too often in today's society, abandoning the intentions of the laws that govern us all, disgustingly contorting them for personal gain.
