tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6524377.post113926675567776735..comments2023-07-14T07:58:23.792-04:00Comments on More Than My Luggage: On Theft and Racial StereotypingDennis!http://www.blogger.com/profile/08221557848747905966noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6524377.post-1140119404183460382006-02-16T14:50:00.000-05:002006-02-16T14:50:00.000-05:00Sorry he got your bag!!! But I think that you are ...Sorry he got your bag!!! But I think that you are totally right about having that feeling in the future; it is just inevitable. It is the same as when people lock their doors when they see people in a sketchy neighborhood. It doesn't make you a racist or stereotyper, it makes you realistic and practical.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6524377.post-1140062473026309812006-02-15T23:01:00.000-05:002006-02-15T23:01:00.000-05:00Dennis!, everybody knows Asians are WAY TOO SMART ...Dennis!, everybody knows Asians are WAY TOO SMART to be racists. Stereotype, what's that?<BR/><BR/>God, I crack me up! =D<BR/><BR/>Anyway, I'm sorry some loser hijacked your stuff. I think discrimination is natural. I don't think it's right, but it's deeply ingrained in our instinctive subconscious minds as a defense mechanism. Our conscious mind indentifies a threat, and our subconscious creates an archetype. It's as simple as that. And just because it's there doesn't make one a racist, as long as our conscious minds can rationalize what's happening. You can fight instinct, but you can't eliminate it. I'm a monkey; I'm <EM>going</EM> to scratch my ass when it itches, you know?<BR/><BR/>Being white and male, I'm constantly on eggshells. I mean, every day, I'm bombarded with racial stereotypes - both true and false - and so it's a struggle sometimes not to appear racist; not to <EM>overcompensate</EM>. And then to talk about it at all is taboo. I'm sure I'm offending someone RIGHT NOW! Fortunately for the easily offended, racial issues are among my favorite topics of conversation. <BR/><BR/>Can't please everybody. I sure don't bother trying.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6524377.post-1139945747968336452006-02-14T14:35:00.000-05:002006-02-14T14:35:00.000-05:00Wow.First of all, I'm not a suburbanite. Don't kn...Wow.<BR/><BR/>First of all, I'm not a suburbanite. Don't know how much you read this blog, but I live smack dab in the city.<BR/><BR/>Second, I would think "a society where mutual respect permeates all our interactions" would include one where people of any race or nationality don't steal from others. It's amusing how quickly I'm labelled "racist," "privileged," and "irresponsible" for my thoughts on this (despite the fact that I wouldn't have given him a second thought -- positive or negative -- if he hadn't stolen my bag), yet somehow the thief is completely exonerated for his actions.<BR/><BR/>Thanks for anonymous attack there.Dennis!https://www.blogger.com/profile/08221557848747905966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6524377.post-1139939702302843522006-02-14T12:55:00.000-05:002006-02-14T12:55:00.000-05:00After reading your entry I thought, wow, racist su...After reading your entry I thought, wow, racist suburbanites should stay out of the city. If you can't watch your man-bag at a restaurant, you shouldn't carry one. The person who grabbed your man bag may have been a professional. He may have dressed to blend in at restaurants and crowded public places like the one where you left your expensive gadgets unattended in your entitled, self important state of socialization. Perhaps applying racist sterotypes is a learned behavior for those who seek justification for their life choices that perpetuate racism, economic and educational disparities for people of color, and a general lack of responsibility to change American culture for the better. How do you know the guy who sold your camera doesn't read Vietnamese? You have no idea what his life story is, as I have no idea of your life story. Let your experience serve as a reminder that while you enjoy your priveledge with ease and irresponsibility, others are eager to take advantage of your weakness. Perhaps one day we will enjoy a society where mutual respect permeates all our interactions.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6524377.post-1139936663772588332006-02-14T12:04:00.000-05:002006-02-14T12:04:00.000-05:00MG: Now THAT would be karma, eh? Heh.Sarah: Perh...MG: Now THAT would be karma, eh? Heh.<BR/><BR/>Sarah: Perhaps I didn't paint the picture well enough, but I actually didn't move for about 30 seconds after I saw them running, so if their bolting was meant to be a distraction while someone else pilfered my belongings, it didn't work. It's not like all 15 of us at the table jumped up and left our things behind when these guys ran out. Heck, my parents didn't even notice the guys at all.Dennis!https://www.blogger.com/profile/08221557848747905966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6524377.post-1139921479882821912006-02-14T07:51:00.000-05:002006-02-14T07:51:00.000-05:00Just because he was the one running doesn't mean t...Just because he was the one running doesn't mean that he was the one who took your bag. If he was involved, and you have no proof, his entire purpose may have been to distract you while someone within the restaurant, like your waiter maybe, snatched the bag and passed it off to someone. You saw him run out the front, but you don't know for sure that he's the one that took it. I'm sorry you were burgled, it's an awful feeling.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6524377.post-1139902446595457832006-02-14T02:34:00.000-05:002006-02-14T02:34:00.000-05:00Ugh! So sorry about the loss of your man-bag. It...Ugh! So sorry about the loss of your man-bag. It always sucks when things happen that upset the way you behave or the way you see the world-- I know I became a highly suspicious person after my credit cards got stolen from my wallet out of my purse out of my bag under my desk at work (phew!). I bet that, before long, you will reevaluate and things will go back to normal.<BR/>OR<BR/>I know that you're a lawyer-- do you prosecute or defend? Because it would be sweet if somehow, someway, he made it out to DC and you got to try him for something! I mean, he'd have to be wearing the same outfit, or carrying your man-bag, so that you'd recognize him... I'll have to work on this more.mysterygirl!https://www.blogger.com/profile/01708758561975520042noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6524377.post-1139881623505978092006-02-13T20:47:00.000-05:002006-02-13T20:47:00.000-05:00Sub Girl: Precisely. For people other than me, t...Sub Girl: Precisely. For people other than me, this would ratify negative stereotypes. Blah.<BR/><BR/>Cube: I'm still flummoxed at how <I>good</I> he was. I mean, the bag was <I>right there</I>.<BR/><BR/>Katie: I keep trying to be a "bigger man" who's empathetic and who presumes that there must have been some circumstances that drove him to this. But in fact, I really do kinda hope that he got run over by a car as he ran away with my stuff.<BR/><BR/>KOB: Your last sentence is precisely the sentiment I wish I could feel. In the abstract, I could feel it. Say, if someone else's stuff got stolen. The odd paradox is that, because it's <I>my</I> stuff... I can't get myself to feel it.Dennis!https://www.blogger.com/profile/08221557848747905966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6524377.post-1139880275863493712006-02-13T20:24:00.000-05:002006-02-13T20:24:00.000-05:00Outstanding post; Cube's comment has it perfectly....Outstanding post; Cube's comment has it perfectly. After time my memory of something similar just boiled itself to sadness over the choice some people make. I almost feel sympathy, as weird as it sounds, for those who have lost, or never had, a center.kobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15351473838412364000noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6524377.post-1139852190384827322006-02-13T12:36:00.000-05:002006-02-13T12:36:00.000-05:00I'm sorry about the loss of your stuff. I would ho...I'm sorry about the loss of your stuff. I would hope that people would realize that an experience with one member of a race isn't indicitive of the group as a whole, but I fear that isn't the case a lot of the time. A theif is a theif regardless of nationality. Hopefully karma comes and bites him in the ass.katiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03710143323435835012noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6524377.post-1139851954547811142006-02-13T12:32:00.000-05:002006-02-13T12:32:00.000-05:00Don't beat yourself up over not noticing. The man...Don't beat yourself up over not noticing. The man was a professional thief and for them, it's all about "sleight of hand." You never know where to look, and you never see a thing. His partner may have even done something at that moment to distract your gaze. I'm sorry you had to go through that.Washington Cubehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02892459114050731786noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6524377.post-1139839887898764632006-02-13T09:11:00.000-05:002006-02-13T09:11:00.000-05:00i'm sorry your stuff was stolen! it sucks when pr...i'm sorry your stuff was stolen! it sucks when preconceived notions/stereotypes actually come true...Tyjenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17015803176565762881noreply@blogger.com