Trying to keep racism at arm’s length

[ilbegone]

It's easy to say a lot of things under the cloak of internet anonymity which would never be said face to face.

I also suspect that avatars such as of superheros and fantastic ferocious beasts and intergalactic super beings tend to belong belong to fat guys who haven't left the couch in ages.

I believe there are some things to keep in mind.

There are people who have no other life than to discredit any advocacy of immigration law enforcement. They will tirelessly search straw by straw through the whole haystack to find needle like "evidence" of racism, then blanket smear the whole group as though commentary by people who are anonymous "associates" (or faceless "members") in name only mandate organizational policy.

There are some real nuts out there amongst the open borders group, who's obsession with race far outstrips anything to be found among pro immigration law enforcement, and who tend towards violence. The SPLC will never call them on it, and LEOs have been known to let them do their thing on the street - all because of the deliberate smearing of pro immigration law enforcement advocates.

If someone runs their mouth in an offensive manner on the internet board, which I believe functions mainly to get the word out and as a recruitment tool, it makes those who faithfully go to protests look bad and subject to physical violence, as well as disgust and repel people who might otherwise participate on the behalf of SOS.

For obvious reasons, it's never wise to give your enemy a crate of live grenades.

[PochoPatriot]

Originally Posted by Twoller

I've said it before, I'll say it again. The only reason I registered here at this forum is to discuss illegal immigration. I post at a lot of bulletin boards like this and the vast majority of other posters have always been anonymous. I live a long way from Southern California and I'm very hesitant to attend public demonstrations with people I do not know very, very well.

If the administrators have problems with people posting here who are not active on the streets, it would be very simple to insist on in person registration. Nobody could post who had not attended a rally or in some way contributed to SOS directly to the satisfaction of the administrators. This is entirely reasonable to me. I'm not trying to get away with anything. I found the site on the internet and that's the only association I am interested in. I don't care who the other posters are personally, only what you are willing to express as an opinion. I have seen too many people post on bulletin boards under assumed and false personalities. That's fine with me, as long as your intentions are benign or at least unconfrontational. Otherwise, you need to represent yourself as honestly as you can and show, at the very least, the integrity suggested for written correspondence. You can get away with a lot of weird parlor games in face to face relationships that you can never get away with in print.

In the past, on the old SOS, we discussed membership requirements. It ranged from regular attendance of SOS events (impractical for members not in So. Cal.), to the payment of dues (which I believe is the best), to both (impractical). Either way, this group needs both internet soldiers and foot soldiers to be effective. What we all should do, and I am pointing the finger at myself first, is scale back on some of the inflammatory rhetoric used against illegal aliens and our opponents.

Second, I do not think it is appropriate to allow posts that glorify KKK rallies on this board. One of the things that drew me to SOS in the first place was that leading the way was not only she who will not be named, but also Ted Hayes, Col. Al Valdez, Lupe Moreno, Frank Jorge, Sam Z. and other people of color. I saw this and instantly knew that this organization was not ethnocentric, but open to people of races, colors and ethnic groups that were opposed to the illegal invasion.

Third, I will not agree with everything you say, and I will voice my disagreement. However, I respect your right to say it (provided it is within the guidelines of this forum). I am not advocating political correctness, rather I think that we can be more civil. Simple as that.

[Rim05]

There are some things that we can say that hurt all other members, BECAUSE, these forums are being read by many others. They can and do change one or more words to give a completely different meaning than was intended. When that happens it is something that is tacked to this forum also. I have not been to any events planned by SOSinfo but I respect it the same as I did the beginning of the old SOSorg. I will always try my best to never bring shame to our forum or members.

[Kathy63]

Profiling the racists.

tea party activists, birthers, global-warming deniers and viewers of Fox News.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010...ice-bodyguards

[Twoller]

Originally Posted by Rim05

There are some things that we can say that hurt all other members, BECAUSE, these forums are being read by many others. They can and do change one or more words to give a completely different meaning than was intended. When that happens it is something that is tacked to this forum also. I have not been to any events planned by SOSinfo but I respect it the same as I did the beginning of the old SOSorg. I will always try my best to never bring shame to our forum or members.

There are two problems with this point of view. First, anyone at all who wants to, like me, can register on this forum. And also, you must be registered at this forum in order to read it at all. (The last time I checked, anyway.) And also, the tendency to distort the meaning of what people say is the strategy of the opposition. The problem is that many who make the most noise about representing SOS, also work the hardest to deliberately misinterpret what people say here.

As long as SOS itself is honest about representing itself and others clearly sympathetic, then it is best to ignore the criticisms and distortions coming from the illegal supporters. All they want is your attention, and if you give it to them, they win. They also win when people identified with SOS apply the same strategy. It is obvious that many here wish to dull outrage against the illegals and assume a tone more like the illegal supporters. It is not hard to see that given enough time and deference to these people, SOS will eventually come around to things like amnesty or other equivilants -- anything but aggressive enforcement against the simple presence of illegal immigrants and their enablers among legal immigrants as well.

Everyone knows that those most passionate about denouncing racism, for example, care the least about what racism actually is. They say they know what racism is and are not obliged to any explanation about what that is. And they get along perfectly well with real racists, who they need to prop up their shallow and corrupt poliitics.