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You're not being downvoted for your point. You're being downvoted for not contributing to the conversation in a meaningful way and being sarcastic (the poor man

You're not being downvoted for your point. You're being downvoted for not contributing to the conversation in a meaningful way and being sarcastic (the poor man's whit). Say something more like: Today the aggregate amount of people that can travel massive distances is much greater than it was before. No longer are a few thousand migrants traveling through a country every year, today it's literally millions. Control comes with that. As technological advancement makes access easier, the need to control that access becomes more important. An obvious recent tale of similarities is the internet.

zajd 10y ago
It's the internet. I'm not writing to change minds, I'm writing pretty much to the audience that already agrees with me. Nobody thinks we're going to have a productive discussion about race in the HN comments, way better to just point out the hypocrisy and move on. Truth of the matter is the comments that are most relevant get floated to the top and if someone's gonna say some ignorant shit they ought to be called out on it. I don't mind being downvoted, I honestly find it amusing that if you say something wrong, people will respond. Say something wrong they don't like, people attack you. Say something right that people don't like? They downvote silently. If it makes people uncomfortable to be told their racist for calling 100 years ago a golden age... maybe they should be uncomfortable? TLDR I'll save my effort trying change hearts and minds for when it's worth it.
- beowulf_cluster 10y ago
  > If it makes people uncomfortable to be told their [sic] racist for calling 100 years ago a golden age... maybe they should be uncomfortable? Glossing over the faulty logic, is your entire motive for posting here is to distress the top-level commenter? You say you're not here to sway opinions. So you're just here to troll for the sake of trolling? I'll admit this is refreshingly candid, but could you just refrain from posting in the first place?
  - zajd 10y ago
    Again, not trolling, just giving a place for the educated among us to click a button and say "hey, this stupid racist shit doesn't represent the HN community" Quite frankly the idea that we should treat all ideas with civility and respect doesn't really cut it in reality.
    - beowulf_cluster 10y ago
      Whatever racism you think you're seeing is only in your head. Top level commenter didn't call 1914 a "golden age"; they were merely lamenting some of the freedoms we lost a century ago.
    - zo1 10y ago
      >"Again, not trolling, just giving a place for the educated among us to click a button and say "hey, this stupid racist shit doesn't represent the HN community"" Ironically, that last part is probably a good part of why you are being down voted.
      - zajd 10y ago
        I honestly have no problems with it. I know these are controversial issues today and taking the stance of "we shouldn't have to put up with racist rhetoric in 2016 in the developed world" is not going to be a popular one, especially when you use sarcasm to convey it. There are assuredly people who will say "it's 2016, I should be able to have my own opinions, whatever they are, and be treated as equal to others" I disagree.
        ori_b 10y ago
        I see that the word "racism" has ceased to have meaning. "I wish there was less passport control and easier migration." "RACIST!"
        zajd 10y ago
        When a white person laments about how much "we've given up" since 1910 it is a racist action. Sorry the truth hurts. It's similar to those that look back on the 50s as a golden age in America. Sure, it's golden if you're a white male. We haven't given up shit since 1910, progress has been unimaginable and it's actually EASIER to travel internationally now than it was then. So yeah, if you're going to pretend like 1910 was better for this shit in some way, it's only going to be for a very select group of people.
- turar 10y ago
  Do you have any references to support your claim that before 1914 travel was more restricted for someone of similar means from Asia, Africa, or Latin America?

zajd 10y ago

It's the internet. I'm not writing to change minds, I'm writing pretty much to the audience that already agrees with me. Nobody thinks we're going to have a productive discussion about race in the HN comments, way better to just point out the hypocrisy and move on. Truth of the matter is the comments that are most relevant get floated to the top and if someone's gonna say some ignorant shit they ought to be called out on it. I don't mind being downvoted, I honestly find it amusing that if you say something wrong, people will respond. Say something wrong they don't like, people attack you. Say something right that people don't like? They downvote silently. If it makes people uncomfortable to be told their racist for calling 100 years ago a golden age... maybe they should be uncomfortable? TLDR I'll save my effort trying change hearts and minds for when it's worth it.

beowulf_cluster 10y ago
> If it makes people uncomfortable to be told their [sic] racist for calling 100 years ago a golden age... maybe they should be uncomfortable? Glossing over the faulty logic, is your entire motive for posting here is to distress the top-level commenter? You say you're not here to sway opinions. So you're just here to troll for the sake of trolling? I'll admit this is refreshingly candid, but could you just refrain from posting in the first place?
- zajd 10y ago
  Again, not trolling, just giving a place for the educated among us to click a button and say "hey, this stupid racist shit doesn't represent the HN community" Quite frankly the idea that we should treat all ideas with civility and respect doesn't really cut it in reality.
  - beowulf_cluster 10y ago
    Whatever racism you think you're seeing is only in your head. Top level commenter didn't call 1914 a "golden age"; they were merely lamenting some of the freedoms we lost a century ago.
  - zo1 10y ago
    >"Again, not trolling, just giving a place for the educated among us to click a button and say "hey, this stupid racist shit doesn't represent the HN community"" Ironically, that last part is probably a good part of why you are being down voted.
    - zajd 10y ago
      I honestly have no problems with it. I know these are controversial issues today and taking the stance of "we shouldn't have to put up with racist rhetoric in 2016 in the developed world" is not going to be a popular one, especially when you use sarcasm to convey it. There are assuredly people who will say "it's 2016, I should be able to have my own opinions, whatever they are, and be treated as equal to others" I disagree.
      - ori_b 10y ago
        I see that the word "racism" has ceased to have meaning. "I wish there was less passport control and easier migration." "RACIST!"
        zajd 10y ago
        When a white person laments about how much "we've given up" since 1910 it is a racist action. Sorry the truth hurts. It's similar to those that look back on the 50s as a golden age in America. Sure, it's golden if you're a white male. We haven't given up shit since 1910, progress has been unimaginable and it's actually EASIER to travel internationally now than it was then. So yeah, if you're going to pretend like 1910 was better for this shit in some way, it's only going to be for a very select group of people.
turar 10y ago
Do you have any references to support your claim that before 1914 travel was more restricted for someone of similar means from Asia, Africa, or Latin America?