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On being born with privilege

Posted by davidmcnab 9 years, 2 months ago to Philosophy
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Earlier today, I saw a feminist posting on social media about the "privilege inherent in being white, straight and male". It had an undertone of expectation that anyone in that position should feel guilty and hold themselves back in favour of those denied that privilege.

Anyway, this was my reply:

To anyone with privilege of any kind be it artistic genius, or wealthy birth, or athletic capability, or political connections, or dominant gender/sexuality/ethnicity, I say this:

Do not under any circumstances allow yourself to indulge (or others to manipulating you into indulging) in that toxic infectious emotion called 'guilt', or feel you have to hold yourself back in any way, or for anybody.

Take everything great you have been given, and use it to its utmost to be all you can be. Through your productive accomplishment, you inspire others, and even lighten their load.

Audit all the helpful and unhelpful cards you have been dealt. Strategise your life to maximise the benefit of your helpful cards, and minimise the adverse impact of your unhelpful ones, and where possible, even convert the unhelpful ones into helpful ones.

And be mindful that the true measure of a person is not what cards they have been dealt, but how they play them.

I don't identify as Christian, but that passage on 'charity' in Corinthians offers much guidance, especially if you substitute the words 'open heart' and/or 'empathy' for the word 'charity' (which today has taken on a connotation of moral obligation to give to those less fortunate).


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  • Posted by 9 years, 2 months ago in reply to this comment.
    That particular feminist I mentioned yesterday is doing a PhD in psychology, and will end up being trusted as a board-licensed therapist. :(
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  • Posted by $ MichaelAarethun 9 years, 2 months ago
    Well well well this the same thing as saying only the rich should pay taxes and defining it as $100K or more? Another leftist mantra...stuff it! Are their differences YES but onloy because the government and the left support racism, sexism and bigotry.

    Big time.
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  • Posted by Herb7734 9 years, 2 months ago
    Those of you who may be familiar with The Desiderata by Max Ehrmann could well place Mr. McNab's words as an addendum. I can add nothing to his excellent and inspiring advice except to say well done.
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  • Posted by Mamaemma 9 years, 2 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I would venture to say that most of these differences in treatment have a rational basis. For example, women usually tip less than men.
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  • Posted by $ WilliamShipley 9 years, 2 months ago
    I admit that there is an advantage to being white, straight and male. A black friend's fear of being pulled over for "driving while black" is not irrational. I've heard from my wife that a man sitting alone in a restaurant is likelier to get his coffee refilled than a woman. And there are many more examples of greater and lesser discrimination.

    Do I feel guilty? Hell no. To the degree that some people are not being treated with the same respect and courtesy as a "white male", they deserve better treatment. Pulling me over unnecessarily for 'equality' or not giving me a second cup of coffee does nothing for them.

    All people deserve to be treated with respect and courtesy.
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  • Posted by Riftsrunner 9 years, 2 months ago
    The term 'privileged' has nothing to do with any actual advantage a person may or may not have. It is Social Justice Warrior speak for "Shut the F*** Up. Because you are not {insert supposed underprivileged class (examples: a woman, black, gay, transexual)} your opinion is irrelevant to me and cannot add to the conversation on how we can solve the persecution of {said class} ". I usually take them saying that I need to 'check my privilege' that they are so unsure of their points of views that they need to shut me up before I can destroy the foundation of those beliefs as if they were build of sand by the ocean and the tide is coming in.
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  • Posted by LibertyBelle 9 years, 2 months ago
    In a laissez-faire, free-enterprise country, it would
    not much matter if you were born with a lot of mon-
    ey or not; if you were lazy and/or incompetent, you would
    eventually lose it, and be down on the level with
    "non-priveleged" people again. It is not neces-
    sary for the government to take away people's
    property (nor even for a lot of people to voluntar-
    ily give it up), if we could just have freedom.
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  • 10
    Posted by jimjamesjames 9 years, 2 months ago
    "privilege: a right or immunity granted as a peculiar benefit, advantage, or favor."

    If a privilege is "granted," there's a presumption of a relationship between a grantor and a grantee. If my being white, straight (and tall) offends someone, I suggest they take it up with the grantor, not me.
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    Posted by DrZarkov99 9 years, 2 months ago
    When my ancestors (Irish and French) first arrived in the late 1600s, they were asylum-seekers; the Irish from losing the Catholic side of the Battle of the Boyne in 1690, and the French as victims of prosecution of their Huguenot faith about the same time. Both groups were distinctly disadvantaged and barely tolerated by their English Anglican neighbors, pushed to the frontier to deal with hostile Amerindian tribes.

    Those ancestors scrapped for existence, toiled, bled, and died from disease in those early days. Each successive generation had a Calvinist bent for their duty to work hard, make the world better for their children, and help those who needed assistance. They were farmers, coal miners, wheelrights, blacksmiths, railroad workers, with only the most recent generation reaching college-educated upper middle class.

    When I hear the term "privileged" applied to people of my color, it takes real restraint not to slap the speaker. If over three hundred years of dedication to the principles of the nation's founding, sacrificing lives in every major conflict, and never relying on government handouts even in their poorest days is somehow privileged, then I invite these phony "sufferers" to walk a few thousand miles in the shoes of my founding American family.
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  • Posted by ssadesign 9 years, 2 months ago
    Most of the groups that are protesting today are not asking for the opportunity to achieve more of anything, they are asking that others have less of everything -
    and give it to them.
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  • Posted by $ Thoritsu 9 years, 2 months ago
    Interesting that athletic capability and beauty don't fall into the media cross hairs too often. However, if you go to college without minimal scholarship, work hard, communicate well and end up in a well-paying job, you are scum, compared with people earning 10x more, playing games that still end up in bar fights, shootings, rape and set up dog fighting. Pathetic.

    The light of another's candle diminishes your none.
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  • Posted by $ jlc 9 years, 2 months ago
    I would make a slight correction to your otherwise great advice, DavidMc. There are actually three classes of 'advantage' (two of which are in your list, the third I add for completeness since all of these are railed against): Inherent (athletic, genius, art), borrowed (political connections), and acquired (earned wealth and position). So, to your advice, I would add: Take care to distinguish between the privileges that are 'you' vs those that are 'not you'. While you do not have to apologize for any of the items in the list, relying too much on achievements of others leads to a false sense of self esteem and/or may set standards that are inappropriate for you.

    Jan
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  • Posted by jetmec 9 years, 2 months ago
    In England the most decimated against section of the community is the single white Christian straight male
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  • Posted by $ Thoritsu 9 years, 2 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Great message for the underprivileged, overweight, people with cell phones, flat screen TVs and boredom eleiminated.
    Those rich people you hate so much macroscopically kept you from living in squalor, malaria, famine and struggle.
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  • Posted by wiggys 9 years, 2 months ago
    All I can say it is has been a privilege to be born in the USA. I and probably several million others whose families came to this country over 100 years ago who have been successful because they like me had the opportunity which in my case I wouldn't have had if I was born in Russia are as grateful as I am. That is the privilege that this woman does not understand.
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  • Posted by CircuitGuy 9 years, 2 months ago
    I try to think of the advantages I had coming from a privledged background when I start to fret about something unfair that didn't go my way. It puts it in perspective. It helps me focus on actions I can take rather than the scorecard of when fate worked for me or against me.
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  • Posted by InfamousEric 9 years, 2 months ago
    I'm a long haired guy in a corporate job...

    There is nobody more discriminated against than that.
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