When I tell people my theory, some compare it to New York’s old ‘broken windows’ policing. This is different because I’m not advocating for police to get involved. I believe it’s bad that so many of us know right from wrong but have been programmed to ‘not judge’ regardless of the circumstances. There are only two things that can prohibit bad behavior, self-control and societal pressures. As we lose God in our lives and parents no longer teach constraint, we have fewer people who can maintain control of their behavior. Couple that with our current culture, which celebrates being different, with no behavioral norms, and makes it verboten to correct any behavior, and things are bound to get worse.
Even if the Left is right about the inequality they seek to correct, they lack focus. Following my approach of giving them their argument, I believe the Left, worse than being wrong, have a problem focusing on issues. Time after time, they complain about a perceived problem but their actions do nothing about it. They say that racism is a big problem. As Elizabeth Warren says, “the hard truth about our criminal justice system: It’s racist … front to back.”210 Why then, would you focus on the racists? You can’t force them to change their beliefs. The focus should be on behaviors and criminal acts that blacks engage in as much as it is on the number of black men arrested and how long their sentences are. They only focus on the latter. This does nothing to minimize the arrests.
They say many people are raising families on minimum wage and that is not enough on which to survive. They should focus on getting people marketable skills and teaching work ethic rather than trying to get more pay for jobs that will never be a career or may be automated soon. No matter how evil one may believe corporations are, there’s no way they would have so many job openings and continue to offer incentives to get people to apply if the people making minimum wage were qualified and lining up for the jobs.
In my chapter on gender inequality, I focused on how boys are treated because foundation is important and boys cannot push back. But men are also being ‘fixed’ in media, politics, business, and in society at large. In addition to focusing on having a disproportionate number of LGBTQ characters, heterosexual men are being pushed to be less masculine, metrosexual, and third-wave feminists.
In discussing diversity, I mentioned that Code Black had a Hispanic man playing the head nurse of the ER. What I did not mention is that the character is called ‘mamma.’ Bonobos, an online men’s clothing site, recently aired a commercial called ‘evolve the definition.’ In it, men of all different ages, colors and looks, read the definition of masculine. They describe how the definition is too narrow and needs to be changed. They go on to say what it means to them. Most just say words with no meaning, one man says, “Being a man means being honest.” This makes no sense but for businesses run by the Left, having the right social message is more important than their product.211
Lastly, if the goal of gender equality is to truly improve the status of women, this should be done by improving women not tearing down men, or turning them into pseudo women. I believe the question needs to be asked, “If the Left succeeds in decreasing masculinity, who will do the things only masculine men are doing now?”
As we’ve seen, what we allow to become the norm will affect the way people interact, the policies we enact and our quality of life. More importantly, it does not just affect what we do today. It is the single most important thing that will determine what the country will be for future generations, and it’s a factor we can control.
We Want Equality is the operational manual needed to maneuver through the barrage of political, social, and pop culture arguments and to develop logical and effective ways to reject flawed arguments without being antagonistic or condescending. It answers tough questions and will change the equality argument of anyone who approaches it with an open mind.
Acknowledgements
This book is an amalgamation of my reaction to the political discourse and the many conversations I’ve had about current events. While the topic can be interesting, it may not be as interesting to hear me constantly yammer on about it. I’d like to thank all of the friends and co-workers who put up with me and added to the conversation. Jeanne, Chavis, Ari, Nana, Lynn, Melanie, Jeff, Peter, Joe, and the United Nations team at Mike’s Barber Shop, your contributions live throughout these pages.
I am indebted to the team of people who helped me make it to the finish line. Juan Padron and Sandeep Likhar helped me convert my random thoughts to a cohesive message, making a novice seem like a professional. I also want to thank Beata and Mario from Lucky Charm Café for allowing me to occupy space to write for the cost of a cup of coffee.
I owe a particular debt of gratitude to the many people I encountered during the two years I worked on this book. Those honest reactions to questions about sensitive subjects in the oddest places challenged me and helped me hone my responses.
Thank you is never really enough to convey how integral my wife was to the process. She had to assume the role of nearly everyone I thanked above, which is a lot to ask. She was also able to temper her input when her views differed from mine and sacrifice our time so I could write. I am truly blessed to have her.
Finally, I want to thank my son for giving me space to write. If you find any typos or things that don’t make sense, those would be the times he decided I was working too much and hijacked my computer. Because of the direction things are going, I don’t know what type of country we will leave for his generation. I want to prepare him for the future, whatever it holds. Much of what I do is for him.
Notes
[←1]
New International Version.
[←2]
Charles A. Frazee, World History Volume 1, (Barron’s Educational Series, 1999), pp. 25–28.
[←3]
Bruce Wetterau, World History: A Dictionary of Important People, Places, and Events, From Ancient Times to the Present, (Henry Holt & Co,1994), pp. 16–17.
[←4]
Ibid., p. 19.
[←5]
Chester G. Starr, A History of the Ancient World, (Oxford University Press, 1991), pp. 123–134.
[←6]
Neil Kagan, Concise History of the World: An Illustrated Time Line, (National Geographic, 2013), pp. 33–60.
[←7]
Chester G. Starr, A History of the Ancient World, (Oxford University Press, 1991), pp. 287–292.
[←8]
Ibid., pp. 340–348.
[←9]
Robin Waterfield, Dividing the Spoils - The War for Alexander the Great’s Empire (hardback), (New York: Oxford University Press, 2011), pp. 273.
[←10]
Chester G. Starr, A History of the Ancient World, Second Edition. (Oxford University Press, 1974), pp. 670–678.
[←11]
Geoff Emberling, Nubia: Ancient Kingdoms of Africa. (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2011), pp. 9–11.
[←12]
Jan Vansina, A Comparison of African Kingdoms, (Africa, 32(4), 1962), pp. 324–35.
[←13]
Herodotus, The Histories, (London: Penguin Books, 1996), pp. 106–107, 133–134.
[←14]
Hayim Tadmor. The Inscriptions of Tiglath-Pileser III, King of Assyria, (Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns, 2011), p. 29.
[←15]
Elizabeth Pollard, Worlds Together Worlds Apart, (Chicago: W.W. Norton & Company, 2015), p. 249.
[←16]
Raymond A. Mauny, The Question of Ghana, (Africa, 1954), pp. 68–80.
[←17]
Roger B. Beck, The History of South Africa, (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2000), pp. 60–63.
[←18]
Leonard Thompson, A History of South Africa, (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2000), p. 85.
[←19]
Franz Michael, China Through the Ages: History of a Civilization, (Routledge, 1986), pp. 134–145.
[←20]
Ibid., p. 20.
[←21]
&n
bsp; Arthur Waldon, "The Problem of The Great Wall of China." Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies, (Harvard-Yenching Institute, 43 (2), 1983), pp. 643–663.
[←22]
Jann Einfeld, The History of Nations: India, 2003, pp. 69–75.
[←23]
Michael Grant, The Civilizations of Europe, 1965, pp. 7–17.
[←24]
Time Frame, Empires Besieged, TimeFrame AD 200–600, 1988, pp. 8–17.
[←25]
Edward Gibbons, J.B. Bury (1974). The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. AMS Press.
[←26]
Time Frame, Fury of the Northmen: TimeFrame AD 800–1000, 1988, pp. 9–40.
[←27]
Time Frame, Barbarian Tides: TimeFrame 1500–600 BC, 1987, pp. 149–167.
[←28]
Charles A. Frazee, World History Volume 1, (Barron’s Educational Series, 1999), p. 25–28.
[←29]
Lynn Foster, Handbook to Life in the Ancient Maya World, (New York: Oxford University Press, 2002), pp. 143-144.
[←30]
Michel R. Oudijk, Indian Conquistadors, (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2007), p. 32.
[←31]
Arthur A. Demarest and Geoffrey W. Conrad, Religion and Empire: The Dynamics of Aztec and Inca Expansionism. (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1984), pp. 57–59.
[←32]
Stephen C. Schlesinger, Act of Creation: The Founding of the United Nations: A Story of Super Powers, Secret Agents, Wartime Allies and Enemies, and Their Quest for a Peaceful World. (Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press, 2003).
[←33]
Yosaburō Takekoshi, Japanese rule in Formosa, (London, New York, Bombay and Calcutta: Longmans, Green, and co. 2003).
[←34]
"Unlawful Killings and Enforced Disappearances" (PDF). Final Report of the Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation in East Timor (CAVR). p. 6.
[←35]
Gregory F. Gause, III, The International Politics of the Persian Gulf, (Cambridge University Press, 2010); Louise Fawcett, International Relations of the Middle East, (Oxford: The University Press, 2013), pp. 263–274.
[←36]
Agence France Presse, “Putin describes secret operation to seize Crimea”, yahoo.com, https://www.yahoo.com/news/putin-describes-secret-operation-seize-crimea-212858356.html,(Accessed December 17, 2017).
[←37]
Graeme Wood. “What ISIS Really Wants” the Atlantic, https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2015/03/what-isis-really-wants/384980/, (Accessed December 17, 2017).
[←38]
See https://www.history.com/topics/exploration/christopher-columbus.
[←39]
John Merson, The Genius That Was China: East and West in the Making of the Modern World, (Woodstock, New York: The Overlook Press, 1990), p. 72.
[←40]
Philip D. Curtin, Cross-Cultural Trade in World History, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1984), p. 5.
[←41]
Greta Weber, “Shipwreck shines light on historic shift in slave trade,” National Geographic Society, June 8, 2015, https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/06/150605-shipwreck-slave-trade-south-africa-18th-century-brazil/, (Accessed December 17, 2017).
[←42]
Ronald Robinson and John Gallahger and Alice Denny, Africa and the Victorians, (London, 1961) p. 175.
[←43]
See https://www.reference.com/history/names-three-major-colonial-powers-7bf565cd9fbc5300#.
[←44]
The Economist, “How to stop the fighting, sometimes,” The Economist, November 9, 2013 https://www.economist.com/briefing/2013/11/10/how-to-stop-the-fighting-sometimes.
[←45]
Roland Oliver, Africa in the Iron Age, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1975), p. 192.
[←46]
David P. Forsythe, Encyclopedia of Human Rights, Volume 1, (Oxford University Press, 2009), p. 399.
[←47]
Barbara Krauthamer, Black Slaves, Indian Masters: Slavery, Emancipation and Citizenship in the Native American South, (Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 2013), pp. 17–19.
[←48]
Joann Anderson. “Obama Administration Pays $492 Million to Settle With Indian Tribes — But Ignores Claims of Black Indian Families.” BlackNews.com, www.blacknews.com/news/obama-administration-pays-492-million-settlement-indian-tribes-ignores-black-indian-families-claims/#.W1-5RvZFxMs (Accessed December 17, 2017).
[←49]
www.endslaverynow.org/.
[←50]
Ben Kiernan, The First Genocide: Carthage, 146 BC, (Diogenes, 2004), pp. 27–39.
[←51]
Robert B. Strassler, The Landmark Thucydides, (New York: Touchstone Books, 2008), p. 357.
[←52]
James Marson, "Ukraine’s forgotten famine,” The Guardian, November 18, 2009, https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2009/nov/18/ukraine-famine-russia-holodomor, (Accessed January 4, 2018).
[←53]
Adam Jones, Genocide: A Comprehensive Introduction, (Taylor & Francis, 2010), pp. 171–72.
[←54]
Karl D. Jackson, Cambodia, 1975–1978: Rendezvous with Death. (Princeton University Press, 1992), p. 219.
[←55]
BBC. “Rwanda: How the genocide happened,” bbc.com, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-13431486, (Accessed January 4, 2018).
[←56]
Richard Sisson and Leo E. Rose, War and Secession: Pakistan, India, and the Creation of Bangladesh, (University of California Press, 1991), p. 306.
[←57]
Will Worley, “Burma: Rohingya children 'beheaded and burned alive' as refugees continue to flood into Bangladesh to escape violence,” The Independent, https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/rohingya-burma-myanmar-children-beheaded-burned-alive-refugees-bangladesh-a7926521.html, (Accessed September 20, 2017).
[←58]
Ingebjorg Karstad, “Fleeing DRC to Uganda: Africa’s other refugee crisis,” Aljazeera, https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/inpictures/fleeing-drc-uganda-africa-refugee-crisis-180301084715204.html.
[←59]
Karin Badt. “Torture in North Korea: Concentration Camps in the Spotlight,” The Huffington Post, https://www.huffingtonpost.com/karin-badt/torture-in-north-korea-co_b_545254.html.
[←60]
Bethan McKernan, “Syria civil war: More than 320,000 people flee fighting in Deraa in ‘largest displacement yet,’” the Independent, https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/syria-civil-war-deraa-refugees-evacuation-assad-regime-rebel-fighting-israel-jordan-a8434706.html.
[←61]
Patricia Gossman, “Dispatches: Why Afghans are Leaving,” hrw.org, https://www.hrw.org/news/2015/09/16/dispatches-why-afghans-are-leaving.
[←62]
Nick Cumming-Bruce. “Over One Million South Sudanese Flee From Violence to Uganda,” nytimes.com, August 17, 2017, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/17/world/africa/south-sudan-refugees-uganda.html.
[←63]
Rocio Cara Labrador and Danielle Renwick, “Central America’s Violent Northern Triangle,” cfr.org, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/17/world/africa/south-sudan-refugees-uganda.html.
[←64]
Joe Parkin Daniels and María Ramírez. “Life’s a struggle as Venezuela inflation heads for one million percent,” theguardian.com, July 25, 2018. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jul/25/venezuela-inflation-crisis-nicolas-maduro.
[←65]
Jeff Hay, The Early Middle Ages, Turning Points in World History, (Greenhaven Press, 2001), pp. 157–163.
[←66]
David E. Guinn, Protecting Jerusalem’s Holy Sites: A Strategy for Negotiating a Sacred Peace, (Cambridge University Press, 2006), p. 142.
[←67]
Thomas A. Idinopulos, Jerusalem blessed, Jerusalem cursed, (Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 1991), p. 152.
[←68]
Desmond Stewart, Early Islam, (Time, 1967), pp. 52–65.
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