the past can never be erased. all of the sins and hatreds that have come before are things that cannot be changed. what can be done is to refuse to allow past prejudices to effect our lives now, to act as though race, religion, gender and the myriad other petty differences between us are of no consequence. every individual is responsible for their own behavior and no amount of government intervention can make people what they are not. it is attitudes that must be changed, not merely the mechanics of our lives. decades of affirmative action have done nothing to alleviate the ignorance that is the basis of our prejudices, it has only exacerbated the problem by creating an entirely new reason for discontent and envy.
the cost of this foolish policy can be counted in the lost opportunities on the one hand and the lowering of expectations on the other. by attempting to reverse the inequalities within our society we penalize some, merely because they have been lumped into a group that is seen to be at the advantage. their superior position in society is an illusion, but they are chastised for it just the same. they gain no benefit from the tradition of prejudice and ask none, but are denied positions they have earned for no other reason than their race, religion, gender or other causes beyond their control.
the flip side of the coin is the damage to historically downtrodden communities that are now placed in a position of subservience to the whims of the state. the demand that they produce and strive to succeed is replaced by entitlements that are authored by agencies beyond our control. lacking the need to excel, they wither and any superior virtues within that community are belittled by the simple fact that they are unnecessary for advancement. the public sector, where affirmative action has had its most pronounced effect, is a prime example of the dangers of the policy. with no need for excellence and strengthened by unionization, mediocrity is embraced and failure is nearly unheard of. the drain on our society is immense and the damage is seen in its lack of productivity and the air of invincibility its members project, even while the bitterly complain that too much is never enough.
racism will always exist as long as we continue to expect it. we can prosecute those who allow their prejudices to impact the rights of others, but we cannot simply erase those prejudices from the population. any policy that separates one segment of society from another or sets one man above another enhances our bias and further divides us. these policies are another example of the inevitable failure of the liberal establishment's attempts at social engineering and a sad commentary on the public's demands for the use of governmental force to heal the ills of society.
