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Comment by clort | Hacker News Reader

It is a good thing because historically it has mattered what ethnicity people are. It still matters because there is a narrative pushed by some that we are a meritocracy but in fact social mobility is very low. This is not just about ethnicity, but ethnicity is definitely a part of poverty in the USA for instance, and ethnicity is visible.

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It shouldn't matter what-so-ever what race someone is. It should be irrelevant. It shouldn't be a positive or negative thing. If social mobility is a problem then you means test the household based on wealth and give grants to those that satisfy the criteria.

What should or shouldn't matter is irrelevant and pretending like it's relevant is naive. It does matter. That's a fact. You want to take your argument to 1850 and argue what should and shouldn't matter? We fought the bloodiest war in American history over this so you know what, it does fucking matter. And even in 2020, racism is still widespread, so you know what, it fucking matters. That's reality. It most certainly fucking matters that certain people were held back for hundreds of years through slavery and racism while whites progressed forward. It most certainly matters that this is still going on today. Look at the median household worth in the US to see how much it matters. This idea that you're putting forward, that history doesn't matter, that reality doesn't matter, is frankly absurd. It's not even an argument. It has no basis in reality. It's a fantasy. History matters and affects the present. It's as simple as that.

> It's not even an argument. It has no basis in reality. It's a fantasy. History matters and affects the present. It's as simple as that.

I was going to rebut most of your angry ramblings. Then I read this and I remembered why it pointless with talking to people like yourself. You think there cannot be any discussion on a topic outside of what you think it correct because you have decided that you have the correct opinion.

I said "this shouldn't matter".

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