I don't know about anyone else but in the context of this thread, I thought we were talking about inter-marriage and diversity. Susan has already said, "Again, apologies for plain speaking if it offends."

Plainly speaking, I enjoy diversity and prefer to live without racial distinction. I am happy that the barriers have been broken down and that we can share cultures. Personally, what I find visually attractive is beautiful. There are other kinds of beauty as well. I agree that when you get to know someone, you can usually find something very beautiful about them. As the old saying goes, "Beauty is as beauty does." However, when you don't know the people (my experience in Arizona) the only measure of beauty is visual.

If you want to start your own thread about what you find beautiful, Azizi, go for it. I thought it was a given that each individual has different definition of beauty. Lets face it, beauty is a pretty broad category. Personally, I don't let society determine what I think is beautiful. You can pity the ugly if you wish but then you will have to define ugly.

In Arizona, I found that ugly was a combination of unhealthy, bleached out and grumpy. Add to that an attitude and too much money. Compare that to healthy, colourful, smiling and happpy and you may understand what I mean.

I usually avoid discussions involving race but in this case, I thought we were really talking about erradicating discrimination base on racial segregation. I have often thought that if we could overcome that obstacle and join hands, the corporate elite would have a more difficult time with their 'divide and conquer' strategies.

I agree with McGrath, I hope racial discrimination becomes wierd and incomprehensible. Of course then we will have to break down the class barriers, sexual discrimation and ageism. I think the baby boomers should be applauded for even attempting to tackle those big issues. With racism on its way out and a growing awareness of sexual discrimination, maybe the next generation can concentrate on class barriers. I think the baby boomers will be able to tackle 'ageism'.

Wow, class barriers. Now thats a challenge. The caste system still exists but with a brand new face.

Some may still prefer to think in terms of black and white but, personally, I prefer shades of grey or in this case, brown.