McGrath...yep, demographic imbalances can mean a LOT of things...and are handled differently all over the world. Japan certainly takes a fairly rigid attitude toward them. All *I* am trying to convey is a sense of how crucial it is to have some control over the process and not just wait while folks on both sides try to manipulate it for self-serving interests.


kat.....Oh, indeed they (Native Americans)probably did! We all know why it went the way it did back then, and with that hindsight to help guide us, perhaps we can contrive a system to avoid the worst decisions and mistakes in this situation! In all situations, we cannot 'turn back the clock', we can only work from where we are now. This means making practical, fair adjustments to the situation as we find it, while avoiding an escalation of it which is likely to be less than happy for ALL parties!

Ask anyone who lives in places like Los Angeles what it is like to have multi-cultural tensions on the agenda every day...in schools, in government, in prisons, in neighborhoods, in public transportation...etc.

If this great "melting pot" experiment were to proceed more gradually, so that we really HAD integration, rather than ghettos and demands and frustrated, awkward band-aids on flare-ups, we might become a nation that ALL could be proud of...someday.

For those in other countries who want to follow some of this, we have one newscaster who has taken this as his primary concern...you can read his take on Lou Dobbs page.

I am QUITE aware that his opinions, like all opinions, must be looked at carefully, as this ain't an easy problem. ANY solution will make someone unhappy.