Affirmative Action: Legalized discrimination.

            Sorry it's been a while since my last post.  For some reason the computer wouldn't let me compose these past couple of days.  Anyway, here is something that caught my attention and I feel needs to be said.
           Recently, a case went befoer the supreme court on affirmative action.  The case involved a student trying to get into a university in Texas.  If you haven't heard of it you can look it up as I don't feel the need to rehash it.  This post is on my thoughts on affirmative action.  I feel that affirmative action, by its very nature, is discriminatory.  If you give someone preference based on the race or gender and it is considered discrimination, yet this is exactly what affirmative action does.  Based on the fact that you are a part of a minority, you are given "special consideration."  I don't understand the logic of using discriminatory actions to "ensure equality" by forcing quotas.  We have a system that is very sensitive to discriminatory issues.  In fact, if you are a minority and want to get a bunch of money, bring a lawsuit against any company for discrimination and see how fast it gets settled.  It doesn't matter how legitimate it is, even the hint of discrimination will open their checkbooks.  Yet, we still feel it is necessary to pass laws and make rules that give special considerations to minorities.
            So how do you make the process fair?  You may ask.  Simple, you remove any hint of a persons race, gender, etc. from the application process.  You take a look at their qualifications and choose the best based on that.  When it comes time for the interview, trust your interviewer to be fair and choose the best candidate.  If you suspect discrimination after that, then sue and be prepared to pay.  As I said, I can't think of any major company out there that doesn't fear a discrimination lawsuit.  Just the hint of impropriety is enough to get people fired.
            As is so often pointed out to me, this is the 21st century, the practices of 50 years ago are past.  It is time to move on and start allowing people to earn jobs based on merit, not whether or not they belong to a minority.  I am sure there are people out there that will decry me as being insensitive to the minority plight.  That couldn't be further from the truth.  I believe that race and gender have nothing to do with ability and skill.  They are completely seperate.  I don't think I could take a job that I knew I got because of my race or gender.  Yet, it happens all the time.  And not because the hired person is white, but because they are a minority and that is apparantly an OK form of discrimination.
               So ask yourself this, if discrimination is wrong, how is affirmative action legal?  In summary, it isn't.  Affirmative Action is discrimination.  Affirmative Action promotes racism by saying that a minority couldn't compete without preferential treatment.  I say it is time to do away with affirmative action and embrace a new concept of equal treatment for all, regardless of race or gender.  Then again, isn't that what the Civil rights movement of the 60s was after in the first place?
             Thanks for reading and, as always, have a great day.