# It would appear that the DNC likes being in the minority **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [November 1, 2017, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427 "2017-11-01T20:01:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 9:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/161 "2017-11-08T09:07:24Z")
Well, **addy** ’s idea about the Dems being nicer seems to be paying off lately. So, the thanks of a grateful nation, and may Cthulhu eat you last! ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/162 "2017-11-08T10:53:18Z")
Do the results of last night alter your conclusions in any way, HurricaneDitka? ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/163 "2017-11-08T13:40:43Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > As with science, there is a method to debate and dialogue and you’re defending throwing that method in the trash in favor of, “You must understand my experience! You can never understand my experience and I’m not going to bother to explain it to you!” That is \*not \*what you’re being told; you’re just choosing not to listen. > [@](#): > > Basically what’s going on is that social justice is taking on aspects of religion. You accept certain premises on faith, you don’t question them, and it’s all about morals. Are you actually suggesting that there is legitimate disagreement possible over whether or not it is important to respect other humans? Wow, dude. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/164 "2017-11-08T14:03:21Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > What I want to know is how this idiocy becomes so widespread and tolerated. I’m seeing more and more of these types of stories, such as a teaching assistant who won’t call on white males, and a singer who has a “policy” that whites have to be in the back and people of color can be up front. > > You would think there would be reasonable “woke” people who would tell them they are doing it wrong. Are they just scared to disagree, thinking people will think them racist, and so this stupidity ends up actually happening for a long time before the media gets hold of it? Selection bias and confirmation bias. These stories are interesting to a certain demographic, and thus make the news more often. There are a whole lot more people specifically looking for this sort of thing to try and discredit any social justice movement. And with everyone and everything being online, more stuff in general is reported, meaning all sorts of stories increase. And there’s just the fake stories and mistruths, where a story is presented as an “SJW” story but it’s really far more complicated. Or it’s just based on a rumor with no actual foundation in fact. (There’s a reason why so many of us assumed this didn’t actually happen: that is a fairly common result of these sorts of things.) I can’t give any numbers on it either, but I genuinely think that it is unlikely that there has been any significant increase. Nor do I think the number is at all worrying. Every time it’s actually been real, the result has always been the person being given a harsh lesson. I just think that this is what one part of the public wants to see, so that’s what their news gives them. The increase in number is not at all correlated with an increase in actual incidents. It’s like how people think there are more incidents of crime now when the exact opposite is the case. It’s just reported more. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/165 "2017-11-10T00:28:28Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Do the results of last night alter your conclusions in any way, HurricaneDitka? Asking again. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/166 "2017-11-10T01:18:25Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > “Intersectionality” just means that when someone’s a member of multiple oppressed groups, they face more problems than just those of the separate groups. For instance, blacks as a whole face problems, and women as a whole face problems, but a black woman (who’s in the intersection of those two groups) faces problems which are not faced by black men nor white women. My view on intersectionality is a little more complex than that. It’s about acknowledging that someone can be privileged in some ways and not other ways. My first hard lesson in intersectionality was when I worked in a very wealthy Jewish retirement and nursing facility. We had a number of residents who were Holocaust victims, and who were, at the end of life, receiving a quality of care the likes of which the average American could never dream of. They were also pretty racist and classist. I think I’m a textbook example of intersectionality. Privilege: White, upper-middle class, intelligent, highly educated, able-bodied, straight, cisgender, currently in a safe, supportive marriage Not so much privilege: Woman, grew up poor, survivor of childhood abuse, have been on my own since the age of 17, chronic severe mental illness, multiple other chronic illnesses Now a lot of people may have the balance tipped heavily in favor of the ‘‘privilege’’ side or the ‘‘not so much,’’ but no matter who you are, there is more to you than solely your race, or solely your gender, or solely your sexual identity. Each of us has power and influence in some spheres that others don’t have. It’s within those spheres of influence that we have a responsibility to address inequality. But I think that part of the conversation - the complexity of identity - is one that many liberals assume to be self-evident so the communication totally fails to anyone who doesn’t have a thorough grounding in the concept. And I have noticed a lot of younger liberals, in particular, seem to be interpreting it the way you have, which is inclined to elicit more defensive responses from white people who came from absolutely shitastic circumstances and find it insulting that after all they have been through, someone is calling them privileged. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/167 "2017-11-10T08:11:24Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Do the results of last night alter your conclusions in any way, HurricaneDitka? Is(/Are) there some specific conclusion you’re asking about? ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 9:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/168 "2017-11-10T09:56:53Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > That’s in the same category as being anti-science. As with science, there is a method to debate and dialogue and you’re defending throwing that method in the trash in favor of, “You must understand my experience! You can never understand my experience and I’m not going to bother to explain it to you!” :dubious: What is the “method to debate and dialogue”, exactly? I’ve seen a lot of descriptions of “the scientific method” as a specific set of procedures, but never before seen a claim that “debate and dialogue” can be formalized in a similar way. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/169 "2017-11-10T11:51:59Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > Is(/Are) there some specific conclusion you’re asking about? That the DNC’s current efforts and strategy are dooming the party to failure. At least, that’s what I implied from the title of the thread. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/170 "2017-11-10T15:46:19Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > That the DNC’s current efforts and strategy are dooming the party to failure. At least, that’s what I implied from the title of the thread. Ahh, the thread title was meant to be a bit funny about the exclusion of white males in favor of minorities. I don’t think the Dems are doomed to any sort of perpetual minority status. FWIW, I suspect stories like the one in the OP do not help their prospects. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/171 "2017-11-10T16:05:43Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > Ahh, the thread title was meant to be a bit funny about the exclusion of white males in favor of minorities. I don’t think the Dems are doomed to any sort of perpetual minority status. FWIW, I suspect stories like the one in the OP do not help their prospects. What’s special about white males as a demographic? Why specific focus on them vs any other demographic? Does every vote count or do white male votes carry more weight/value? ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/172 "2017-11-10T16:10:24Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > What’s special about white males as a demographic? Why specific focus on them vs any other demographic? Does every vote count or do white male votes carry more weight/value? Every vote counts, but there are more white males than, say, black women or illegal immigrants. So if we are going to play identity politics, larger groups are the ones to appeal to. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Fotheringay-Phipps](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d9b06d/32.png) [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/173 "2017-11-10T16:26:37Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > I think I’m a textbook example of intersectionality. > > Privilege: White, upper-middle class, intelligent, highly educated, able-bodied, straight, cisgender, currently in a safe, supportive marriage > > Not so much privilege: Woman, grew up poor, survivor of childhood abuse, have been on my own since the age of 17, chronic severe mental illness, multiple other chronic illnesses > > Now a lot of people may have the balance tipped heavily in favor of the ‘‘privilege’’ side or the ‘‘not so much,’’ but no matter who you are, there is more to you than solely your race, or solely your gender, or solely your sexual identity. Each of us has power and influence in some spheres that others don’t have. It’s within those spheres of influence that we have a responsibility to address inequality. There’s almost nobody in the world who isn’t “underprivileged” in some manner if you look at it that way. (Which is leaving aside that any race and gender can be a “privilege” in a given instance, and whether things like “safe, supportive marriage” are accurately characterized as “privilege”.) But what you end up with is people obsessed with how many ways they’re “underprivileged” and resultingly how they score on the underprivileged scale. (People who realize they have no hope of achieving high rank on the “underprivileged” scale need to suffice with being White Knights on behalf of the underprivileged.) ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/174 "2017-11-10T16:41:32Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Every vote counts, but there are more white males than, say, black women or illegal immigrants. So if we are going to play identity politics, larger groups are the ones to appeal to. > > Regards, > Shodan Lots of white males are like me and like policies that help black women and illegal immigrants. win-win. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/175 "2017-11-10T16:49:26Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Every vote counts, but there are more white males than, say, black women or illegal immigrants. So if we are going to play identity politics, larger groups are the ones to appeal to. > > Regards, > Shodan The Trump/Bannon wing is testing that hypothesis. We’ll see in the long-term. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/176 "2017-11-10T16:50:16Z")
Gotta admire how he slipped “illegal immigrants” in there! Talk about _subtle_! ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/177 "2017-11-10T16:57:11Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > Every vote counts, but there are more white males than, say, black women or illegal immigrants. So if we are going to play identity politics, larger groups are the ones to appeal to. > > Regards, > Shodan 1/3 of white males voted Dem in this election, according to demographics. The rest was made up by women and minorities. I think it’s meaningful that Dems no longer need the majority of white males to win elections. I think it’s meaningful that GOP still relies so heavily on the white male demographic at the expense of all the rest. Given the trend of whites below 45 voting Dem in the majority, I’m not sure betting on the white male demographic is an effective long term strategy. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/178 "2017-11-10T17:11:05Z")
> [@Fotheringay-Phipps](#): > > There’s almost nobody in the world who isn’t “underprivileged” in some manner if you look at it that way. (Which is leaving aside that any race and gender can be a “privilege” in a given instance, and whether things like “safe, supportive marriage” are accurately characterized as “privilege”.) Correct. As Freire said, there’s an oppressor and an oppressed within each of us. I work in a domestic violence and sexual assault services agency so of course I would consider it privilege to not fear for your safety in your own home. I encounter people on a regular basis who don’t have that. > [@](#): > > But what you end up with is people obsessed with how many ways they’re “underprivileged” and resultingly how they score on the underprivileged scale. This I agree with, some people are in fact like that, and I’m certain they annoy me every bit as much as they annoy you. To whatever extent I am this way, I annoy myself. Social justice in my personal view should emphasize the correction of systemic wrongs that impact demographically disadvantaged populations. For all the complexities of identity, there are some stark inequalities at the demographic levels of race, gender and economics. Some people carry this way too far. The email in question is a good example of missing the forest for the trees. I might go so far as to call it a cultural problem on the left, or if it’s not widespread, it seems to get a lot of lip service in the media. > [@](#): > > (People who realize they have no hope of achieving high rank on the “underprivileged” scale need to suffice with being White Knights on behalf of the underprivileged.) This is just too cynical. Most SJWs, however obnoxious, are motivated by empathy. They might get carried away with tribalism like with any ideology but the root of this behavior is, as the name suggests, a sense of injustice that should be corrected. ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/179 "2017-11-10T17:12:18Z")
> [@](#): > > …the white male demographic is an effective long term strategy. Pubbies have not been about “long term strategies” of late, its all about getting one more solid election so they can ram through an agenda of permanent power. That’s how they got into this mess in the first place, making deals with the culturally retarded knuckle-walkers… just one more election, and its Ozzie and Harriet from coast to coast! What should we guys do? Confine our attention to lawn maintenance and minor automotive repair. As election day nears, report to the most significant female person in our lives for instructions. Obey. Go fishing, we’re done. ---
**Author:** ![Fotheringay-Phipps](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d9b06d/32.png) [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2017, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427/180 "2017-11-10T17:25:49Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > Correct. As Freire said, there’s an oppressor and an oppressed within each of us. I work in a domestic violence and sexual assault services agency so of course I would consider it privilege to not fear for your safety in your own home. I encounter people on a regular basis who don’t have that. That’s all fine, and if you just look at people as individuals and consider the specific privileges and hardships that they may have had in their lives then no one would disagree with you. Where the intersectional people part ways with that is 1) in viewing people as “privileged” or otherwise not based on their own experiences in life but based on their membership in “privileged” or “underprivileged” groups, and 2) based on a worldview which is overly focused on who is or isn’t “privileged” as opposed to dealing with privilege and hardship and their ramifications when they become necessary and relevant. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-would-appear-that-the-dnc-likes-being-in-the-minority/800427.md?page=10)