# Lt. Gen. Jay Silveria, I salute you (racism at the USAFA & in America) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 29, 2017, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614 "2017-09-29T21:57:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2017, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/1 "2017-09-29T21:57:58Z")
[Seriously; this is powerful as hell](https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=WfjZ1otkS3o). > [@](#): > > Lt. Gen. Jay Silveria, along with USAFA leadership, addressed the entire Cadet Wing and USAFA Preparatory School today. Lt. Gen. Silveria left no uncertainties that racism has no place at the Academy. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2017, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/2 "2017-09-29T22:25:42Z")
[The AP has a story up about this](https://apnews.com/e27742f8ae9d4f55ad64463e206073fc/Air-Force-Academy-leader-delivers-powerful-speech-on-race): > [@](#): > > The leader of the Air Force Academy delivered a poignant and stern message on race relations in a speech to thousands of cadets after someone wrote racial slurs on message boards outside the dorm rooms of five black students. > > Lt. Gen. Jay Silveria warned students that he would not tolerate racism at the academy and invoked some of the racial tensions that have been gripping the country. At one point, he insisted that everyone in the audience take out their phones and record him so his message was clearly heard. > > “If you can’t treat someone with dignity and respect, get out,” he said Thursday as audience members looked on with rapt attention. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2017, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/3 "2017-09-29T22:31:05Z")
Blunt and direct. I like it. I liked even more his ‘better idea’. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2017, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/4 "2017-09-29T22:45:38Z")
The thing I liked about that video is you could tell he wasn’t just paying lip service for PR damage control. That man was PISSED! And he meant every word he said. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2017, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/5 "2017-09-30T05:54:34Z")
And that, young cadets, is the example to which you must aspire. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2017, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/6 "2017-09-30T06:15:12Z")
- Not been paying attention. We teach you to bomb and torture darkies not to insult them.\*:rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/7 "2017-11-08T11:14:47Z")
Oops… Another day, another fake hate crime. Wonder if Silveria will apologize for berating his students unnecessarily. Nah! ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stainless_steel_rat/32/5727_2.png) [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stainless_Steel_Rat)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/8 "2017-11-08T13:59:54Z")
Since astorian apparently couldn’t be bothered: [https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/11/08/a-black-student-wrote-those-racist-messages-that-shook-the-air-force-academy/?utm\_term=.f413a3a95e48](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/11/08/a-black-student-wrote-those-racist-messages-that-shook-the-air-force-academy/?utm_term=.f413a3a95e48) That noted, the General’s speech was direct and blunt and I wouldn’t withdraw a word of it. IMHO as always. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![ZPG\_Zealot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e47c2d/32.png) [@ZPG\_Zealot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZPG_Zealot)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/9 "2017-11-08T14:23:27Z")
While the incident did prove not to be a hate crime, the General’s response was perfectly appropriate. He reaffirmed that such behavior was unacceptable and would not be tolerated on his watch. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/10 "2017-11-08T14:26:59Z")
Did he ever accuse anyone of a hate crime? ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/11 "2017-11-08T15:39:50Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Oops… Another day, another fake hate crime. > > Wonder if Silveria will apologize for berating his students unnecessarily. Nah! Hey **astorian** : > [@](#): > > “Regardless of the circumstances under which those words were written, they were written, and that deserved to be addressed,” Silveria told the Colorado Springs Gazette in a Tuesday email. “You can never over-emphasize the need for a culture of dignity and respect — and those who don’t understand those concepts, aren’t welcome here.” ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/12 "2017-11-08T15:42:56Z")
Hell, the speech should be part of entrance orientation anyway! ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/13 "2017-11-08T15:47:37Z")
What would have made it a hate crime? What makes it _not_ a hate crime? And what evidence were they able to find to tell the difference? ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/14 "2017-11-08T17:12:59Z")
So, the conclusion of liberal Dopers is… “Even if there WASN’T really a racist incident, it’s never a bad time to hector and browbeat your white students.” There’s always a “larger sense” to consider. As in, “Okay, the incident we’ve been publicizing was a hoax… but in a larger sense, it doesn’t really matter if it was true, because the important thing is that it drew attention to one of our pet causes.” In the “larger sense”, it doesn’t matter whether the Duke lacrosse team was guilty. In a “larger sense,” it doesn’t matter whether a frat at the U. of Virginia raped anyone. In a “larger sense,” it doesn’t matter if there was a Klansman at Oberlin. All that matters is what’s good for The Cause. ---
**Author:** ![raventhief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raventhief/32/4_2.png) [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/15 "2017-11-08T17:17:03Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > So, the conclusion of liberal Dopers is… “Even if there WASN’T really a racist incident, it’s never a bad time to hector and browbeat your white students.” > > There’s always a “larger sense” to consider. As in, “Okay, incident we’ve been publicizing was a hoax… but in a larger sense, it doesn’t really matter if it was true, because the important thing is that it drew attention to one of our pet causes.” If you can’t act with dignity and respect, you have no place here…oh those poor browbeaten, hectored snowflakes! ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/16 "2017-11-08T17:25:48Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > There’s always a “larger sense” to consider. As in, “Okay, the incident we’ve been publicizing was a hoax… but in a larger sense, it doesn’t really matter if it was true, because the important thing is that it drew attention to one of our pet causes.” Intolerance of racism in the US military is a “pet cause”? ---
**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, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/17 "2017-11-08T17:36:20Z")
But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate – we can not consecrate – we can not hallow – this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/18 "2017-11-08T17:42:18Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > So, the conclusion of liberal Dopers is… “Even if there WASN’T really a racist incident, it’s never a bad time to hector and browbeat your white students.” So you identify the white students as racist? ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/19 "2017-11-08T17:51:20Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Intolerance of racism in the US military is a “pet cause”? I love how **astorian** is effectively complaining about a speech inculcating “a culture of dignity and respect” in the military, as if that’s somehow a bad thing. That said, I note the cadet responsible is “no longer enrolled”, which is a good thing. Whether the messages were real or hoaxes, the person responsible wrote them to foment hate and divisiveness, and did not deserve to remain a cadet. ---
**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, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614/20 "2017-11-08T18:02:48Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > So you identify the white students as racist? Gen. Silveria certainly did not. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lt-gen-jay-silveria-i-salute-you-racism-at-the-usafa-in-america/797614.md?page=2)