>>>>If we all become beige, then we'll pick on hair colour or weight, or anything else that will allow us to feel superior to somebody.
>>>
>>>Alan;
>>>
>>>Like Kermit the frog said, “It’s not easy being green”! :)
>>>
>>>Tom
>>
>>Personally, I'm thinking of rousing the rabble against anyone who insists on having a colour in their last name. Here was all are trying to be beige and here you are insisting on being 'Whiteley'. You have 10 days to change your name to "Beigeley". You will be assimilated.
>>
>>Kidding aside, I'm not sure I'm all that happy about everyone going beige. I realise that in the long run, it's probably inevitable, but I'm going to miss the diversity, frankly. I mean, who wants to go to an authentic Bavarian restaurant for a burger? And I want the kick of the unexpected when I'm in a Chinese restaurant in Quebec and a very Chinese looking guy comes over to my table and asks if I need a menu, in French.
>>
>>When I go to the Kensington Market here in Toronto, I don't want everything to be the same. I like that every second stall and store is a different nationality, and a different smell, and a different style.
>
>Alan;
>
>One thing I love about growing up in San Francisco is that I got to “tour the world without leaving home”! I had friends of every flavor as well as an introduction into customs, music, and food of other lands. My friends families considered me a son and we were very close.
>
>When I joined the Air Force at age 17 (1960) I was shipped to Orlando, Florida, and along the way from San Antonio, Texas where I “enjoyed basic training”, I got to see a different type of American. Everyone seemed to hate others for a number of reasons. Boy did I have problems! I just did not fit in and I am glad of it!
>
>It quickly became evident that I disliked prejudiced people. I also understood that I was prejudiced towards such individuals and that somehow that is a dilemma! There is much we can learn from one another but first we have to learn how to respect ourselves and others. I think that if you cannot respect yourself you cannot respect others. Showing disrespect towards others indicates you have no respect for yourself.
>
>Tom

I know what you mean. Where I grew up here in Toronto, the diversity was astonishing. When I was in high school, someone who came to speak at one of our assemblies (I don't remember who he was, but I remember what he said), looked out over the seats, and declared that he felt like he was speaking at the United Nations. My friends were Italian, Irish, Jewish, Black, Ukranian, and on and on. I used to love it when I was invited to stay for dinner if I was with a friend, and we would be served all manner of meals. In all honesty, I have to admit to not being so fond of some of the meals, but I loved the diversity of it all.

Of course it helped that two of my Italian buddies had uncles who owned pool halls, and one of my Jewish friends had a father who owned a bowling alley.

This was good, since none of us were on very close terms with that paper stuff called money.