That's SO American! - Mullato Edition - UPDATE

Interracial couple denied marriage license in La.

By MARY FOSTER, Associated Press Writer Mary Foster, Associated Press Writer
October 15, 2009

NEW ORLEANS – A Louisiana justice of the peace said he refused to issue a marriage license to an interracial couple out of concern for any children the couple might have. Keith Bardwell, justice of the peace in Tangipahoa Parish, says it is his experience that most interracial marriages do not last long.

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Okay. This was the last article I clicked on before I closed my (black) laptop for the evening and took my mixed-up ass (black, white, Jew, Flip) up to bed with my Irish/Italian wife of 11 years. I walked up the stairs quietly as not to awake my way (way) mixed-race child. Oh Keith Bardwell, it's 2010 and you got left behind. But I'm here to help you.

There is the future
And there is a past
Mixed-race marriages
Just do not last

Depending whom you ask, the overall U.S. divorce rate is either "way too high" or "not as high as you might think." The social science method to figure divorce rate is to calculate people who have ever married who subsequently divorced. Counted that way, the rate has never exceeded about 41 percent. Glass half-full or empty, right? More than a third, less than half.

I do not believe that Mr. Bardwell's contention is based on data however. Bardwell believes says that "most interracial marriages do not last long." Yet he fails to operationalize "most" or "last long." Is Mr. Bardwell a racist? Well, of course he's a racist! As long as there are races and we possess the ability to determine race differences, we'll ALL be racist! That's way too easy.

Mr. Bardwell has stated that he is not a racist, that's his attitude. However Mr. Bardwell's behavior demonstrates something else -- and that's part of the problem.

But the brave love birds of non-similar skin colors who fall in love and actually marry and have children are part of the solution: distilling all the colors into gradually similar shades of tan and beige. Hurray for the heroes of the species! There's absolutely nothing new or unique about the so-called "Jungle Fever." Just ask Thomas Jefferson, Strom Thurmond, or Bill de Blasio.

Oh wait. Beige isn't the answer. There will always be variants of characteristics that will cause us to hate, discriminate, and bias. We're humans, silly! We may make laws and rules but bias is permanent! That's called human nature. Like violence.

All we need to do is acknowledge our biases. Just be honest about our fears and preferences. What's wrong with that? We all have fears and preferences about everything, same goes for people. Mr. Bardwell's attitude and behaviors do not match. He's either lying that he's not a racist or that he is a racist. Problem is, rules and laws, as they stand, prohibit Mr. Bardwell from not marrying people with different skin types. Who says the south is backwards? It ain't backwards. It's just a little slow and there are some mopes involved. It's: mopetarded!

I wonder if he'd marry two dudes?