White liberal guilt defined

[ethanoic_acid]

At a used book store, I purchase a copy of Invisible Man. As I take out my gold American Express card paid for by my parents, I notice the cashier is black. I then put that card back and take out my student Visa card that I pay for.

Comments

[lovelynepenthe]

What the fuck does the cashier's race have to do with you mooching off your parents?

[ethanoic_acid]

Do you know what The Invisible Man is about?

[lovelynepenthe]

Yes.

[ethanoic_acid]

Allow me to explain then. If I paid with a gold American Express card that my parents paid for. I'd appear like the privileged white kid who wants to understand the black experience but has no way whatsoever to actually understand it. More importantly, I'd appear like that to myself.

[joaniechachi]

If you are so concerned about how a credit card might make you look, perhaps you should have considered paying cash, rather than your second credit card. Or, y'know, get over yourself. Breaking news: people of every race have credit cards.

[ethanoic_acid]

Get over myself? Not bloodly likely.

[lovelynepenthe]

What she said.

More breaking news: even black cashiers don't give a fuck about what you're buying, how you're paying, or in general about you period.

Pedantic nitpicking defined

[talentedmrraber]

I don't see what H.G. Wells's science fiction classic The Invisible Man has to do with race. Unless, of course, you were referring to Ralph Ellison's Afro-American bildungsroman Invisible Man and put the "The" in front to indicate the text's special status, as when one says "The Mona Lisa" or "The Iliad."

Re: Pedantic nitpicking defined

[ethanoic_acid]

Fixed, though David Mamet does refer to the book as the greatest of the great American novels, so maybe I should have kept it.

[axeloxenstierna]

I guess supporting a wealthy black man with no genetic ties to slaves for President is no longer the 100% white guilt fixer-uper it was a few months ago, eh?

[ethanoic_acid]

Some people have referred to voting for Obama as a "get out of racism free card." I think we're past that point.

[snowyyama]

But he's only half black...