Ummmmm....WHAT?!

I use Google Reader for most of my news. If you don't have it, I highly recommend it!

I hardly ever click on the news story because I can usually get enough information out of the little heading that shows in my feed. However, sometimes, when the story is near my neighborhood or of interest to me, I go ahead and click it to read the full story.

What surprises me the most, although I'm not sure why, are the comments that people leave on various news stories. I would like to think that the people commenting on news stories make up >.00000001% of the population because if I ever meet some of these people, I will kill them.

I was reading a story about a woman who's body was found inside an SUV in a church parking lot. It was a sad story and I hope that the police are able to locate the killer. (they're thinking homicide at this point). What I cannot believe are the comments that people in my metroplex are leaving about this story. Most of them are racially charged and have something to do with "little Mexico". Most of the people are saying that the particular town in which this crime occurred is no longer safe and that the "Mexicans" have taken over.

I know that people (even though it's 2010) still freak out when someone of a different race with a different skin color moves in next door. I don't understand it, but whatever, it happens. But to seriously take the time and effort to comment on a story about a poor woman who lost her life, is just beyond me. Is the general population really that stupid? That racist? I guess I live my life with blinders on thinking that for the most part, we're all getting along. I guess I hope too much that we've come a long way since the days of Martin Luther King Jr, and Rosa Parks. Even further since Abe Lincoln. But, when I read comments like this, I feel like we're still right in the middle of it all. Sure, there are laws that are supposed to protect people now, but what protects them from the prejudices of other people?

I'm proud to say that my heritage is literally a melting pot of all kinds. White, Native American, Mexican American, Italian and who knows what else.

I just wish that the rest of the US would take a step back and notice that they're not a pure race either. At some point, we've all been mixed together. So why not treat people with dignity and respect until they give you a reason not to?

“Let us all hope that the dark clouds of racial prejudice will soon pass away, and that in some not too distant tomorrow the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty.”

-Martin Luther King, Jr.