From: GROBY@FOBY.COM   
      
   A typical, worn out bit of classic radio four wanky leftism this afternoon.   
   An emeritus professor of sociology from the USA (who sounded like a 30s song   
   and dance man) told us about how US racism against black people was really   
   bad between 1890 and 1940. Negroes were kept out of certain towns. This went   
   on a lot, especially in the southern states. Amazing that after all these   
   years they think people don't know about it.   
    Then the professor reeled off some circumstantial evidence about the   
   present situation but prefaced it by saying that proof is 'non-empirical'.   
    I wondered exactly why, given this country's present and future problems   
   regarding ethnic nationalism and religious extremism, we were going on a   
   trip down the righteous politics of Laurie Taylor's Marxist youth and his   
   attitude to America, and then he laid it on us: apparently he thinks that   
   'gated communities' in the UK are the equivalent of the 'sunset towns' of   
   America. He thinks that 'gated communities' are disgraceful and cannot   
   understand why people want to live in them.   
      
   I mean can a university educated Radio Four sociologist *not* guess that   
   people don't wish to live around crime, drugs and 57 varieties of   
   pathological behaviour? and if they can afford to get away from it they   
   will - unless of course they have a special political conscience to put up   
   with it uncomplainingly and therefore be righteous.   
      
   If guesses, he don't say. Wonder where *he* lives?   
      
   ROBBIE   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)