[Hoot Gibson]

You finally made a post I can almost 100% agree with. I still think we need some race laws left in place, because the nation as a whole, are not to the place where they can be done away with, yet. I'm talking discrimination laws here. Left unchecked, discrimination runs wild. I wish the people of the US, both sides, were past this.

I disagree. What happened after the Civil War in the South was that states and local governments passed laws that forced businesses to discriminate. As often is the case, southern governments helped create, or at least extended what was a bad situation.

In a free market economy, the natural tendency is to maximize your business's customer base and treat those customers with equal respect. Everybody uses green dollars or multi-colored cards and as long as the government stays out of the people's business, most of us will do the right thing because the right thing is in our own best interests.

As for segregation, we have largely voluntary segregation today because people are free to choose where they live. Government should do nothing to restrict that freedom. My wife and I had many blacks in Mississippi tell us that we should move out of Jackson to a safer suburb - just like they had already done. People of all colors will flee unsafe, crime-infested neighborhoods and doing so does not make the racists.

I prefer living in culturally diverse neighborhoods, such as the one in which I now live, but people should be free to associate with whomever they want in this country. The government should not dictate who may live where. If a handful of bigots want to server only whites, or only blacks, or only left-handed gay little people, then let them grow broke trying.