[mtdew]

Well said, bellson, well said. I was brought up in a racist world and I see it everyday. Luckily I was able to rise above it. To quote MLK, "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
I have tried to live by these words, and God knows that I have failed at times.
Back to the OP's original thought- I beleive it has become a culture thing, I have seen black kids try to succede in school as a child. These children were chastized by their black peers, They would say things like "You trying to be white?", "uncle tom," etc., just for wanting to make good grades. The gun violence is a part of that same way of thinking. You arent really black unless you act a certain way, and that way is many times exessivly violent. It is the product of being taught to be that way for generations now. Its become the "right" way to act if you are black.
I see a trend in the whites who are involved in the meth culture around here, they are fast going down the same road.