Round-up

1. Lawyers for actor Wesley Snipes, currently charged with federal tax evasion, have filed a motion to dismiss the case on grounds that he is being selectively targeted because he is black.

Waaaaaaaaaaa!!!

2. A test is being developed to detect "hidden" racism in job applicants. It is intended to unmask negative associations that potential employees could have towards ethnic groups. Candidates are asked to put images of black and white faces into categories of "good/positive" and "bad/negative" using arrow keys on the keyboard. By getting them to respond to prompts as quickly as possible, the test aims to side-step what is known as "cognitive control" - the brief, but significant time lapse needed to give an "acceptable" answer rather than an instinctive or "honest" one. The programme then automatically calculates a "response-index" that indicates a level of racial bias.

One of the most ridiculous things I have ever heard. By the very nature of this test, discrimination will occur as someone may "fail" and not get the job because of their opinions or beliefs - or what the program PERCEIVES to be their beliefs. I would NOT cooperate with such a test and would encourage anyone having to go through this ludicrous farce to hit the buttons randomly.

Also, there seems to be a strong inference in this test that there ARE "good" and "bad" faces, and that people are expected to sort them in this way. So in other words, it is OK to discriminate against people with "bad" faces, so long as you don't do so on racial grounds.

I wouldn't be surprised if the people designing the test deliberately chose pictures of smiling white people and scowling black people - just to catch as many "racists" out as possible.