 “Competent white men must be in charge if you want things to work.”
– Darren J. Beattie on X, Oct. 4, 2024 (archived) Some of my best friends are competent white men. Many of them, in fact. And if the competent white men among my friends were in charge, things would work very well. I doubt the acting undersecretary of public diplomacy at the State Department questions the meaning of white or men. That leaves the muddier question of competence. It includes character, skills, judgment, willingness to learn, ability to inspire others, and so much more. The competent white men among my friends avoid groupthink. They know the difference between silencing dissent and seeking common ground. They listen to voices from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences, knowing the best decisions follow from seeking out multiple perspectives. They recognize competence and potential wherever they find it, whether in women or people of color or other white men. If competent white men were in charge, we would soon see competent people of every stripe at every level of leadership in our institutions. That is, if we want things to work. Image: Anonymous man. Photo by Bruce Mars on Unsplash.
4 Comments
Molly
2/10/2025 08:38:48 am
I think the other definition we have to debate here is the meaning of "work" - for a long time, when government and industry were "working" what they were doing was providing as much value as possible to white men while ignoring or actively harming everyone else. 2/10/2025 09:19:29 am
Important point, Molly, and one I hadn't thought about so clearly. It's easy to see that things aren't working when we're in the midst of chaos. In superficially calmer times, it's harder to stay aware that "calm" doesn't mean things are working for everyone.
Dennis Doren
2/10/2025 10:23:23 am
It seems to me that, wthin this quoted context, all those words are defined in the same way as history is recorded - by those who "are victors". More nuanced, comprehensive, philosophical, considered and/or logical definitions just become the topics of conversations of those not currently in power. Like the recording of history, this situation can change back again when the power balance again changes, or can simply change again with time. For example, the phrase "All men are created equal" was a social breakthrough in its initial use but the word "men" still excluded black men and all women. Now, we even have a (federal) definition of male and female that is both new and biologically wrong, but it will be the working definition of this country for some time to come, until it isn't. As you know far more than the rest of us, word definitions occur within an historical context. I have to believe that Beattie said exactly what he meant, including all its implications. 2/10/2025 07:33:40 pm
Indeed, words are defined by the victors or the people in power. And at the same time, as my sociologist father explained to me early in my life, words generally reflect the speaker's assumption that "people" means "people like myself." I once asked an affluent suburban audience to name some things people do on a cruise ship. They said eat, swim, drink, watch shows, gamble, play shuffleboard . . . No one suggested cook, clean, make beds , tend bar . . . Leave a Reply. |
AuthorI'm a historian who writes novels and literary nonfiction. My home base is Madison, Wisconsin.
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