Is anybody in this city aware that there are real problems going on all over the world? Are people aware that Iran is decidedly hateful of America and becoming quite knowledgeable on subjects like nuclear power? Do we in Duluth realize that we have nothing but boneheads running for the Republican nomination? And that a bonehead sits in the Democratic seat? Is it a ubiquitous notion that tons of people are dying in gruesome storms all over the Midwest? A mom lost her legs last week trying to cover her children from the wind! An entire family was killed when their house was completely obliterated within seconds.

Does Duluth get involved in any of the important “stuff” happening? Do you know that another school massacre occurred? That yet another violent teenager walked into his school and opened fire, seemingly because of ex-girlfriend drama? Do you know that the DOW has been rising and falling at maddening intervals? That gas prices are expected to rise to over $5 a gallon by summer? That Randy Moss worked out with the Saints today?? Are we touching on any of these hot topics in our minuscule little lives at all? Or up here in northern Minnesota: is the only thing we have to be concerned with the fact that I’m white? And that guy is black? And those people are Indian, Samoan, Hispanic, etc.? For real? Is this our issue in Duluth? I’m seriously embarrassed.

Recently Duluth has been becoming immersed in race wars, and to be honest, it’s all pretty stupid. It started with the Un-Fair campaign posting a billboard depicting a white lady with the slogan “It’s hard to see racism when you are white.” Then we got the white supremecists all riled up. In turn they (all eight of them?) decided to hold a “rally” at the civic center to show the Un-Fair campaign just how unfair they were being. So March 3 rolls around, and “all” the white supremacists show up in Duluth, and who’s waiting for them? Everyone that hates them. Black people, white people, Native people, all kinds of people showed up downtown to....to what? Prove your own racism?

Maybe I’m not saying this right because I’m certainly not standing up for the white alliance members. But it seems to me, isn’t it kind of counter-productive to fight racism with racism? Wouldn’t the coolest thing have been for those eight people to have shown up at the civic center and have nothing happen? Not a person, not a car—just the sound of the snow falling. No cops, no media, just nothing. A serious, solid stance that we just don’t give a shit. I wish we could have found within ourselves the ability to not acknowledge any of this race drama. That would have been really great—a total show of ignoring a subject that to me seems pretty old school. If you were a person that attended that rally, no matter who you were supporting or against, I’m rather disappointed in you.

If we can be honest for just a minute, doesn’t this whole thing seem a little outdated? I guess I just don’t understand where any of it started this year. If you go to other cities, usually with a higher population, you’ll see all kinds of people of a different race, all of the time, doing exactly the kinds of things that you are doing. These citizens in these other cities seem to be a little more on the ball than us with the whole idea of America being a place for just this: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Why in Duluth, MN, have we forgotten about that? Why are we still even hung up on race at all? I wasn’t thrilled when I saw the “unfair campaign” billboards either, but not because I’m white, just because I’m over it.

It might be appropriate for us in this community to look at the younger generation for guidance on this issue. Let me tell you a story. My little boy, although as Italian as they come, is a blue-eyed, blond, pale-skinned little thing. He has been telling us about his new little friend at school. A companion he loves desperately. He talks about how he and his buddy—with a name usually associated with an African American heritage (that’s not racist—it’s fact)—love to dance and sing songs about “rapping,” my kid calls it. He talks about this kid all the time. Then one day one of my son’s elderly relatives said to him, “Is your friend black?” and my son said “No, he’s just like me.” Well, I’ll tell you, I have met his little buddy—just one of many the same—and the little guy is black. I adore the idea that my six-year-old sees absolutely no difference in that. Why can’t we all be like that? “Who cares what anybody looks like” is the only attitude to adopt if we really want to change with the times. Our race fights are aging and embarrassing.

The idea I’m getting at is simple. I’m irritated Duluth has decided to put ourselves on the map for yet another lame idea. Once we got national recognition over that guy who used to have sex with deer carcasses on the side of the road. This is about the same to me. A ridiculous excuse to stir the pot. The world is full of actual scary things to worry about, and it might be in our best interests to pay attention to those situations and less about skin color. It’s 2012!! We need to move on. At the end of the day, we are all just people. Simple, silly people. Who cares about the rest?