There are some things for which I cannot see myself investing precious time. Racism is one of those irrational things.

Between working sixty odd hours a week (and for me they are often rather odd) to shopping for groceries, exercising when possible, making plans to meet up with friends, doing crossword puzzles, following the Red Sox, listening to music and flossing, I just don’t have time to devote to hating whole groups of people for no good reason. There are just too many important things to do.

I do, however, have some time to take stock of it. Here then is a concise approach to dealing with race relations, what some refer to as the “overriding issue in on the American landscape.” 

First, it is the “overriding issue” because some insist on making it so. There are those who make rather comfortable livings speaking about it, writing about it and promoting any setbacks or aggravating flare-ups dealing with race relations. Race “baters,” as they are called, pop up from all sides of the color, religious, ethnic and political spectrum.  Some are blatant, others subtle. But you know them when you see them. 

Racism, hatred and bigotry exist. No one should be naïve enough to deny it. But does the occasional rearing of its ugliness supercede all the good that takes place every moment in neighborhoods across this land? Of course it doesn’t. The Klan, Black Panthers, Nazi Party, and a myriad of “sweetheart groups” are considered pariahs, rightly ostracized by thinking, caring people, and the vast majority of good souls out there.  

Hate-fostering zealots, some of them religious figures from various denominations, stand out as anomalies. For every Pastor Jeremiah Wright or Reverend Pat Robinson, I’ll bet we can come up with hundreds of dedicated, well-meaning humanitarians who gently go about the business of helping us heal, unite and succeed.  Kudos to all of the good that is done out there by members of clergy and their supporters.

I’ve said publicly on my radio show that the only groups of folks I hate are the haters. Anyone insecure, ignorant or petty enough to condemn classes of people based solely on skin color, religion or ethnic origin is narrow of mind and I believe basking in fear and self-loathing. People are, however, quite capable of throwing off these shackles of confusion, hate and prejudice. It might take education, dedication, a hearty dose of self-examination, perhaps a jarring personal encounter with hatred aimed at them or a combination of it all. Should they eventually see light and denounce the stupidity and evil of racism, as did the late Governor George Wallace, as does the nation of Germany, as millions of white Americans have since the civil rights days, I will offer my respect, admiration and a sincere welcome home. But for those who refuse to budge and are hell-bent on spewing their own ugly brand of hate…sorry. Until you get with the program and join hands with the rest of us who just don’t have the time for your nonsense, I hate you and that stuff you spew. I have no time for you.

The only code to follow is one that has been in print and on record for nearly half a century. If everyone who wastes time hating irrationally would just heed this simple mandate, we’d see a lot of the leftover problem clear up pretty quickly, thereby allowing time for more pressing matters such as solving the oil crisis or figuring out how to make a healthier potato chip that doesn’t taste like as much like cardboard.

Martin Luther King summed it up better than anyone, and he was certainly qualified to do so, when in the midst of a true fight for civil rights in the 1960’s he prayed for the day when his four children, “will live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” Simple, direct language that should guide us all to making better judgments. If a person exhibits good character it doesn’t matter if he or she is white, black, brown, or yellow (notice I didn’t suggest the colors purple, green or blue.  If you meet anyone with that skin color, be advised that you should seek for them medical attention immediately).

I assume that you are more concerned with the well-being of your family, friends, community, and country. That’s where you’re time is probably best spent. But if you happen to run into someone in your travels who remains more pig-headed than Porky, I have one more thing you might want to try with them.

Pop in a DVD copy of an old 1960’s classic Star Trek episode. I know what you’re thinking. Why end this brilliant column with some geeky sci-fi Vulcan philosophy or catch phase? Because art, even when produced on a Paramount sound stage by Desilu Productions in the 1960’s, can be both as moving and thought provoking as it can be entertaining. 

In an episode entitled, “Let that Be Your Last Battlefield,” first broadcast in January 1969, an alien played by the late Frank Gorshin, is chasing a fellow alien from the same planet throughout the galaxy. The one being chased is a political refugee seeking asylum aboard the Star Ship Enterprise. Why is he on the run? He claims he and his kind are being persecuted because of their differences from those in power. In what way are these beings different? Are they murderers, revolutionaries, cultists, philanderers? No, the alien being chased just happens to be colored white on his right side, black on his left. The police commissioner from the planet Cheron, who plans on capturing and prosecuting the escapee at any cost, is black on his left side, white on his right. The two men are locked in an eternal battle simply because they cannot fathom the thought that the other is different. As Mr. Spock and others illuminated crewmembers of the 23rd century note, that behavior is highly illogical. Their absurdity leads to the ultimate destruction of their planet along with every being on it, and the two lone survivors of their species are doomed to fight each other forever. What a colossal waste of time and energy. The program made an excellent point, one that the people on earth ought to consider anytime the ludicrousness of racism appears. Such a waste of our time.

Is race…the final frontier? Only if we find time to make it so.