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A comment on NASA names headquarters after first Black female engineer Mary W. Jackson. Parent comment

Re:NASA names headquarters after first Black female engineer... by Ar-Curunir on Thursday June 25, 2020 @01:51AM (#23637313)
The problem is that, in a world where white folks have access to a better social safety net, on average they can afford to sacrifice their 20s and 30s in this pursuit, where others might not have that luxury.

Anyway, I won't waste my time further debating what's obvious gaslighting.

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Re:NASA names headquarters after first Black female engineer... by LudwigNagasena on Thursday June 25, 2020 @02:32AM (#23637526)
This is simply not true. Most people can’t afford education but they still take loans and pursue it, even if they have no aptitude for science.

It is indeed gaslighting to talk about “safety nets” when there is a student loan crisis in the country.

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Re:NASA names headquarters after first Black female engineer... by jjeaff on Thursday June 25, 2020 @01:23PM (#23643057)
I believe they are referring to the safety net provided by relative white wealth. Median net worth for white families in America is 10x that of black families.

Which means they are much more likely to be able to get support from home or even a home to move back to if things get tough.

It's a lot easier to take the economic risk of a post-grad or post-doc program when you know there is a family with means to fall back on.

Excessive student loans are not a serious issue relative to what many in poverty face. If you don't make enough money to pay your student loans, then you can defer them indefinitely. Or just not pay them. It might keep you from getting rich. But it's not going to keep you from eating.

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Re:NASA names headquarters after first Black female engineer... by Ar-Curunir on Saturday June 27, 2020 @08:56PM (#23665956)
Yes that’s what I mean by safety net
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Re:NASA names headquarters after first Black female engineer... by kortilla on Thursday June 25, 2020 @02:55AM (#23637637)
> Anyway, I won't waste my time further debating what's obvious gaslighting.

Calling someone’s argument “obvious gaslighting” is just an appeal to incredulity.

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