Affirmative Action

* Regarding Denise Fairchild’s Dec. 10 commentary in favor of affirmative action: Her notion that individual rights are just some nuisance that gets in the way of the greater public good assumes that what constitutes the public good will always be determined by wise and benevolent leaders. In reality, the “public good” is determined by and for whoever has political power. Jim Crow laws in the South and even slavery itself were once rationalized as necessary for the “public good.”

Fairchild’s statistics citing the increasing presence of minorities in the California economy actually make the case that affirmative action is unnecessary. Only the most stubbornly bigoted businesspeople will choose to ignore the economic opportunities represented by minority customers, employees, suppliers, etc. Executives who insist upon “whites only” will find themselves very lonely.

FREDERICK SINGER

Huntington Beach