[goggles99]

>I agree there are systemic issues of racism keeping blacks and latinos away from open source, but those issues have nothing to do with open-source per se. The free time issue is a big one. Access to computers at home in early childhood is probably even bigger.

You have been watching too much MSNBC. Young Blacks and Latinos watch 3-4 hours of television per day and play 2+ hours of video games. There goes your free time belief.

Access to computers and internet? Poor blacks compared to poor whites have the same resources to computers yet the poor whites become coders in the same percentages as the general population.

You are 0 for 2.

[michalu]

I am white, but my father watched TV most of his time and never worked on anything and growing up in such environment so did I. If you grow up in an short-term gratification environment it's much harder to stay with problems long enough to solve them and thus you end up giving up on many hobbies sooner. My father was probably just lazy or resigned due to constant worrying about economic situation but I can imagine that as an immigrant parent with lower job opportunities, language skills and no existing parents to support you, you're less likely to end up with a job you love and you worry about other things than hobbies in spare time. This affects the environment your kids grow up. I am not from US but I can imagine the parents of majority of those kids were in much different situation to others, because (I live abroad) I know that when I was in my home country I would aways had a place to go (my parents) and a support from them and thus more time to look out for a job I like and more support with the kids from them so I could raise kids in much different environment.

[knowitall]

That may be so, but then it wouldn't be the fault of discrimination.

[michalu]

Sure, nor am I saying it is.

[dasil003]

I don't watch TV and I said a lot more than two things you narrowly dismissed with a few convenient and cherry-picked "facts" Mr. Holier-than-thou.

If you don't think poor people (not ones still living under their parents roofs) have less time than middle class people then you have never been poor.

[lttlrck]

So what is your take on it?

[primelens]

Sources please.

[true_religion]

Well his arguments are based on past experience, not current day trends.