Of course, the trouble with "positive discrimination" is that it denigrates the achievments of those minorities who have actually worked hard to get to where they are in life - people assume that they've got their status as a token gesture rather than on merit.

It can also be very patronising. I've been reading in the papers recently how many institutions in the UK are banning the word "Christmas" and banning Santa Claus/Christmas trees etc as it supposedly offends non-Christians....how ridiculous. If I lived in, say, a Muslim country, I wouldn't be offended by them celebrating Ramadan and so on. Its all part of the culture of the country that you've made the decision to go and live in.