Please remember that all of this....and I do mean all of this was "supposedly" reviewed and accepted by parties who represent Warner Brothers and Mongoose before it ever hit the shelf.
As for JMS, he actually has very little rights to what goes on in this material other than as and "educated and relevant" opinion since, all of the Babylon 5 material falls under the perview of Warner Brothers. Its theirs and not JMS's so he really has little say.
That being said, if there is anyone to blame its Warner Brothers and potentially the Mongoose editors who, being English, as opposed to US, would have had a much better understanding of the Europeon view of said material and made appropiate changes. They and Warner Brothers reviewed the material and chose to accept it and print it, as is.
Now...you are certainy not the first person to lodge a complaint as to the nature of racial material, feats, etc, and in the grand scheme of things I'm sure Bruce Graw (the author of this particular supplement) having now benefited from 20/20 hindsite would not have probably included it. Simply put it was an experiment that failed.....miserably.
However, what you fail to understand is that this is a GAME. In fact, it is a GAME that is set in a future wherebye Earth History was "made up" from this moment to a point some 250 years into the future. The Earth Alliance source book itself is a PRODUCT that was created by one person trying to encompass the entire breath and scope of a world whose history alone generates full scale arguements from scolars and historians, nevermind the ongoing geopolitical concerns of this current day that manage to boggle the leaders of all nations alike. As a result things were said, assumed or stated in a manner that was expeditous and sometimes wrong.
COPE!
Play the game, not the rules.
All of this is not meant to put you down or flame you or anything else other than to make you think and slow you down. Making statements like "you'll never buy this product or any others again" means nothing when weighed against the reality of the large sales that have already occured and the likelihood of continued strong sales. Racism is a nasty word that should not be flung around without first prefacing things and stating a clear case.
Make your point clearly, concisely and calmly. People will listen, comment, disagree or agree. Rant and rave and you are quickly labeled a malcontent and ignored and your message will be lost which I'm sure is not your point.
So relax....slow down....and make your point. Quote text from the book you disagree with, explain why you disagree. I'm from the United States so I certainly don't understand the depth of your concerns. In fact I've not read most of the racial stuff to date as I've been more interested in the game mechanics and the overall history of the universe rather than the innerworkings of the EA.
---- Rich
All nationalities are covered in the book and non are given preference ver others they all have certain stereotypical traits represented for them, even the U.S. And just to open your eyes a little more Mongoose isn't a U.S company, it doesn't have a pro anyone aggenda... and would certainly never condone any were such to be put before them with a hopes to being printed.