So, people really think Don Imus is a racist? Get real folks. He used some crude remarks that referred to the ethnicity of the Rutgers women’s basketball team – "nappy-headed hos" is what he called them. Now the usual suspects (Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson and others) are clamoring for Imus to be fired and locked out of radio. What a fitting punishment for following the same shock-jock MO that he has used for the last 30 years.
Sharpton, Jackson, and other black leaders are concerned about his "abusive and degrading remarks" and that "they have no place in our society." No place in our society, really? What about hip hop and rap lyrics? Have either of the ‘big two’ listened to any of the music (I use the term very loosely) that is generated by the gangstas and thugs who call themselves rappers? Bitches, hos, and words that I’m not going to print here… Sharpton thinks that Imus’ remarks are degrading, what kind of drugs is he smoking.
Do I think Imus was wrong for saying what he said, yeah, I wouldn’t have said it. But do I think there is huge overreaction about the ‘incident’? Yep, I sure do. People need to get some perspective. If you want to respected, respect your self and your community, and your neighbors. It is too much of a double standard for me to support severely punishing Imus for saying something distasteful that is much milder than the words that rappers use to degrade females of their own race. Those same females who idolize and spend hard earned money to buy their CDs and download their music.
If people want the issue of race to not be a negative factor in their lives, then they need to stop playing the race card. I am tired of the double standard that some black so-called leaders try to enforce on the ‘white’ community. Learn to have respect for yourselves and demand it from everyone in your community before you start throwing around the "R" word at people just because they are white.
I don’t care about the blather from Sharpton and Jackson. It doesn’t even matter to the conversation, the fact that the media use them as their go-to guys is irrelevant. What Imus said was racist and sexist, the words ARE a part of the language and yes, some artists use it to sell music to impressionable people. Imus is a seventy year old man who has been called on the carpet about his language before and he has apologized before and he is trying it again and it doesn’t fly with me.
Restaurant analogy- Your maitre d’ is a recovering alcoholic and he has been warned several times about working drunk. You let him know that his behaviour is unacceptable and can be subject to reprisal. Things go well for awhile but oops on the day of a big wedding banquet he seems a little less than stable. Just as the Bride is about to enter he throws up on her dress. She doesn’t know him from Jack but her day is in ruins and he apologizes to her mother by saying that her Uncle Jack probably would have thrown up anyway. Bride is gracious but family is steamed. Now do you fire his scrawny ass or do you tell the family that they are overreacting because your rivals are lampooning you for your incompetent workstaff?
Get a clue- there is more at work here than the stupid soundbites that the mass media is so fond of playing.
Not the same at all… I have a clue, it’s about double standards. I’m not talking about sound bites, I quoted what he was actually called on the carpet for.
Maybe you missed the excellent article by Michelle Malkin, that illustrates just how “degrading” the black rapper community is while their adoring fans make them millionaires.
Yeah, parrot his own school yard apology all you want, defend his tight white ass but the fact is that he attacked a team for the simple fact that they are a team and he stole their moment for his own personal profit and hasn’t owned up to that simple fact. He acted like a school yard bully and society is defending him because if you hand him a twenty he will get you the good seat. These women did nothing wrong and he used them for his own ends and he is being called on the carpet for it. My grandma would have had me in tears for my bad behaviour if I had ever dared to ridicule a stranger for cash and my bosses would have rightly shown me the door. I don’t support rappers or any other artists who use those kind of images and that includes rock, CW and classical, and I don’t listen to their stations and I won’t. However Imus is am employee who has stepped over the line and it is perfectly reasonable to ask his bosses to do something about it.
Oh yeah and regardless what the media puppets are saying, his boss (MSNBC) fired him because his co-workers are righteously peeved with him.
“Yeah, parrot his own school yard apology all you want,” – can’t, haven’t read it, don’t care to
“defend his tight white ass” – I think I can see the earmarks of racial hatred in your statement, but I could be wrong
“but the fact is that he attacked a team for the simple fact that they are a team” – no he made a joking statement about them because they looked “mean”… I happen to think he was right about that (I’ve seen pictures), had it been me, I’d have left out the slur
“and he stole their moment for his own personal profit” – he hasn’t stolen anything… he made an offhand comment that was supposed to be funny. Let’s not forget who has/is whipping the media into a frenzy over this. Had no one reacted, the ‘girls’ could have their ‘moment’ all to themselves. When you get down to it, it is people who are calling for Imus’ head on a platter who have stolen the ‘moment’
“and hasn’t owned up to that simple fact.” – he apologized, numerous times, what would you have him do?
“He acted like a school yard bully” – really, how so? Most school yard bullies don’t apologize, do they?
“and society is defending him because if you hand him a twenty he will get you the good seat.” – Imus hasn’t ever done anything for me, and I’m not defending him. I’m just pointing out how so many people can turn nothing into a big something
“These women did nothing wrong” – I don’t know that anyone has accused them of doing anything ‘wrong’.
“and he used them for his own ends” – no, it is actually people like Sharpton and Jackson who are using the girls to their own ends, Imus made a joke and tried to move on (see my statement above)
“and he is being called on the carpet for it.” – no, he is being persecuted by the “black leaders” for THEIR personal profit and power grab
“My grandma would have had me in tears for my bad behavior if I had ever dared to ridicule a stranger for cash” – would it just have to be about cash? What if you just ridiculed them because you disliked them? Sort of like you are doing now?
“and my bosses would have rightly shown me the door.” – I guess you better not being writing on company time then 😉
“I don’t support rappers or any other artists who use those kind of images” – good, but do you call for boycotting them because they are degrading women and especially black women?
“and that includes:”
(I had to stop reading here and step away from the keyboard because I was laughing so hard I couldn’t type worth beans, and my typing is bad anyway)
rock, – I’ve never heard a rock song call women bitches and hos, but I could be wrong, I wouldn’t listen to it if they did
CW – I’m not sure that you are familiar with the genre, I defy you to find CW songs that come close to the lyrics quoted by Michelle Malkin
and classical – has someone gone about setting the bitches an’ hos lyrics to some of the all-time classics like Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata?
“and I don’t listen to their stations and I won’t.” – I must confess that I got lost on this one, do you mean that you don’t listen to stations that play rap or that you don’t listen to stations that play rock, C&W, and classical? My guess is that latter
“However Imus is am employee who has stepped over the line and it is perfectly reasonable to ask his bosses to do something about it.” – much ado about nothing, but good for traffic JMHO
Carlton, Smack My Bitch Up attracted a lot of attention in the 90’s for it’s title and refrain. It was by a British prog rock group.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smack_My_Bitch_Up
But it’s the exception that proves the rule. And Richard Wagner was a famous anti-semite.
But the thug culture of rap is like the hippies reverse.
The only reason that gansta rap comes into this discussion at all is because Imus used it in his so-called apology. For a man who gets paid to talk for a living and who has had to apologize many times, he is very bad at it. His apology came down to- I may be a white man and I shouldn’t have said it but the black community uses it all the time. As I said he threw up on the bride and apologized by saying her uncle would have thrown up anyway, so it’s all good. He needs to finally apologize in a way that addresses how he hurt the women and does not justify his actions with the actions of others. He needs to take responsibility for the wrong HE has done and the rest of us need to make sure that his head is not the only one on the chopping block.
Couldn’t agree more and very well said. I believe that African American leaders have ‘eaten their own’ on this one. They have destroyed one of their biggest supporters. Anyone who followed the Imus program would know he is most definitely not a racist, even though the show was rife with racist and sexist comedy. But that is what many are missing–it was comedy–satire, sometimes vicious and offensive, no doubt about that. I do think he went too far when he directed the racist-satirical comedy at the specific and highly sympathetic target of the Rutgers BB team. But to trash his career over it?
I miss him already. He had become an essential part of my morning routine.
It’s so simple to me. Unless parroting black pop culture is wrong, Imus has done NOTHING wrong!
Moreover if this shreiking and victim posturing lynch mob is really sincere about “women being treated like this,” take it up with the rap and hip hop that has set the tone for reducing women to bitches and hos.
While there is certainly actual black and white racism, whites aren’t the ones who started mispronouncing the word whore. Also whites aren’t writing books called “Happy to be Nappy.” Nappy is something blacks say about other blacks-DUH!!
What is wrong in a free soceity is Imus trying to placate this PC dynamic of extortion by eating $#/+ for hours from a racial dominatrix and repeated hoaxster like Sharpton. What is wrong is Sharpton remaining unstigmatized and still being taken seriously in any context any more.