Quoting my comment thread…
So my frequent visitor, and righty friend Hindu from Sagebrusher.com pipes in on my Imus post. I think I will probably take a lot of heat tomorrow at Drinking Liberally in Seattle over my distaste for the Jackson/Sharpton public soapbox extravaganza. But I honestly think that the debate over racism isn’t going to be hashed out over some jackass getting fired, or from any racial source with an agenda. To me it needs to be hashed out from within each and every one of us. Those of us in denial about racism in this country, and I’m talking to you Hindu, need to be clear about that. And Hindu’s comment…
Agree with most of this, Jimmy, except for the Bill-O stuff. He would have been roasted at the stake in minutes. Limbaugh would have taken seconds.
Imus lasted a few days because he’s a liberal elitist beltway insider. He has friends amongst the democrat martini set. David Gregory was a regular.
If Bill-O, as you say, had been as dumb as Imus, he would have been out before you even noticed.
It took me a few second search on YouTube…
[youtube]6Mc4jTs6P2k[/youtube]
Hmmm…
I have a unique perspective on racism. Growing up I was a victim of reverse racism. I lived in some of the blackest neighborhoods in Seattle and was nearly confined to the house. My memories of stolen bus tokens and dodging rocks are not that far off. I guess out of some desperate attempt to understand the strange world I was living in (I was a transplant from white Eastern Washington) I started learning, on my own, about slavery and read the 3rd grade material on a fellow named Fredrick Douglass. I don’t think I understood even the then modern version of the racism I was experiencing, but as I grew older, I understood the historic implications. And my understanding has made me who I am today. And when I see a racist, I know exactly what I am looking at.
But I don’t think Don Imus is a racist.
I got caught by a jewish co-worker using the word Kike and was corrected. Ironically, the definition is one that I never knew. It was a phrase that was passed on through childhood chatter. I think the Imus issue (and man do I ever want to see this one get out of the media spotlight) is systemic of a multi-generational mindset that is now finding it’s way into a public debate that may just turn out to be more substantial than in previous years where it was acknowledged when something was wrong, but the childhood chatter still went on in the company of close friends (and corporate sponsors). Don Imus may, in some twisted way, be a hero to this cause if the level of discussion is maintained outside of the crucifixion of public figures and the media’s talking heads.
But I’m not holding my breath. Hindu states, and so wrongly so, Bill-O and his media counterparts would be ”roasted at the stakes in minutes” is exactly my point. They will not. They will not because they are not accessible, not accountable and completely insulated by their masters.
Darci on April 17th, 2007
Well, I think flatly stating that Imus is NOT a racist goes too far, but I don’t want to split hairs. For sure you are right, Jimmy, about O’Reilly, Limbaugh, et al being at least as bad in every way as Imus, if not worse, and being very much insulated from any repercussions. There’s no way O’Reilly would roast for saying what Imus did- NO WAY.
Here’s something that bugs the crap out of me regarding the whole Imus story- why does everybody talk about the comment as racist, but not sexist? Let me tell you, being called nappy-headed is not nearly as bad as being called a ho, which can refer to any color of woman. It really scorches me that the media doesn’t talk about that.
Have fun tonight, Jimmy. Those west siders will probably be so thrilled to see an east side Dem that they won’t even think to raz you about your smackdown on Sharpton et al.