Pot/Kettle No. I: Special Racism Edition

Imus. There's commentary everywhere, and I'm tired of it. But the amazing amount of hypocrisy and simple-mindedness from both political ends warrants comment. A right-winger at Vagrant really set me off:

Wow, has this thing gone overboard or what?!?
Maybe he should have lost his job (probably more for past things than the "ho" statement) but the great irony of this whole matter is the usual suspects of Jackson and Sharpton. Two of the biggest black racists on the planet complaining about a comment that was more stupid and sexist than racist all the while never feeling the need to offer their own apologies for their own misbehavior.

I'm still waiting for Rev. Jackson to apologize for the Duke lacrosse rape nonsense...and let's not forget he's paying for that lying tramp's college education b/c she was "wronged" by them there white boys.

Likewise, I'll be waiting quite awhile for Sharpton's apology about the Duke issue aand Tawana Brawley as well...you know, rallying to get 88 pseduo-intellectual professors to sign a letter of condemnation less than 48 hours after the event, and so on.

Ah America...

to which i was forced to respond:

- Imus deserves to be fired for two reasons:

1. what he said was obviously offensive, was intended to be offensive, and had no purpose other than being offensive. he may maintain that it was a "joke," but there was no punchline. it was racist, sexist, ageist (if that exists), and offensive in other ways as well. it wasn't the first time he's done this sort of thing, and it belies deep-seated and long-standing cultural, societal, and personal black eyes. this is not something that an old white man should say in jest in private, much less with seriousness in front of millions. there is no defense for this.

2. his offensive actions caused sponsors of his show to stop giving his employer their money. he should lose his job if for no other reason than the fact that his actions had a detrimental effect on the profitably of the company he represents.

- right-wing "defenses" of Imus (like the "isn't this over-blown" line) are stupid, morally reprehensible, intellectually self-defeating, and illogical for a few reasons:

1. this hasn't been over-blown. a very public figure committed a very public sin: he slandered and dis-reputed a team of people by disrespecting them solely based on their race, gender, appearance, and age. to say that this is over-blown defies common sense: Imus is a high-profile media figure employed by two of the largest media corporations in the world (CBS and NBC). when high-profile media figures commit high-profile sins, they should expect (and receive) full condemnation from the media.

2. It doesn't matter what Al Sharpton and/or Jesse Jackson say, do, have said, or have done. This is about Imus... not Sharpton/Jackson. similarly, it doesn't matter what rappers say or do. as Andrew Sullivan said, "it's legitimate to criticize both Imus and hip-hop, while recognizing that the color of the speaker does make an obvious difference in impact and intent, with respect to hate speech. When black culture deploys its own n-words about itself, it's a form of self-abasement as well as self-defense. It's sad and ugly, but it's different than perpetuating contempt for minorities from a position of majority power and privilege. Neither is defensible, but one is less defensible than the other." Imus is an old white man, disparaging young black women in about the worst way that he possibly could do. that is worse than a young black man (or woman) disparaging a young black woman (or man), even if all other factors of the act are the same.

3. it's possible to say that Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson should be ridiculed - if not ignored completely, which would hurt them far more - for their racism, and also that Imus should be. i don't know of any right-winger who would protest if MSNBC announced a policy of no longer having Al Sharpton on as a guest on their shows because of the racist things he has said (e.g. about the Duke lacrosse team). however, i hear plenty of them crying because poor little Don Imus has lost his job on the same network for what he said. that sort of double-standard is exactly why people Sharpton and Jackson still have the power they have: because there really IS hypocrisy, and the right-wing doesn't see it (or refuses to acknowledge it). of course, this does not excuse Jackson and Sharpton for the horrible things they've said. but neither does it excuse Imus, or his defenders.

4. Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson are not the only ones who have fault in the Duke lacrosse thing. there's plenty of blame and finger-pointing to go around. for example, to the university for suspending the kids, canceling the lacrosse season, and firing their coach. to the media, both MSM and indie, both right-wing and left, for automatically assuming guilt (and thereby displaying prejudices about rich, privileged, white jocks) and for immediately making this story one of racism (and thus indulging Sharpton/Jackson, if you wanna look at it that way) when it should have been about criminal accusations. to Nifong, who will likely face civil charges for abusing his office for political reasons, and playing upon civil unrest caused by racial tensions to achieve political gain (those who think Imus shouldn't be fired: do you think the same about Nifong?). look, these kids shouldn't exactly be held up as some fucking heroes: they were still violating school policy and several laws with their illegal party; they still hired strippers (possibly prostitutes) to indulge their baser instincts, and probably did it with their parents' money. they are still assholes and degenerates, no matter what actually happened that night (and i still believe that something untoward happened that night; probably not gang-rape, but i'm sure all sorts of verbal abuse occurred, and probably some sort physical abuse as well).

that's most of it. but i won't have simple-minded defenses of bigots presented in my presence without a rebuttal. this sort of "aw, it ain't no big deal 'cos the blacks do it too" race-baiting is impermissible. wrong is wrong, no matter who does it, and criticizing Sharpton as a defense of Imus is just ludicrous.

obviously, this mindset isn't limited to this one guy. Similar things have been repeated on right-wing talk shows and blogs all over the place, and I'm not really sure why. Who would willingly defend Imus? Other than the overt threats of violence, how is this different from Michael Richards?

Elsewhere, Andrew Sullivan takes the side of sanity. Michelle Malkin does not.

-wkw