reflections on our culture

Ok, now that this is starting to simmer down b/c Don Imus has been fired from everything - i just want to pose some thoughts i've had about how this event has unfolded and what it speaks about our present culture. First of all, I didn't condone what he said, it's never appropriate to call a girl a "ho". No girl deserves that. I understand those Rutgers girls being hurt and bothered by those comments. What is interesting to me is who else was bothered by the comment. Did he address the comment to all black women? No, the court was full of Tennessee's players as well - who were also black women (isn't it interesting we havn't heard anything from them). While the context doesn't excuse what he said, he didn't say all black women are "nappy headed ho's" - he made the comment about the Rutger's basketball team. Why are Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson so offended by this? Why are so many enraged people speaking out about this? Imus didn't make generalized racist comments near as much as he made degrading sexist comments - shouldn't those Rutgers women be more bothered as women than the fact that they are black women? Why isn't Martha Burke speaking out on this?? Now, i certainly know why Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson are offended - I pose that hypothetical question to point out how and where our culture draws lines of what they tolerate and what they do not. The culture essentially divides things into little sins and big sins. There are wrong things you do and then there are wrong things you may NEVER do. As I watched the video footage of Don Imus on Al Sharpten's radio show, i was struck not by how different they were - but that they were the exact same. Don't you see that they were drawing the same line - only in different places. They both crossed a line, just different lines. Imus crossed the line you are not permitted to cross in this country. Our culture now has a ZERO tolerance policy for racial or sexist comments, if you do that-you will be socially tared and feathered. According to our culture, "you must not show even a hint of sensitivity immorality". Imus committed a "big sin" if you will let me use that term here. But Also, Al Sharpton crossed a line - yet it is one he is permitted to cross. Sharpton and Jesse Jackson are both reported to have had multiple marital affairs and illegitimate children. Yet, no one dare damage their character according to those actions. Why? Because it's not a big deal in our culture if you do that. It is a big deal if you blast a derogatory comment. Here is the point: Neither of those men are being held to proper standards of Character. When we watch that footage, we essentially choose a bad guy and a good guy - you choose that guy according to where YOU DRAW THE LINE. People who are defending either of these sides (with exception to the Rutgers women themselves) are essentially just making religious claims, power claims at that. 50 years ago Don Imus could have made those absurd comments and no one would have said a thing - but if he was cheating on his wife, the media would have had field day with that and crucified him. Now in our culture, you can cheat on your wife and the media will pass it off - look at our former president and possible future presidential candidate. It's not a big deal anymore, yet if you say derogatory comments now--your as good as gone. The problems are the same, it's just that our culture has so shifted it's lines that the impact of the problems is now reveresed. Don't you see that these are religous shifts, in a shift from modernity to postmodernity. The culture shift is a naive religous shift. The penny drops when you see that nobody can give a proper rationale for the shift - b/c if you ask people on a personal level, both problems will hurt you - with equal pain.


On a lighter note, when comedian Wanda Sykes was asked to comment on the situation, she simply said "When did i become the spokeswoman for Nappy headed Ho's??"