Imus, freedom of speech, and money

I'm livid at the fact that Sharpton & Jackson can wield so much power. Why don't they go into their own black communities and teach these children self respect, go out, earn a living instead of living off of welfare and having children out of wedlock so "whitely" can pay for it. It's like we owe them !!!!!! Let them get a life!!!!!!!!!!

Don Imus does not comprehend the impact his words on public air addressing a SPECIFIC group of women not generaliation. I also don't agree with the use of the term in general but for it to be directed at a group of highly educated hard working women was totally uncalled for and no amount of justification can make it acceptable.

Claire, your kind of commentary is what causes the race relation problem in this country. 'Sharpton and Jesse' are not responsible for Imus being fired, Imus is. If he didn't make the comments there wouldn't be a firestorm over them. What happens and what continues to happen in the black community is as a result of a lot things that's occurred throughout this country's great history, and the fact that people bring that to light (Sharpton and Jesse), people get uncomfortable. Personally, as a 24 year old black male, 'whitely' (Claire's spelling) does not owe me anything. All I'm owed are the same benefits and chances that everyone is due by law in this country. But the reality is that I am not given the same benefits as others. For all you detractors who base your opinion of the black community on what you see on TV and what the news tell you, you need to realize there is a lot more depth and thought in the black community beyond what media conglomerates think will sell them advertising space. Look at what represents the white community, Pamela Lee Anderson, some air-head who got famous for posing nude and has men fighting over the paternity of her child because they want to cash in. Yes Claire, ‘whitley’ is the race to be!! Give me a break, we all have problems and are different accept it, and enjoy the differences for what they can potentially teach us all.

The remarks by Don Imus were way out of line, and some action was called for. If the Reverends Sharpton and Jackson are really so incensed about racism on the air waves, they should focus their attention on MTV, where black women are continually denegrated and far worse than Imus' comments made everyday. If they choose to ignore or classify it as some form of intra black self depreciating hunmor or artistic expression, they should not be surprised if the terms find their way into the mainstream vocabulary or used by bafoon radio hosts.

The black community is calling out a white man who is exercising his 1st amendment rights. This is also the community that embraces the rappers who degrade and debase black women and promote violence in their songs. The rappers are laughing all the way to the bank while living within the safe confines of rich, white neighborhoods.
Both Imus and those black rap 'artists' are both guilty of being tasteless but if "Nappy-headed Hos" was a rap song, it would probably become B.E.T.'s top song-of-week.
HYPOCRISY is alive and well in our little melting pot.

Freedom and "freedom of speech" should have never meant abdication of responsibility. Freedom is not for anyone who would cross the line into someone else's dignity and personal space. Freedom doesn't mean "anything goes". Freedom without responsibility is just a hollow word, and the acts are those of a madman(or woman). When do we begin to learn how to grow civilization into a good direction.

The Don Imus affair is a sad but necessary one. It reflects too well the heart that America has allowed itself to have by not honestly discussing nor addressing the terrorism and continued abuse afflicted upon African brought here and Native Peoples who lost their land and were consistently massacred. A word about the smallpox problem among the Natives...taking advantage of a horrible situation like that without succor, proper care, and respect is still terrorism. When will America learn? When will America begin to the right thing?

Why don't all us blacks just regard the remarks of IMUS as irrelavent. Seems the best way to take away negative influence is to treat it as unimportant... "Who cares" would have been our best response....
I will tell you why... FACE TIME in the MEDIA!!! and,
Imagine tomorrow all us blacks and whites are lovie-lovie... and there is not conflict, no discrimination.. and joyous coexistance.. a truly colorblind society... guess what... Sharpton and Jackson and Farrakhan are all OUT OF WORK!!!! So is it in their best interest for an integrated society?... NOT!.... they benefit from conflict.
I call upon all my American-african brothers and sisters to finally step up and pull our weight in american society and be responsable fathers and mothers. Educate your children like my Father insisted I get an education. If Imus said "Blue Eyed Whitey", no one would have cared. Lets make racism die by giving it no time!

Since the apologizing bandwagon seems to be getting more full every day, and with everyone seeming to feel they're entitled to an apology from someone over something, does the black prostitute who put the Duke Lacrosse players through and expensive hell have any plans of apologizing??...or reinbursing their legal costs? Someone pass this onto those two useless poverty pimps Jackson and Sharpton and see if they'll encourager her to do that.

SHAME ON YOU CBS,AN REV.SHARPTON-- YOU BOTH THREW THAT FIRST STONE AT A MAN HWOM HAS SUFFERED .WHAT TYPE OF REV.ARE YOU,NOT A CHURCH REVEREND.YOU HAVE TO MUCH POWER AND HATE IN YOUR HEART AND YOU SIR ARE THE ONE WITH THE " COLOR ISSUE ".I WILL PRAY FOR FORGIVENESS FOR CBS AND REV.SHARPTON

i think that it is fair that mr imus has lost his job due to his remarks. however i can guarantee that if eddie murphy or chris rock called them those type of names in a comedy routine everyone would laugh...and no one outside of the comedy club would ever hear a thing...double standards..

I think Don Imus said something stupid and hurtful. Many others in public life have done as bad or worse. It justifies a rebuke, an apology, a long lecture on the power of the word, but not the loss of his job and the loss of the jobs of the people that worked with him. The Spike Lee's, Jesse Jackson's and those who demanded and got him removed from the airwaves are people who have shown prejudice and hatred in their own background and are using this as a platform to get publicity, not promote harmony, learning and help their fellow man. They can claim he has made a fortune from his career, but he has given back to the community more that the Sharpton's, Jackson's and Lee's combined.

It's astounding to me that not only rappers, but young ordinary black males address black women exclusively using every kind of derogatory ephitets, referring to female bodyparts, etc..., loudly, coarsely and profusely. Rap musicians are their teachers. And black women so scorned react not with indignation, spite or anger, (as towards Imus) far from it, but with amusement, attraction; this sort of vile language being common in everyday encounters. Asking these black women and girls why they don't rebuff such degradation, they answered me that what do I #&/=¿%#?!·" know about them, that I'm a sorry white twerp whimp, and that those young hoodlums are real men, machos that know how to treat 'women.' Maybe these women get so wet between the legs that they can hardly hear those banger's contempt. Being a white man nobody would have saved my hide from being battered bloody to the ground if I only dared to call any of those women a single nicety such as those virile gangbangers had just sputtered at them in abundance. I have to say I expected this sort of incongruity.


Upon the issue of integration, it's a shame that the black community don't address the attitude of their own males, whose debased antics and foul language are ordinarily imitated by many white and hispanic males; nobody could defend one group socializing in a certain way, deeming it as correct and accusing members of other groups attempting to behave in a similar fashion as racist, rude or insulting. I'm sure that if a famous rapper had gushed upon those women a stream of slurs and had referred to their female bodyparts in the foulest of ways, these same women would have regarded him as cute, provoking or simply teasing. As Imus is an old ugly white man he has no right to hit on young black women; and their reactions was consistent with that of teeny bitches with too much pride, nauseated at anybody's advances but of popular males.

Hatemongers like Sharpton and Jackson look only for their political agendas, profiting with every white man's slip or dissension, for I learned that they address women in ways that no white man could. Sharpton and Jackson are no better than pimps and gangsters.

Freedom of speech forever!!! That said, I'm curious,...when Justin pulled Janet's "girlhood" out at the superbowl, (even though I thought it was "okay"), there seemed to me to be huge amounts of criticism directed towards all parties involved, but especially to the network/station owners. I mean, it was as if "many" saw the network and its' subsidiaries as the force responsible for what flows across the airways. Didn't the FCC like fine or threaten to fine stations hundreds of thousands of dollars cause of one little "boobie"? More to the point, Don Imus, love him or hate him has been HIRED to do his "thing" for many, many years. "Certain" rappers have been HIRED and make a great deal of bling bling for themselves, and just like Imus, for their EMPLOYERS as well. I agree with the "many" and the FCC. Station owners should be held responsible for the PRODUCT that they put out on these airways that they have leased from the people. And tonight, in keeping with my "Freedom of the Speech" motif,...I would like to enthusiastically and sincerely thank the "network" for Janet and Justin. "Network", stand up and take a bow. And regarding Imus and "certain" rappers, "Network", you should be fined!!!

The problem is not so simple. Imus simply didn't know. Whites generally don't understand that only some rappers use the term, and No Rapper would even think of calling college b-ball women, nappy -headed hos. Never happen! It's a non-discussed unacceptable act. The Media doesn't know it and that's where Jesse and Al (non-hatemongers)could have articulated. African-Americans were caught off guard, shocked that someone actually said that! Imus let his mouth end a 10M a year gravy train. It was his turn.

How about Howard Stern at Sirius ? He found another outlet. Guess Don Imus is worn out and badly in need of rest . He will do some travelling and mouthing off round the world before he will settle back into another new outlet possibly by Internet. The old radio is dying and it means nothing , anyway. I dont understand what is in thos e newspapers anyway... Internet will swallow everything we know like network TV, radio and DVDs. The old bigwigs is trying to cut expenses in time before the sun sets...

Regardless what has been said by IMUS:

Everyday I am terribly annoyed by RAP "music" bombarding me while I drive in my convertible and I just wonder if it would be appropriate to sue everyday the folks (primarily acrican americans) about extremely indecent language imposed on me???

Who takes care of this BS?