Did lightning strike with Don Imus?
Categories: Behaving badly, In the news, Media, That's entertainment
As a person, you know that some people never learn. You see and hear this fact every day. As a parent, you will, at some point, no doubt be forced to share this delightful bit of information with your children, even as you try to teach them to be people who do learn from their mistakes and shortcomings. Sometimes it's tough to do when those people who never learn continue to be on the receiving end of everything but karma.
As we all know by now, Don Imus, the controversial radio disc jockey, is in the news again for making what are being construed as racist remarks. Recently Imus commented on the numerous (six!) arrests of football star Andrew Jones, who is African American. During the broadcast Imus asked what color Jones was. When he received the response, he stated, "Well, that explains it. Now we know."
Imus has since come forward claiming his comments were meant to be sarcastic. The people aren't buying it though, and neither is Andrew Jones, who said he has problems with African Americans and that he will be praying for Imus. I don't necessarily think Imus has a problem with a certain set of people (maybe he does, maybe he doesn't), but I do think he doesn't know when to let well enough alone. He doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut. Imus, however, doesn't get paid to do that. He gets paid to bring attention to his program, any way he knows how. And making controversial remarks is his trademark.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
meredith 6-25-2008 @ 3:37PM
Now, see? You didn't include the entire transcript which would have led to a different side of the conversation.
He was most certainly not saying "he did these things because he is black". He was pointing out that the police were singling him out because of his color. It isn't that hard to glean that from the conversation.
You are finding what you are looking for because you are looking for it.
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Jenni 6-25-2008 @ 3:57PM
That's exactly how I heard it to this morning when someone else reported on it on the radio. He was actually saying the exact opposite to what the "anti-Imus" crowd wants to imply. I was going to point this out, but you beat me to it.
Jen 6-25-2008 @ 3:48PM
What does this have to do with parenting again???
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eugene 6-25-2008 @ 4:25PM
meredith:
Color? Glean? Are you saying black people are all poor farm workers that need to glean the fields because they can't afford to buy food at the grocery store???
HOW DARE YOU!!!
:p
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eugene 6-25-2008 @ 4:26PM
It doesn't but you're missing the point. There's a bandwagon and you're not on it.
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ame s 6-25-2008 @ 4:56PM
Racial profiling isn't just a big city thing.
I live in a smallish city. Not long ago, I (white chick) was giving my neighbor and his son (black dudes) a ride to pick up one of their cars from the shop. I was pulled over by a cop (white dude), in our neighborhood, who looked remarkably like Boss Hogg from the Dukes of Hazard. He squinted at my husband's convertible, squinted at the 3 of us, and asked for i.d. and registration. My adult neighbor gladly showed his i.d. - and his badge. He's a police officer for the next county over. Boss Hogg squinted at us once more and sent us on our way after mumbling some crap about a report on a stolen car. I didn't realize I looked so suspicious in my pink Hello Kitty cap and Relay for Life t-shirt ;)
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Jenni 6-25-2008 @ 6:46PM
I think it's actually more promenent in the smaller cities than the larger ones. That's just my experience and observations.
Jan Bay 6-26-2008 @ 11:05AM
I agree with the OP that Imus was insinuating that it could have been
just another case of racial profiling. Just cause Imus had the
misfortune to stick his foot in his mouth and gave the media a big
news day and something to blather about apparently makes them want to
blow things out of proportion and take statements out of context.
I didn't think that the comments that Don Imus made about the young
black was appropriate, but we all say things that we wish we had not.
Let's let the man move on and stop dissecting everything he says. He
and his wife do an unbelievable amount of good with children of all
races. That in itself should prove that he doesn't have a problem
with African-Americans.
Jan from http://www.unique-baby-gear-ideas.com/
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