ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

Holy Babyfuck Christ

Swinging between frustration and angry exasperation, WABC radio morning host Don Imus Tuesday morning tried to shut down the crossfire over a racial joke he made Monday about pro football player Adam "Pacman" Jones.

The point of the sarcastic joke, Imus said on the air, was that "they arrest black people in this country for no reason. That's all. And that's what people should be outraged about."

Critics said the joke was worded ambiguously, so it could have been taken to suggest blacks have inherent criminal tendencies.

On Monday's show, sportscaster Warner Wolf was talking about how Jones had been suspended for a season and arrested six times.

"What color is he?" asked Imus.

"He's African-American," said Wolf.

"Well, there you go," said Imus. "Now we know."

Karith Foster, a comic herself and one of the show's two black co-hosts, strongly defended Imus and suggested the problem was the difficulty of conveying sarcastic humor.

"A lot people," she said, "don't get it."

Audio and video clips of Monday's exchange quickly moved into wide circulation through the Internet, sparking considerable commentary both pro- and anti-Imus.

The Rev. Al Sharpton, who led the ultimately successful campaign to have Imus fired from WFAN and MSNBC last April after he cracked that the Rutgers women's basketball team looked like "nappy-headed ho's," said Monday he would decide shortly whether to seek sanctions in this case.

On the air this morning, Imus bluntly labeled any charge of racism "nonsense. . . . I don't mind people looking at past stuff, but let's not get stupid."

At times Imus seemed to be making a conscious effort to keep his famous short fuse in check while he addressed what he clearly considered baseless accusations.

While he did not address the question of ambiguity in the phrasing, that point was indirectly raised by one of this morning's guests, comedian Dick Gregory.

Gregory said he doesn't personally think Imus is racist and that he took the Pacman comment to be "about racial profiling."
He added, however, "You know what you meant. But a lot of people won't give you the benefit of the doubt - and they shouldn't."

Gregory also said, "I can't tell you what to do from here . . . . I'm sorry it happened."

Imus was defended strongly by his on-air team, with Foster saying, "I wouldn't be here if you hadn't kept your pledge" to make the show an ongoing racial dialogue.

Tony Powell, the other black co-host, said the media should pay more attention to the number of black guests who have talked with racial issues with Imus since he returned to the air in December.

Wolf, who played straight man in the Jones exchange, said, "People are trying to make something out of nothing. Anybody who listens knows that's a joke you make all the time."

Foster noted that when she left "The View," Imus immediately joked that it must be racism.

WABC managers had indicated they talked with Imus on Monday about the Jones comment and didn't expect any disciplinary action - though the scope of public reaction can sometimes affect that decision.

There has also been speculation that even if this all blows away, it could have an impact on what political guests will do the Imus show during the upcoming election season.

In a "gotcha" media world, candidates often have enough trouble defending themselves without also having to explain Imus.
Presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain has been a frequent Imus guest in the past and welcomed him back in December.

Imus would presumably love to have McCain visit sometime between now and November.

Alright, listen. NOT THAT IT FUCKING MATTERS, but Don Imus is basically the only white person left on his own show. He added like 4500 black people after the first blowup over nothing.

Fuck you Al Sharpton. You're simultaneously raping free speech (the primary reason I could never be completely liberal; the sentiment that feelings are more important than free fucking speech is GARBAGE) and making black people look like petty pieces of shit. NO ONE CARES. And fuck the corporations that bow to the pressure instead of letting the boycotts happen. You're really helping to push that freedom further and further away. Freedom of speech isn't just butterflies and beautiful protest language. Everyone (even Imus) has to right to say something far more egregious than the nothing he did say. He should be free to say that he thinks all black people should die. You know why? Because it would never fucking happen! If people were truly outraged, or hurt, guess what? They wouldn't listen, and then his poor ratings would get him taken off the air. That's how it's supposed to work. But no, instead we have corporate lawyers who freak out everytime someone with ZERO credibility like Al Sharpton decides to fuck with someone. WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!?!?!?!?!?! This country is really starting to fucking suck. We've got the extreme right, who's pushing a war and taking away rights to privacy, and we've got the extreme left crying everytime someone gets their feelings hurt. The Constitution wasn't written to make you feel good about yourself. If you don't like what Don Imus is saying, DON'T LISTEN. It's that easy.

If you're wondering why this pisses me off so much, the reason is twofold. The first and primary reason is that I'm a writer, and any time ANY expression is squelched, it's another step closer to something I write being squelched. And I will tell you right now that while I would like you, the casual reader, to enjoy what I write, I also don't give a FUCK what you think of it if it means that I can't say it. It's the FIRST AMENDMENT FOR A REASON. They pushed the one that allows people to possess firearms and defend their country to number two for this shit!

The second reason is believe it or not, because it's racist. When you protest someone saying something like nappy-headed hoe or in this case, noting the fact that Pacman Jones is black, you are saying that black people are not people, but children. That they can't handle ANY criticism or even perceived criticism and thus, must be babied and treated as a lesser in society. And it's the fault of both the black (and white) people protesting it, AND the white (and black) people kowtowing to it. What the protesters are essentially asking for is a double standard. Because in rap alone, you will hear far worse dropped with impunity without criticism even remotely comparable to this, if any at all. And by the way, that's how it should be. You'd better believe that if Don Imus was a black guy and had a beat behind him, no one would bat an eye. Freedom of speech for me is the single most important issue in this country besides getting out of this retarded war, and the stifling it has taken in the past few years is unbelievable. If you seriously can't handle hearing it...then please, just go somewhere else.