[Rhodes22-list] On Don Imus

[TN Rhodey]

Dave, I mentioned that Imus made a hateful racist remark to successful 
educated women. I made  no comment of the Rutger's News Conference good bad 
or indifferent. I didn't dwell on this because I think we agree it was the 
wrong thing to say. I have said so several times. That being said this does 
not preclude one for making additional comments that really go at the deeper 
issues.

Fair Winds,

Wally


>From: DCLewis1 at aol.com
>Reply-To: The Rhodes 22 mail list <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
>To: rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org
>Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] On Don Imus
>Date: Sun, 15 Apr 2007 15:11:10 EDT
>
>
>Brad,
>
>Thanks for your post, I enjoy your ducking and weaving.  I’m part of  the
>problem, huh?  Neither I nor you are remotely a factor in this Imus  
>problem.
>The Imus issue is going to be played out in the media and  possibly the 
>courts -
>and trust me, nobody will give a tinkers damn what you and  I think about 
>it.
>  We are not part of the problem and we are not part of  the solution.
>
>You claim Sharpton and Jackson are racist demagogues.  Could be, I’m  not
>defending Sharpton and Jackson, although I will say that I think Sharpton  
>did
>the right thing in this specific matter.  I really haven't followed  
>Sharpton,
>and I'm probably as skeptical re Jackson as you are.
>
>You say no one on the list is defending Imus - yeah, right.  Every  other
>poster on this list has been trying to shift the subject from Imus back to  
>the
>black community by changing the subject. They’ve claimed:
>- Oh no, the  real problem isn’t Imus the real problem is rap lyrics
>- Oh no, the real  problem isn’t Imus the real problem is Sharpton
>- Oh no, the real problem  isn’t Imus, its just entertainment
>- Oh no, real the problem isn’t  Imus, the real problem is ......
>
>News flash: The problem is Imus.  Stop trying to change the subject  and 
>take
>the heat off your boy.  There are a lot of problems in the black  
>community,
>there is no one “real” problem, all of the above are real problems,  
>and
>there is a long list of other real problems but the topical timely problem  
>on the
>table in this thread is Imus’s gratuitous insult to a group of  
>accomplished
>young women who are doing all the right things to lead an  upstanding
>productive life.  Read the subject of the thread.  Stop  trying to 
>rationalize what
>Imus has done.
>
>Your comment that black people don’t have to march at Selma to have an
>opinion is completely off the wall.  Of course they don’t.  I  explicitly
>acknowledged Whitelock couldn’t have marched in the early civil  rights 
>movement.  I
>explicitly acknowledged that he was entitled to his  opinion. Nevertheless,
>there are a whole lot of civil rights related things  he could have done 
>over the
>past 40 years (his age as I recall),  but  read his vitae, there’s 
>nothin,
>absolutely nothin related to civil  rights. It's remarkable.  Seems to me 
>this
>should cause reasonable  people to question who his column represents - 
>himself,
>or the black  community.  I don’t see any compelling reason to believe 
>his
>opinions  represent anyone but himself - and frankly, while he's entitled 
>to his
>opinion,  I don’t care what his opinion is if it's not  representative.  
>I
>would be very interested to know what leaders in the  black community and 
>the
>black middle class think, but I see no reason to think  that he’s tied 
>into them
>at all.
>
>Re your rising opinion of Whitelock: Why am I not surprised?  I’m sure  
>his
>publisher likes his opinions to.  I expect the WSJ will pick him up  
>because
>they like his message.  But the key factor is not what the white  and 
>business
>communities thinks, it’s what the black community thinks - and I  have no 
>idea
>what his standing is with them.  I suspect it’s not very high,  but I’m 
>not
>part of the black community.  When it comes to civil rights I’d  feel it 
>was a
>lot more likely that he represented someone other than himself, or  the 
>white
>business establishment,  if I saw he was active in black civil  rights
>programs and organizations, or if he were citing persons from those  
>organizations.
>
>As to the women from Rutgers that you admire - that’s the first time 
>anyone
>on this board has said anything positive about the young women involved 
>with
>this fiasco.  Read the posts,  everyone, absolutely everyone, has  ignored 
>the
>impact of the event on the young women and has instead focused on  trying 
>to
>move the focus off Imus and back on to the black community.  I  admire 
>those
>young ladies to, I don't think they deserve all the crap that's  been 
>dropped
>on them.
>
>Your comment that Imus is an ass is exactly on target, keep that thought.  
>Don
>’t get distracted with your opinions re Jackson or Sharpton, Kings
>womanizing, the role of entitlements, jihad, global warming, ....., read 
>the  title of
>the thread, the focus is sharply on Imus.  We are in total  agreement.
>
>The advice you say you give to every community is exemplary.   Incredible 
>as
>it sounds I completely support your advice.  But I would add  one important
>thing to your advice: they should treat each person and  community with 
>dignity
>and respect.  The dignity and respect issues are the  key issues lacking in
>this Imus affair.
>
>As for your advice that the ladies at Rutgers toughen up and face life  - 
>you
>may be surprised, they may do just that.  My guess is that great  American
>institution called The American Trial Bar is circling - vultures on the  
>wing,
>standby.  If at least one of the young ladies, or their parents, goes  
>along
>with them you might expect a slander/libel suit on their behalf.   File 
>that
>suit in DC, Gary Ind, wherever, and watch what happens - people on  this 
>list may
>not understand the difference between rappers calling women in  general
>whores and someone calling the child of Mr & Mrs xxxx, of Princeton  NJ a 
>whore,
>but trust me, the courts will.  And Imus, CBS, and NBC will  hear the two
>happiest words that all businesses love to hear - punitive damages.  You 
>may recall
>that a jury in Illinois hit Altria with $10B (yes B) punitive  award, I 
>think
>in 03; let’s see if that record stands if the Rutgers ladies  toughen up 
>(your
>recommendation) and take the matter to a jury.  Seriously,  I would not
>expect a $10B award, but it could be a very large number.
>
>You want to understand the worried look on Imus’s face this past week and
>why he traveled to meet with the team?  I think the corporate lawyers  have
>explained the above to him and the network CEOs.  Imus et al’s only  hope 
>is that
>the young ladies and the parents will drop the issue - if  they file 
>charges,
>the ladies and their families are rich for life.  Let's  see what happens.
>
>Actually, it may have already happened.  I recall, Sharpton  brought Imus 
>to
>his knees in less than 4 hours and Imus spent nearly a week  groveling
>apologies.  But I don’t think for a minute that happened because  of the 
>incredible
>respect Imus et al have for Sharpton, the NAACP etc, I  think it was their
>certain knowledge re what the American Trial Bar can do and  have done.  I 
>would
>not be surprised if the networks haven't already  offered the ladies
>compensation for their pain and suffering in exchange for  their signatures 
>on
>hold-harmless documents and no more public  outcries.  I could be wrong.
>
>And I wouldn’t mind the girls and their parents taking Imus et al to the
>cleaners.  The financial damage would begin to set clear limits, and  
>identify
>the risks, for shock-jocks and the networks that sponsor them.   Clearly, 
>the
>FCC has failed in this area for a long time.
>
>Finally, I say again, from my perspective the core issue in the Imus matter
>is not civil rights, it’s decency.  You have no right to slander the 
>women,
>children, or anyone, in my life, and I have no right to slander the women,
>children, or anyone,  in your life - people have been killed over this  
>issue.  I’
>m surprised there are adult men on this board that just don’t get  it.
>
>Dave
>
>
>
>
>
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