Help Me Understand Why Floyd Mayweather Gets to be Racist

In the past couple of Coffee Talk columns, I referred to Floyd Mayweather, Jr.’s racist (and homophobic) rant against Manny Pacquiao. In addition to accusing Pacquiao of taking performance enhancing drugs, Mayweather railed on the Filipino boxer for eating dogs, eating cats, being yellow, being a midget, and being a “faggot”. Mayweather eloquently claimed that Pacquiao, “Can’t speak no English!” He also called for Pacquiao to make him rice and assorted Japanese foods (don’t ask me why).

For reasons that upset and perplex me, Mayweather isn’t getting heat for his comments. Is it because he’s African American and the American press is wary of accusing an African American of racism? Is it because Pacquiao is Filipino and (for ridiculous reasons) Asians/Pacific Islanders aren’t considered as much of a minority as African Americans and Latino Americans? I’m not really sure. Thankfully, ESPN’s LZ Granderson wrote a fantastic article on the matter. Here’s a lengthy excerpt:

Not long after [Dr. Laura] Schlessinger made her remarks, Rev. Al Sharpton could be seen ripping her to shreds on CNN and suggesting sponsors pull ads from her show. I’ve yet to hear a Sharpton comment regarding Mayweather. I’ve yet to hear him call for a boycott of any of his future fights or the sponsors tied to him.

The same goes for the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who didn’t have a problem inserting himself in the conversation this summer when Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert went off on LeBron James after the King moved his throne to Miami. Jackson implied Gilbert’s comments were laced with racist undertones. He even demanded a sit-down with the owner. I’ve yet to see Jackson insert himself into the Mayweather conversation or publicly request a similar meeting.

We know what Mayweather’s comments said about him, but what does the muted response say about Sharpton, Jackson and the rest us? That it’s different because it’s boxing?

Maybe.

But the day Tiger Woods won the Masters in 1997, Fuzzy Zoeller took a lot of heat and lost sponsors for calling a then-21-year-old Woods “little boy” and urging him not to serve fried chicken and collard greens the following year. Zoeller’s words are akin to Mayweather’s about Pacquiao, who is Filipino. Now do you still think it’s about boxing?

Mayweather’s comments are as troublesome as Schlessingers’, but he is being treated differently because he’s black.

Period.

Anyway, the whole thing has been bothering me for the last week or so and I wanted to get your thoughts on the matter. Why do you think Mayweather is getting a pass on this issue?

Author: RPadTV

https://rpad.tv

99 thoughts on “Help Me Understand Why Floyd Mayweather Gets to be Racist”

  1. News to me, but I just boned up on the subject. I'm assuming a big part of this is because it's pre-fight hype — a personal attack on one guy not on a race of people in general. It's two dudes who are going to fight, so he's talking shit to build it up.

    Ironically, I just saw an old South Park tonight where the boys are trying to get Craig and Tweak to fight, and are making up shit-talk the other allegedly said to spur on the battle.

    I'm not advocating it; I'm just answering your question.

  2. Dr. Laura was on every news station across the TV spectrum. You scooped all of them on this one Ray. I hadn't heard any of this.

  3. @Justin The thing is, they're not fighting. Mayweather was mostly silent during the two rounds of failed negotiations. Once the press tour for Pacquiao's fight with Margarito kicked off, Mayweather decided to break his silence.

  4. Mayweather is getting a pass because he's black. In the US the media and those who know no better believe that racism is defined as anything negative or that can make money for a black person. In fact this country has become such a wuss when it comes to anything that might upset someone they have created the frickin term "reverse racism". WTF? I refuse to use the term African American to describe any natively born American. In fact, I had a friend who was from South Africa and immigrated here in order to go to school. They wouldn't let him put African American for his status because that term was reserved for natively born black americans. Weird huh?

    Sharpton and Jackson are just race pimps. They only see opportunities to get themselves in the news and make money….if it is negative to the community they pimp, they stay quiet.

    I do not believe you have to be a minority to be the victim of racism.

  5. He needs to stay relevant in peoples minds, he is so cocky and damn flamboyant what other way can he draw a huge amount of attention to himself by not fighting?

    I can think of no other reason than that. Or he might just be flat out racist, who knows?

  6. Coming from a black man, what he said was stupid. It's true that whites spewing racist comments towards blacks in the media is considered far worse than when it's the other way around. However, the fact that these two boxers are two minorities plays into it being low key because not too many people care. If Floyd said stuff like that about whites it wouldn't have been under the radar.

  7. There are serious racial problems in this country, but white people are too afraid to confront them, because they dont want to be given the "racist" label. 90 percent of white, affluent, christian conservatives look at black people as poor, uneducated, lazy criminals, who feel entitled by our government to be given assistance with food, shelter, medical care, and anything else they may need. Let me be clear…THESE ARE NOT MY VIEWS. Thats just how people, especailly here in the south, think. Its this sort of generalization that is dangerous.

    there are definitely some people in this country who take advantage of the welfare system, both white and black. Personally,I dont think its fair for me to have to work to subsidize people who spit out kids, refuse to work and spend the little bit of money they have on weed or oxycontin. The problem here isnt racism, its generalization..Im sort of guilty of this too in a small way, for example, If i see a piss off a japanese dude, and they want to fight, i assume that they know karate. I guess what im saying is that there are definitely some white people that make us all look bad, and the same can be said about black people. People are people, and most people are selfish assholes, thats the world we live in

  8. i think rrod got this right though, there arent enough filipinos in this country to really cause a stir here, and gay people still dont count. Faggot is an insult that people can generally get away with as long as you are talking about a straight man. Remember sarah palin when she was talking about john edwards?

  9. I guarantee you this: had Floyd Mayweather gone on a racist rant against a white fighter it would have been all over FOX News. They love to cry black racism since it plays so well to the southern white conservatives that watch their channel.

    The problem isn't that he's allowed to get away with it because he's black. The problem is he's allowed to get away with it because Filipinos are such a small minority in this country. And unfortunately, unless they've got a show on Bravo, gay people are treated like 2nd class citizens in this supposedly "free" country as well. In this case, it's all about the targets he chose.

    In either case he's still a racist asshole and somebody should punch him in the face in that "non-sanctioned" way.

  10. i don't get it either. i was upset when i saw that video too because he should know better and i was thinking about that dr catching flak for saying what black men call each other. He's a dick and he's just trying to intimidate Manny into fighting him. It's like when Apollo was making fun of Rocky so he could have his rematch only much much worse.

  11. @Nightshade and Thundercracker

    Latinos and blacks are way more in to religion than whites.

    I disagree that he gets a pass because of the lack of Filipino population. Our justice dept let off that guy in voter intimidation charges. I think it's a double standard that most ppl like to pretend doesn't exist.

    This conversation got me thinking though. Whenever I go to a rural town in Louisiana I see considerably more interracial couples as opposed to when I'm in NOLA. You'd think the opposite based on generalizations. Things are different down here though. We have segregated churches and funeral homes.

  12. @smartguy

    Do you think Floyd would have gotten a pass if he spewed racist ignorance against whites?

  13. @Smartguy: I really don't see how religion plays into this discussion at all, other than to say that anyone who claims to be Christian and treats someone else in a racist way doesn't understand the teachings of their faith.

    But honestly, if he'd gone off on a white American fighter in the same way it would have been national news, especially in conservative circles. I mean, Glenn Beck can go on TV and call the President a racist simply for being black, so let's not fool ourselves into thinking actual racism aimed at a white man from a black man wouldn't have gotten a vicious response.

  14. yeah, but most informed americans are smart enough to know that both al sharpton and glenn beck are just clowns

  15. @Thunder: I wish I could agree with that sentiment. Unfortunately Glenn Beck's TV and radio ratings suggest that a sizable portion of the population hasn't gotten the memo.

  16. @Nightshade

    When you say conservative what exactly do you mean? In context I'm getting that you mean ppl who aren't liberal and claim to have faith. I define conservative as fiscally conservative. I mentioned religion based on the context I drew. If in error, my apologies. But southern white conservatives does carry a certain connotation with it. Just to play the advocate why would it be bad for Fox to show racism directed towards a Caucasian? Any other network would cover it if sides were reversed. I find that appalling.

    @RROD

    Yes I think he would have still got a pass.

  17. @smartguy

    im fiscally conservative, but i definitely do not consider myself a conservative, i suppose you are right in assuming that religion plays a big role in what i was referring to

  18. @Smartguy: Fact: the south consistently votes for conservatives and has a murky past with regard to race relations. I don't think having faith in one context or another has anything to do with it.

    Also, social conservatism is just as "conservative" as fiscal conservatism and has just as little to do with religion. Some people may hide their social conservatism behind their religious views, but the two are not mutually exclusive. You'll find plenty of atheists who oppose same sex marriage, they just don't have a holy book to hide behind.

  19. @Smartguy: About the small town/big city thing, consider this:

    Rural communities are smaller, and encourage more intermingling due to the fact that those societies are fairly close knit. Urban communities in many respects are still segregated. In most cases this segregation is due more to income than color, but the vast majority of an urban area's poor are usually minorities. Most schools are dominated by a singular population due to the fact that those communities are generally made up of one population. Thus, in rural areas it makes more sense that there would be more interracial coupling. Color usually has very little to do with it, it's all about what two people have in common and the rural background tends to lead to situations where people of tow different cultural backgrounds actually have quite a bit in common.

    I'm originally from a small town in CT, and due to the fact we had a graduating class of about 300 for the entire town, kids of all races and creeds were more or less accepted by the group as a whole. In fact there was more of a generational divide at my high school than a cultural one. About the time I became a senior, the freshman all started showing up with the "hip-hop" look with the baggy pants and what not. Even the black kids in my class were like "WTF is up with these freshmen?"

  20. @Nightshade

    Agreed on social conservatism/engineering. Btw, the south used to only vote for the Dixiecrats (democrats) who were very racist. Strom Thurmond was the last of them. Would you consider there such a thing as a black conservative?

    In November Joseph Cao will run for reelection in his district in NOLA. He's not expected to win because of his race, Asian. Vietnamese specifically. He is a republican and is expected not to win on that. He voted for healthcare, etc. They just want him out. He won 2 years ago because of the Jefferson trial. The district is primarily black. I think that is a racist stance by the voters in the district. He's done what they wanted but they don't want him.

  21. @Smartguy: Yeah, there are black conservatives, but they're certainly the vast minority.

    But political views are hardly ever defined by race, UNLESS one political party goes out of it's way to alienate a culture en mass, much like the Republicans tend to do either by opposing things like the Civil Rights Act or offering up divisive social policies like Same Sex Marriage Bans. That sort of stuff can tend to alienate people who might otherwise agree with some of the other policies that they could potentially offer up. But when your political platform tends to be noninclusive, the uninvited tend to cast their votes for the other guys.

    Also, I'm well aware of the Dixiecrats. But let's face it, when LBJ signed the Civil Rights Act he knew he was throwing away the south for the Democrats for at least a generation. Turns out it's been far longer than that. Since that day, the Republicans have owned the south. Especially the deep south.

    With regards to Cao, that's always going to be a hard district for a Republican to win. I mean, it's no different in Harlem where Charlie Wrangle has been there forever. He's gonna have to lose his job this time around because of the corruption charges (let's hope), but don't think that if a Republican wins that seat it's any more than a 1 term gig, regardless of their voting record. And honestly, there are Republican seats that are just as untenable for Democrats to hold onto should they "luck into" one due to a corruption scandal of some sort. Decades of political gerrymandering of the voting districts has made at least half of the seats in the House untouchable.

  22. In America… it truly is different depending on where you are. Here in California, the fact that 2 major minorities (Black and Hispanic) reside here in large numbers makes for complications from what I've noticed.The fact that everything is spread out from each other doesn't help either. My first assessment when I first moved was that it seemed like black people didn't like Mexicans and Mexicans didn't like black people so both of them could understand if white people didn't like either of them. This made me nauseous.

    In Pittsburgh and urban northeast, it wasn't like this. If I was in a car full of white people and someone dropped an N-bomb, the whole carload would scold the peckerwood for being a racist. I mainly only heard racist comments amongst friends who were just messing with each other or people being racist for some lame ass social statement (skinheads and overly militant black people). It wasn't half as prevalent as it is here in CA.

    The South truly is the worst I've witnessed. People there just seem stuck in old customs. I understand the value of tradition and all… but COME ON! If we're gonna succeed as a society, this racism thing has to go. Get a grip.

    The Northwest and the Midwest may actually be the worst because… well… there are no black people there. People are afraid of what they don't know. This is the only valid argument I could make for the media helping this along because when you look at popular (keyword popular) media from black artists and entertainers, it can come across to someone who doesn't know better as their only interactions with people of another race. Other than that, I refuse to believe that people don't make up their own minds.

    @ the original question

    Beats the hell out of me. But I do notice that Asians tend to not let racism offend them in alot of cases. I respect that. The best way to not let it get to you is to not let it get to you.

  23. @ Smartguy & Nightshade

    My boss pimps a bumper sticker that says "MLK was a Republican: Support Black Republicans".

  24. @Nightshade
    Ok next question, would voting out Cao be considered racist? I think ppl who vote because of race is a racist tactic. The "I voted for Obama or Rangel because he is black" and "I'm not voting for Obama or Rangel because they are black" are equally repugnant.

  25. @Smartguy: I agree. But good luck finding a primarily white House district with a black Representative either. It goes both ways all the time. It's just done quietly in most cases.

  26. That being said, if they're voting him out because he's not black, then yes that's racist. If they're voting him out because he's a Republican and they want someone who better represents their views, it's not.

  27. @Nightshade
    He's a republican who voted for their behalf. Every big bill he voted for his district. Status quo republicans don't like him. It's a shame that they will get rid of him. It was surprising how many clergy in the area petitioned to get him recalled and held fundraisers for Jefferson.

  28. @Smartguy: I won't pretend to know the particulars since it's not my district. But I can look around and see the same things here. I live in a primarily white, conservative, Morman district. My Rep is Jeff Flake, a white conservative Mormon. Funny how it all works out that way.

  29. @Nightshade
    Trust me I understand. I used to be the minority in NOLA though. Very disparaging.

    At least football starts tonight.

  30. @Smartguy: Hopefully my G-Men can do your Aint's a solid against the Panthers this Sunday. I'm hoping we get the 2008 version that ran for 300+ yards against Carolina and not the 2009 version that laid down that effortless performance for them last season.

  31. @Nightshade
    Carolina will be rough with the run game. Should do fine as long as the Giants don't give up and get dominated :)

  32. @RROD #6

    I would agree that that is a part of it, both of them being two low key minorities.

    @N8R/Ray/all

    I think it is still acceptable to racist towards Asians. Prime example is Ken Jeong, who I have mentioned here before, from The Hangover. Every time I see him on tv I can't help but feel like he is the butt of the joke each time. Or that he has to make fun of himself and do the ridiculous stunts that no one else would do to get laughs, and part of the reasons he gets more laughs is because he is a non-white person in a stupid position. At some awards show within the past several months he was on stage being dragged around in a pink fairy costume rigged up to a pulley system being flown around and singing while everyone else on stage was white and well dressed. It is those types of situations that we still have shown to us that I think make this type of action that we are discussing here today acceptable in the eyes of many here in America.

  33. The Giant have 8 guys on the D-line that could start (who should be healthier this year), and 2 legit safeties now that Phillips is back and Rolle came on board. Dion Grant gives them a legit backup at the position as well. My concern is at LB. I'm not convinced Jonathon Goff is the answer at MLB, Clint Sintim is young and untested (if he doesn't lose the job to Keith Bullock), & Michael Boley regressed last year when he wasn't hurt.

    The offense will be fine. This team's better than a lot of people think it is. They had a ton of key injuries on defense last year. They should be competitive this year. They should at least be better than either Washington or Philly, and I'm still not convinced that Tony Romo is anything but a Fantasy QB who chokes when it counts.

  34. Speaking of the Cowboys, Bill Simmons has a fantastic rant about them today:

    http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=s

    "Let's end on a Cowboys rant. The Cowboys remind me of the Kardashians in that their strongest talent is a relentless ability to remain relevant. Much like the Kardashians successfully created the illusion that they should be famous, the Cowboys successfully created the illusion that they should be a Super Bowl contender. And they didn't even have to leak a sex tape to do it. You know what Dallas' record has been since 2000? 82-78. You know how many playoff games it has won over that stretch? One. That's right … one more playoff win than Buffalo and Detroit."

    "As with the Kardashians, it's all about the packaging. We consider Tony Romo an elite QB because he dates celebrities and puts up big fantasy numbers; so what if he freezes in big games? We consider Jerry Jones an elite owner because he splurged on a magnificent stadium and matched wits with Ari Gold; so what if he never built a Super Bowl team without Jimmy Johnson? Dez Bryant has been reinvented as the steal of the 2010 draft based on a bunch of preseason practices that nobody saw; so what if half the league passed on him because teams thought he was a head case? Most fans consider the Dallas offense as "elite" because it has a few high fantasy picks; so what if they don't have a single elite offensive lineman? Every Cowboys Super Bowl pick includes the caveat, "They're returning 20 of 22 starters from last year"; so what if it means they're returning 20 of the 22 starters the Vikings trounced in January by 31 points?"

    "Even the Kardashians thing makes more sense to me. They learned all their tricks from Paris Hilton; there are three of them; they have a catchy name; they don't say anything controversial or incriminating; they only date celebrities, athletes and reality-TV-ready degenerates; and Kim (their fearless leader) is the perfect goddess for her time: a multi-new-media icon (Internet, reality TV and Us Weekly) with a definite hook (her butt), a tawdry past (her sex tape) that wasn't really all that tawdry (the camerawork was bad, and you could barely see anything) and no discernible talent whatsoever (which doesn't matter, because you don't need talent to be famous in 2010). That smoke-and-mirrors routine should work in pop culture. In football? No. And yet, somehow, the Dallas Cowboys have the fourth-best odds to win this year's Super Bowl (8-1). I give up."

  35. @tokz: Transcribe? Bah, you give me too much credit. Copy & paste my friend….copy & paste.

  36. Who cares who he picked? Skip Bayless is awful. He hates everything. You could tell him the sky is blue and he'll go on a 5 minute rant about why he hates the color blue. 1st and 10 is about the worst thing on ESPN television every day.

  37. @nightshade

    ha! it's true about skip bayless he does hate everything. i remember reading his articles in the Chicago Tribune. Rick Bayless has always been my favorite Bayless. I wonder if Skip even hates his brother's cooking?? hmmm.

  38. @ BSU

    The phenomenon you just described is called minstrelsy. If you look around, minstrelsy is all over the television, especially in comedies. It goes for every race.

    White people have rednecks to elude to when it comes to minstrelsy.

  39. @Redtailman: No, some of them love everything, which is just as obnoxious.

    BTW, I know the guy had a stroke and is probably lucky to be alive, never mind that he went back and played football afterwards…..but Tedi Bruschi is an awful commentator.

  40. @ another Steeler prediction I made that came true

    So, for the first 4 weeks our number 3 QB is…. Antwaan Randle El. I called this, and it came to be, but here's where it gets interesting…

    I have Randle El as a receiver on my fantasy team. He rolls with the Shake Weights. If he ends up getting QB stats during these 4 weeks (though unlikely), will I get those points?

    What if he throws a touchdown pass in a gadget play like he did in Super Bowl XL?

  41. @N8R: I've done Fantasy Football on ESPN before. It should count. All offensive stats count for players on your roster. That's why RB's get receiving yards and WR's can get Rushing yards from end-arounds. Also why Ronnie Brown is worth more as a fantasy option since he throws from the Wildcat sometimes.

  42. Top 5 worse sports commentators

    Thom Brenaham

    Chris Berman

    Keith Overbite

    Trey Wingo

    Cris Carter

    Anyone want to add on?

  43. @n8r

    hey! i called Randle-El! you said Ward and i said not to forget about Randle El.

    All this El talk makes me want to read my Superman last family of Krypton comic.

  44. If I ever saw Stuart Scott and Dion Sanders on the same pregame or postgame show for an extended period of time, I'd probably stab my eye out with a #2 pencil.

  45. @Tokz: Joe Buck is a classic example of a good Baseball announcer who cannot do Football. I still can forgive him for no selling that helmet catch in the Super Bowl. Gus Johnson would have gone so crazy that he would have had a stroke on the air.

  46. @nightshade

    he's an okay baseball announcer. i just hate that he pimps himself out Fox to do every major sporting event they carry. it's like come dude stick with what your somewhat good at.

  47. @ tokz

    I could have sworn it was the other way around.

    It doesn't matter though. I had always figured that if we were gonna use one of our receivers as a QB, my first choice would be Randle El. I might have said "Ward can do it too" or something like that, but Randle El would make more sense.

    I think he's a better passer than Ward.

  48. @N8R: My wife's a Steelers fan and she couldn't stand Myron Cope. Her father used to turn on the radio and turn off the volume on the TV when watching the games, and she was convinced that she might have preferred listening to someone repeatedly dragging their nails over a chalkboard. She also says it's a wonder she likes football at all after being subjected to that as a kid.

  49. @n8r

    i really don't care who said. i'm hopped up on coffee. i just felt like busting your balls. I wish the Bears would've gotten Randle El the first time he left the Steelers

  50. As a lifelong Yankees fan, let me add this one to the mix: John Sterling is horrendous. but as a lifelong Yankees fan, we've come to expect horrific local announcers after decades of Phil Rizzuto doing 6 innings of birthdays and occasionally going crazy over a fly ball to 2B that he thought was gonna clear the facade in right.

  51. @ Nightshade

    I always turned on the radio and turned the TV down. Cope was the man (RIP).

    @ tokz

    I'm not sure how much of an impact Randle El would make on any other team. Maybe one of the Wildcat teams… but I don't know if the Bears could or could of handled his playing style.

    I actually have his autograph on my acoustic bass case. We did a photo shoot ad for a company in Pittsburgh called Eyetique that placed ads with "local Pittsburgh celebrities" wearing their sunglasses and stuff (why they called us, I'll never know… but the shoot payed well for standing around and wearing sunglasses).

    Anyway, after they took our pics, the next person up was Randle El (the year before they won Super Bowl XL). He saw my Steelers bumper sticker on my case and offered to sign it… so I let him sign it.

    Cool guy.

  52. @n8r

    you're probably right. i just love Chicago players. Harvey Illionois is "home" to a lot of good players and Thorton high school produces some talent for the NBA and NFL but if i grew up in Harvey i would do anything to get out of there too.

  53. Interesting (and telling) poll on ESPN.com today asking which conference will win the BCS Championship this year. The options were Big Ten, Big 12, SEC & Other. Ironically, the Southeast all voted for the SEC, the Midwest all voted for the Big 10, Texas and the 3 states right above it all voted for the Big 12, and everyone west of Nebraska voted for "other," which I'm assuming means Pac 10 or Boise State. The Northeast, the only area of the country without a legitimate college conference to it's name all voted for the SEC.

  54. @tokz: Hey, Vermont voted for other! But those people just like to be different; I mean, they routinely put Bernie Sanders in the Senate. He's listed as an Independent, but ask him point blank and even he'll tell you he's a Socialist.

  55. I think SEC is a legit vote since they have won it the last couple of years. Otherwise I'm gonna pull for Boise State this year. I like Nick Saban…but I just can't pull for Bama.

    Worst ever is a close tie between Joe Buck, Chris Berman and I hate to say it, but most women sportscasters…especially those damn sideline reporters. I DON'T CARE WHAT THEIR MOMMAS TOLD THEM WHEN THEY FELL DOWN AS A KID!!

    F U Pam Oliver.

  56. Well Wisconsin is one of them but Vermont also produces cheese.

    i learned that from Thank you for Smoking. if you havent seen it, it's a pretty good movie.

  57. I'd like to think her being hit by a professional boxer (best in the world :) ) would be obvious.

    Kinda like how Jenna Jameson said Tito Ortiz roughed her up (violently, head out the gutter) then she said he didn't once no bruises or anything could be found.

  58. @n8r

    that is another one of their exports. i looked it up on wikipedia to make sure that thank you for smoking was right about Vermont and cheese. Dairy farming seems to be their primary agricultural money maker.

  59. @Tokz and Nightshade

    Having previously lived in Wisconsin and being right down the road from a cheese curd factory (I mean the good kind, not what you get at a state or county fair) and also living on a dairy farm…I can tell you that Wisconsin produces the best dairy products in the world.

  60. Hey, anyone want into a Pigskin Pick'em? I can set one up and we can all see who's better at picking games. All for fun of course (and bragging rights). If you're interested shoot me an email today and I'll send you an invite. Gotta do it today before the 1st game starts though.

    mcesca42@hotmail.com

  61. added buys for when they fight – -and they will.

    Dr. Laura parallel doesn't really hold up. People pay her to speak on quasi-moral and social issues. I may pay to see Mayweather do many things, but paying for his opinion isn't one of them. There is certainly some truth to your larger point about doublestandards, but using boxing to elucidate that point can never work for me — boxing remains a world apart. It's like using the gang wars storyline of the 90s as evidence of race relations between Boricuas and Canadians.

  62. @Nightshade

    About to go look for it now then.

    @N8

    Minstrelsy might go for every race, even though I am not a fan of it for any race, but I still think it is a little above and beyond what it should be in the specific case I mentioned. Also, minstrel shows from early 1900's were deemed horribly offensive long ago when white actors were the only ones allowed on stage.

    It is amazing for how far we have come, how little we have really traveled.

  63. @ BSU

    You may surprised of the modern examples of minstrelsy you are a fan of. Watch Chappelle's Show a little more closely. Carlos Mencia… need I say more. The Rush Hour movies… the list goes on.

    Spike Lee made an excellent movie a while ago called Bamboozled that takes on the subject.

  64. @N8

    You are right Chappalle's Show is one example that you can see minstrelsy in, but I don't think the intent is the same as in other examples. I think he is more intelligent than most comedians when it comes to racism, and Carlos Mencia is an example of a stupid comedian who uses racism as a topic in his show/standup, etc.

    It has been a while since I have seen the Rush Hour movies, but I seem to me that they portray characters in a very stereotypical way, which I am not a fan of at all.

    I have seen Bamboozled at the video store in passing, I might have to actually pick it up and watch it one of these days though now that I know what it is about.

    Also, no matter what the answers are that anybody comes up with concerning these issues I do not believe that they will veer be solved or fixed. There will always be somebody else who doesn't care at all or who decides to disagree with whatever any controversial issue is being discussed.

  65. Running out of time to get in on the Pigskin Pick'em. Sure I prolly should have thought of this BEFORE late this afternoon, but the 1st game starts in less than an hour. So if you wanna get in and pick all the NFL games this season for fun and bragging rights, shoot me an email at mcesca42@hotmail.com and I'll send you an invite.

  66. man that was a good cowboys rant, im putting that in my fantasy league, as there are ALWAYS 3 or 4 proud cowboys fans in every fantasy league

  67. @tokz: yeah, I feel like it's more challenging to do a point spread pick'em than just asking people who's gonna win a match up between the Patriots and the Browns. I mean, anyone can get that one right baring a miracle.

  68. I was rather upset with myself, I had moved Devery Henderson to Start but didn't submit it. Next time, I'll know better :'(

  69. @Smartguy: I expected the Vikings to lose that one honestly, but the -6.5 spread was a bit absurd. That being said, they're finishing 2nd in that division this year.

  70. Awww,

    I can't believe I missed out on the racial/political discussion. Well, it's probably for the best since I could probably write a whole book on the subject. Forget about Mayweather assholic comments, Mr. Padilla. Instead focus on how classy it made Pacquiao look for not sinking to that level.

    -M

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