Warning: this may be offensive to some.
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Michael Richards Spews Racial Slurs at Hecklers
- Thread starter EagerBeaver
- Start date
Yeah totally uncalled for...
Yet when black comedians make fun of other ethnic groups it is called comedy. When the tables are turned it is called racism.
Hmmmm.. just goes to show that an eye for an eye does make the world go blind.
Yet when black comedians make fun of other ethnic groups it is called comedy. When the tables are turned it is called racism.
Hmmmm.. just goes to show that an eye for an eye does make the world go blind.
He did not spew many racial slurrs at all. He just said nigger a few times and made references to lynching. The black guys heckled him. He antiheckled them, (well maybe)
No apologies are due to them.
Perhaps Michael should have asked the club management to simply expell the hecklers and give them their money back
The apologies are due to the faint hearted offendable rest of the audience.
No apologies are due to them.
Perhaps Michael should have asked the club management to simply expell the hecklers and give them their money back
The apologies are due to the faint hearted offendable rest of the audience.
the main problem is that there was no humor involved. If it had been done in a funny way, like perhaps how someone fast on their feet like Robin Williams would have handled it, then the audience would have laughed and it would have been nothing. You can bet that some comedian/comedienne says the n-word every single day of the week... He was visibly disturbed, which made everyone uncomfortable and erased all chances for people to "laugh it off"... Sad mistake, but I think this one will wash under the bridge a lot faster than the Mel Gibson episode. Richards does not seem like as much of an ignorant drunken bigot... Just a guy who had a really bad day and reacted in the wrong way, trying to be funny and failing miserably...
DITD,
I agree, the hecklers were on target. Richards excelled in the Kramer role, but he is out of his element doing stand up. He's just got name recognition, but that does not mean he has the talent for that medium.
I agree, the hecklers were on target. Richards excelled in the Kramer role, but he is out of his element doing stand up. He's just got name recognition, but that does not mean he has the talent for that medium.
If the objective was to shout down the hecklers, he could have used any number of insults which were non-racial.
The hecklers' original comments were non-racial; Richards introduced the racial aspect.
By degrading the exchange to racial slurs, he brought civilized society to a primal level which we should have passed long ago.
The hecklers' original comments were non-racial; Richards introduced the racial aspect.
By degrading the exchange to racial slurs, he brought civilized society to a primal level which we should have passed long ago.
Richards appeared via satellite on Letterman Monday night and apologised and talked about how terrible he felt. I would have respected him more if he said nothing. Either behave properly in the first place or stand by your words and actions but don't do something wrong and then wimp out by saying "I'm not like that". Bullshit - the true Michael Richards came out on stage so he should at least be a man and say "love me or hate me but that's who I am and I stand by it". If you try to wimp out of what you said then you shouldn't have said it in the first place! At least Mel Gibson had the excuse that he was drunk.
While a lot of blacks use the N-word, check out Russell Simmons Def Comedy Jam on HBO and you'll be shocked at how much they drop the N-bomb, the explanation as given to me by several people of color, and from some interviews with notable black celebrities, is that they don't view it as derogatory amongst themselves. The word "themselves" however doesn't apply to all black people since many of them still abhor the word, see Bill Cosby. However, within the Black culture there has been for a while now, a large number who use the word as a term of general recognition which expresses the exclusive "bond" amongst them much the way surfers might call each other "Dude."
This confuses many white people who don't understand the context in which black people use the word. It just seems crazy to them that black people would use a word which signifies so much hatred towards their race and serves as a reminder of centuries of slavery/bigotry to us. Other white folks wonder why they can't then use the word right along with them, especially if there is a friendship between them. While I have heard of a few instances of blacks allowing whites to use the word in that familiar sense it is largely considered a no-no for whites to use it and I've seen first hand the results of white, Eminem wanna be gangstas trying to use the term as if they were black themselves, its quite a bloody mess. I heard one black comedian explain it by saying "Don't bother asking why, its just the way it is." Without coming to a conclusion as to all the reasons why, I think it suffices to say that there are probably several reasons why they use it but don't want us too.
In Richards' case while I found his comments offensive, I think he resorted to them because he simply couldn't handle his emotions the way a great comedian should be able to. Richards was simply ill prepared for the situation and thats quite troubling since anyone pursuing a career in stand up should have been aware that hecklers do exist. However, I also found the recording of the incident to be troubling as to the response he got from the hecklers.
They can clearly be heard on the tape calling him a "Cracker Ass cracker" in addition to something else about being "...white...". My own opinion of the matter is that it is no more acceptable for them to respond with racist remarks than it was for Richards to do so. Ideally you want to rise above situations like this, not jump in the toilet with them.
Before sinking into grade school logic like "he said it first" we should ask ourselves, does someone else saying something offensive require an equally offensive response back? Does it make anything any better? Does it solve the problem? I think not. My own opinion of the matter is that Richards was wrong to say what he said but he was provoked by those people and no one should ever assume that when you intentionally get on someones nerves that they will react civilly. It takes a tremendous amount of self control to ignore a Douche bag who won't stop hounding us, let alone be civil with them!
Thats not to say that "they had it coming" either, just that they did something they knew was irritating and they got a response they weren't prepared for. Its much like walking into a bar and seeing someone you don't know who is singing karaoke and telling them that they suck only to realize that they are a street brawler as they come flying off the stage to knock your teeth out. In short, it doesn't pay to be a prick to people you know nothing about and if you choose to do so then you invite an uncertain response, whether right or wrong, which could range from laughter to a kick in the throat.
I believe the best response in this situation would have been to complain to the management, walk out, and alert the press as to Richards going off the deep end. To sit there and make racially insulting remarks of their own accomplished nothing other than to show that there is still a racial divide amongst many Blacks and Whites in America who we would never guess held those kinds of thoughts in their heads only to realize it when there is a confrontation between them and people of a different skin color/religion/gender/sexual orientation when inflamed emotions bring all that garbage out.
I don't know if Richards is a racist or just totally lost his mind for a minute but its sad that he resorted to racial terms to deal with the issue, what if the hecklers were white? Would he have called them "honkys" or "crackers"? I see people every day however who are just like this, always friendly and polite to "different" people but as soon as they are alone amongst their "own kind" they think nothing of letting epithets fly under the guise of a "joke" or "just guys talking" and when questioned about it respond they "don't mean anything by it." The thing about that kind of thinking is that its a slippery slope which once you start going down is hard to stop and eventually will end up embarassing a lot of people.
This confuses many white people who don't understand the context in which black people use the word. It just seems crazy to them that black people would use a word which signifies so much hatred towards their race and serves as a reminder of centuries of slavery/bigotry to us. Other white folks wonder why they can't then use the word right along with them, especially if there is a friendship between them. While I have heard of a few instances of blacks allowing whites to use the word in that familiar sense it is largely considered a no-no for whites to use it and I've seen first hand the results of white, Eminem wanna be gangstas trying to use the term as if they were black themselves, its quite a bloody mess. I heard one black comedian explain it by saying "Don't bother asking why, its just the way it is." Without coming to a conclusion as to all the reasons why, I think it suffices to say that there are probably several reasons why they use it but don't want us too.
In Richards' case while I found his comments offensive, I think he resorted to them because he simply couldn't handle his emotions the way a great comedian should be able to. Richards was simply ill prepared for the situation and thats quite troubling since anyone pursuing a career in stand up should have been aware that hecklers do exist. However, I also found the recording of the incident to be troubling as to the response he got from the hecklers.
They can clearly be heard on the tape calling him a "Cracker Ass cracker" in addition to something else about being "...white...". My own opinion of the matter is that it is no more acceptable for them to respond with racist remarks than it was for Richards to do so. Ideally you want to rise above situations like this, not jump in the toilet with them.
Before sinking into grade school logic like "he said it first" we should ask ourselves, does someone else saying something offensive require an equally offensive response back? Does it make anything any better? Does it solve the problem? I think not. My own opinion of the matter is that Richards was wrong to say what he said but he was provoked by those people and no one should ever assume that when you intentionally get on someones nerves that they will react civilly. It takes a tremendous amount of self control to ignore a Douche bag who won't stop hounding us, let alone be civil with them!
Thats not to say that "they had it coming" either, just that they did something they knew was irritating and they got a response they weren't prepared for. Its much like walking into a bar and seeing someone you don't know who is singing karaoke and telling them that they suck only to realize that they are a street brawler as they come flying off the stage to knock your teeth out. In short, it doesn't pay to be a prick to people you know nothing about and if you choose to do so then you invite an uncertain response, whether right or wrong, which could range from laughter to a kick in the throat.
I believe the best response in this situation would have been to complain to the management, walk out, and alert the press as to Richards going off the deep end. To sit there and make racially insulting remarks of their own accomplished nothing other than to show that there is still a racial divide amongst many Blacks and Whites in America who we would never guess held those kinds of thoughts in their heads only to realize it when there is a confrontation between them and people of a different skin color/religion/gender/sexual orientation when inflamed emotions bring all that garbage out.
I don't know if Richards is a racist or just totally lost his mind for a minute but its sad that he resorted to racial terms to deal with the issue, what if the hecklers were white? Would he have called them "honkys" or "crackers"? I see people every day however who are just like this, always friendly and polite to "different" people but as soon as they are alone amongst their "own kind" they think nothing of letting epithets fly under the guise of a "joke" or "just guys talking" and when questioned about it respond they "don't mean anything by it." The thing about that kind of thinking is that its a slippery slope which once you start going down is hard to stop and eventually will end up embarassing a lot of people.
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The plot thickens....
The black dudes don't want an apology.... They just want $$$$
That's why they hired the famous leech, ops i meant 'laywer' Gloria Allred to extract money from Richards.
Do you know what?
The next time I hear Chris Rock say " Cracker ass Cracker" (ie white people) , I a suing his black A$$ !
The black dudes don't want an apology.... They just want $$$$
That's why they hired the famous leech, ops i meant 'laywer' Gloria Allred to extract money from Richards.
Do you know what?
The next time I hear Chris Rock say " Cracker ass Cracker" (ie white people) , I a suing his black A$$ !
Raver you can still enjoy Seinfeld. Here's a secret: Michael Richards is an actor playing the part of Cosmo Kramer. Guess what? You can like the show without liking the man. I don't like Bono but there are 4 or 5 U2 songs that I enjoy. For that matter I don't like my butcher but he sells good cuts of meat.
No surprise centaurus. Everything's about money especially in litigation-crazy USA. What a freakin joke. Richards may have done something stupid and committed career suicide but why should he have to pay even a penny to clowns. First, they started the war of words (stupid words) and second, he made some offensive comments but big deal. We have all given and received many offensive comments in our lives. What a crock of horseshit. People who institute frivolous and money hungry lawsuits like this should be taught a lesson (heavy fine or jail time).
Yeah, I agree. The lawsuits from the black men just discredit them entirely.
And it doesn't surprise me that ambulance chaser Gloria Alred decides to take their case and make a legal matter out of Richards' ugly, yet verbal, faux pas.
BTW, Alred does dress nice though. She should donate her wardrobe to some of the SPs we see.
And it doesn't surprise me that ambulance chaser Gloria Alred decides to take their case and make a legal matter out of Richards' ugly, yet verbal, faux pas.
BTW, Alred does dress nice though. She should donate her wardrobe to some of the SPs we see.
Imus in the Morning
MSNBC announced today that it will drop its simulcast of the "Imus in the Morning" radio program, responding to growing outrage about the radio host's racial slur against the Rutgers women's basketball team.
Talk-show host Don Imus triggered the uproar on his April 4 show, when he referred to the mostly black Rutgers women's basketball team as "nappy-headed hos". His comments have been widely denounced by civil rights and women's groups.
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF9BjB7Bzr0
MSNBC announced today that it will drop its simulcast of the "Imus in the Morning" radio program, responding to growing outrage about the radio host's racial slur against the Rutgers women's basketball team.
Talk-show host Don Imus triggered the uproar on his April 4 show, when he referred to the mostly black Rutgers women's basketball team as "nappy-headed hos". His comments have been widely denounced by civil rights and women's groups.
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF9BjB7Bzr0
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