Agreed. You can't say anything about blacks today that is even remotely racist without the media exploding. People aren't even intentionally saying anything racist or even cognizant that it could be racist. It's as if the hyper sensitivity of today is to make up for the past. I love what Kobe said in a recent interview, something along the lines of "you expect me to jump to someone's defense just because they're black?".
Probably the first time I had any respect for Kobe for taking such a stance on the Trayvon case. That was soon alleviated when he quickly changed his stance due to the overwhelming response.
The definition of analogous does not mean the same. Just because Robinson faced overt racism does not somehow diminish what Lin faced. Does Robinson's experiences have to be the threshold for racism? By your logic, then Robinson must nowhere compare to Frederick Douglass, because the latter faced far more overt racism? I did not make a judgement on who faced racism. I rather simply stated a logical assertion that the two cases are analogous. Both are path-blazers and that's why they are celebrated.
Did you also read the article by some hack named Jerome Whitlock or something bashing Kobe for his stance because he grew up in a wealthy household? As if being raised by 2 parents in a nice home makes you less black than other NBA players who grew up in the hood.
The two are NOT analogous. At all. The fact that some of you continue attempting to draw some parallel between Jackie Robinson and any athlete who is one of the first of his/her background in a professional sport today is totally preposterous and utterly offensive. I've said it multiple times and will continue to do so -- as long as Lin can step on the court and play without having objects thrown at his head or racial slurs hurled his way all game with the tacit approval of the league, as long as he can leave a game and eat in the same restaurants / piss in the same bathrooms/ sleep in the same hotels as the rest of his teammates, as long as opposing teams and his own teammates do not refuse to play because he is Asian -- his story is NOT analogous to Jackie Robinson's. At all. And no, Jackie Robinson's plight is not analogous to that of Frederick Douglass, who was born a slave and risked his life as an abolitionist during a time when most of the world assumed black people did not possess the intellectual wherewithal to function as free citizens. Based on a lot of what I've read on this board today, I'm sure many of you will just write this off as Angry Black Woman being overly sensitive, and that's OK with me.
This reminds me of some teenagers in their rebellious period saying they are the unluckiest people on Earth, how they suffer worse than anyone else, how no one understands their pain. However, by your logic, just because there are literally billions of people more underprivileged and living in worse conditions, doesn't mean you should tell the teenagers that what they are going through isn't as dreadful as they make it out to be.
This thread belongs in the DND... it has strayed far from the original original premise. There's a subforum on CF for talking about this stuff that I'm sure a lot of you will enjoy what goes on there. This is not the right place to be doing it:
Just your typical LoF blaming racism again and also making a ridiculous comment that Lin has had to endure more hardships than any player.
Very well spoken. Saved me the trouble of responding. And no, I'm not black and had not concluded you were from your statement.
It's become very obvious race is the reason Lin is in the NBA. The whole Asian who went to Harvard must have a high IQ thing has backfired on the court, and sensitive Asian males trying to live through him have lost their sanity as a result. Again, Ramon sessions and Darren collison had much more impressive runs for a longer period of time but being black worked against them. Debates on Lin are a good median to test the sanity and intelligence of those on this board.
I explicitly am not arguing on how good Lin is vs. Robinson. In fact, I conceded that Lin is an average player. That is not where I said they were analogous. I'm not arguing against anyone saying "Lin's not worth his contract" or "Lin is sucking it up." Those are valid, basketball arguments to make. I am specifically arguing against the "Lin's race helped more than hurt because he got payed for it." In order to get paid, Lin had to first climb into the NBA as a minority. People are arguing that the result (that he got paid) somehow made the process easier (that he was undrafted and worked his ass off to overcome stereotypes). That's like arguing Barack Obama's race must be a net positive because he's president, even though he faced discrimination along the way. Can you see how that excites my puzzlement? On the point about Yao. Why is it that only for Yao and Lin there are LOFs and YOFs? I don't think everything was rainbows and kisses for Yao. http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showthread.php?t=243603
Okay, so your definition of analogous = same. That's fine, we can agree to disagree on this. My point on analog is that they are all celebrated for being path-blazers. It's valid if you want to argue about which one made the bigger impact, but I'm not sure that's in your hands. If Asian Americans are inspired in the same way by Lin as African Americans are by the heroes of the civil rights movement, who are we to judge?
Convenient cop out to call anyone who disagrees with you a LOF. I'll be the first to recognize Lin has flaws to his game, just like how Tebow has flaws to his game, so I see how he can be a polarizing player. I've been a Rockets fan long before Lin became a Rocket, so it's pretty annoying how "LOF" is thrown around this board akin to a double-sided derogatory slur, a slight to the player and the fan. The fact of the matter is, you don't really have an argument so your response to anyone who disagrees with you is to question the legitimacy of their "fanhood", which apparently is held at the highest regard in this 'holier-than-thou' atmosphere at this message board. What you're saying when you say about Lin's primary reason for success or fame is his race, is like saying that black kid studying at Harvard or Yale only made it there because of Affirmative Action. Doesn't sound so nice does it? The implication is unfair because it discounts the hardwork and personal drive it required to get there, not to mention the natural obstacles they had to overcome.
