The reaction of this particular chapter of the NAACP was incredibly stupid, careless, and just doesn't seem well thought out. What is even more stupid and less well thought out is when someone looks at this incident and tries to discredit all of the good and heroic actions of the NAACP as a whole
But that's my point, the whole PC thing is semantics. It's putting the emphasis on words rather than actually on acts of discrimination. It's reading intent into the choice of words someone uses because it MIGHT be interpreted one way or another. It attacks people who in many cases are not even trying to offend anyone and may not actually be biased. I think a good test of whether something is over the line is that it won't just offend the group who's sensitivities are involved, but it will rally a lot of other people or at the very least raise the eyebrows of many. In other words, common sense. And I think many many of the things that get said and cause a reaction of "that's racist - fire the guy" is rather innoculent. Why do I feel this way? Here is the reason...this is what galvanized me into being anti-PC. I think this was a travesty of justice and shows how people's over-sensitivities and unjustly cause grief to others: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_buffalo_incident
I couldn't tell you why people are so anti-PC. You're guess is as good as mine! I don't think I normally post in the PC threads, so if you see me in some other PC threads, poke me. (Excluding the Draw Muhammad Day thread, I'm still a believer in that, but not to get off tangent...) I first posted this, because it was such a completely over the top idiotic abuse of power that could have come from a parody show. Seriously, this guy has lost it! <object width="640" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/R0P_XiYZl9k&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/R0P_XiYZl9k&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="385"></embed></object> The guy ignores the context of the card being about solar systems and just cries wolf to get his 5 minutes of TV time. (I don't have a problem with NAACP, I have a problem with Leon Jenkins, President of NAACP LA.)
black /blæk/ Show Spelled [blak] Show IPA adjective, -er, -est, noun, verb, adverb –adjective 1. lacking hue and brightness; absorbing light without reflecting any of the rays composing it. 2. characterized by absence of light; enveloped in darkness: a black night.
It scares me that there are some people who actually think this way. How does any intelligent, self-respecting person not understand how destructive and unproductive PC can be?
You already know the answer - it's divisive and usually unnecessary. But you believe it's a higher form of living or something, am I right? Double standard warning.
What a freaking moron. When this guy walks into a room completely devoid of light, does he say to himself, "it's pitch white in here"?
I think it's kind of a power trip for this organization. They love to call out people for being racist, threaten to hold protest, just so they can have them kiss their ass and apologize. Then after that they get to lecture them. If Hallmark would have stood up to this group I would have went out and bought 10 of these cards just to show the NAACP that insignificant protest can backfire on them.
On the surface, I could see why you say it sounds like a double standard. But I'm making a distinction. People who cry racism feel they are being directly attacked. However, the anti-PC people who complain about people who complain about racism seem often are coming from a position of ignorance and/or racism. That is my distinction that I'm worried about. NOT everybody ...but many people do. Not that this is odd ...but now people pat themselves on the back about being anti-PC and I see it as a slipperly slope issue. So for the anti-PC crowd, you kind of give the racist/ignorant people an excuse to keep on being racist and ignorant. ...and since being anti-PC serves no real purpose 9/10 times, I think it's a counter productive stance for people to take. If I thought being anti-PC would/could result in some sort of meaningful change (even if I didn't agree with it) then fine, but being anti-PC does nothing but give people a platform to b**** about silly things thereby empowering the idgits of the world in justifying their ignorant world views. I've said my peice ...and I realize most people don't like hearing my message probably because deep down you know I'm right but nobody has ever challenged you on it before. I don't think I have any more to add on it so I'm done. Carry on complaining about Hallmark and black holes. lol
I think there is a distinction between pointing out racism and being PC. Often when people point out racism, rather than deal with the issue folks will just accuse them of being overly PC. That's a problem. I'm all in favor of calling out racism. I'm not in favor of PC. This NAACP thing is a prime example of PC. "Black Holes" has never been nor was it intended in this case to demean, patronize, mock, or even relate to race at all. Shame on Hallmark for caving in. PC leads to this kind of censorship, and denial of history. Just look at the efforts to ban Mark Twain books because of a character that was called N-word Jim. The meaning of the story was against racism, and was the first time main stream literature in the US showed a black person has human, worthy of friendship, sympathy and was revolutionary at the time. It used to be banned by racists for that reason. But PC efforts swung the other way. Pointing out racism is never wrong, and doesn't really fall under PC. Though sometimes some people would try and muddy the waters
