The Walkman, Imus, Racism, and My Being an Insensative Smart Ass White Guy

After writing a piece about the "Imus" incident, I have sought
the opinions of two of my African American friends. One of them who
wishes to remain unidentified said to me "Norman, you just don't
understand what this means to Black people." He is right, and
understanding in my brain means little to nothing compared to what he
feels about this in his soul.

Much of "comedy" offends someone. If you are the someone, don't watch or listen.

I have heard Imus denigrate Jews, Catholics, overweight people and a
broad variety of other available minorities. I do not like everything
he says, and in so many areas of life, they were not designed for me to
like them all. He is an opinionated pain in the ass, and you never know
what he will say or do at any moment, which is one of the reasons that
I watch him. HE DOES NOT DO THE TODAY SHOW!

The "let's lynch Imus" groundswell is upon us, and I wish it wasn't. As
with Janet Jackson's breast, the seven dirty words of George Carlin, as
well as all other vulgar and indecent" content, if you do not like it,
do not WATCH IT OR LISTEN TO IT." How simple.

Sooner or later, if we allow the "I do not approve of what he said or
did" mob control content, we will get what we deserve from the
broadcast media, and it will all turn into overcooked Cream of Wheat.

Unbeknownst to many, the Constitution, Cable Box, radio tuner, and off
and on switch still exist.

Do not assassinate Imus for being and acting the part that he has always
played. I am sorry that he said what he said because of the fire storm
that it has created; I am now saddened by his marathon "Mea culpa." I
would have proffered that he say: "I regret that what I have said has
offended anyone."

Ed Lawson (a.k.a. The California Walkman) has been my friend for about
20 years. He is an African-American who wears his hair in dreadlocks
and is a dedicated activist.

This is what he sent me about the Imus incident.

OPEN LETTER TO AN OPEN MIND

Dear Brother Norman,

"In their effort to railroad Imus off the air for his un-popular speech,
the lynch mob of Sharpton, Jackson & feminists ad infinitum are the
modern moral equivalent of the cops who dragged Lenny Bruce off the
stage, outlawed Jackie Moms Mabley, from Alabama for life, and ran Ray
Charles out of Georgia. It is the same shoe on the left foot, instead
of the right foot, that is now kicking the Bill of Rights in its angst.

Ladies and gentlemen, this evening's main event is for the Intellectual
Light Weight Champion of The Air Waves. We have in one corner the
contender, Don "Nappy Hoes" Imus. In the opposing corner is the
champion heavy weight tag team of Sharpton, Jackson & feminists ad
infinitum. In this evening's match of mental-midget-mud-slingers, the
contestant who can do the most damage to constitutionally protected
free speech will win this event. This means no matter who wins, America
will lose. Black America will lose. Liberal America will lose. Feminist
America will lose.

This evening's melee is brought to you by the ABCNBCCBSCNNFOX Wrestling
Federation, who also have brought you Nicole Ad Nauseum, O. J. All Day
and the Michael Jackson Marathon. At the same time they managed to
overlooked the countless conspicuous lies, that let the Bush/Chaney Tag
Team murder over 3000 American military boys and girls, drown their
colored counter parts in Katrina incompetence, reverse robin hood the
poor to pay the rich and mortgage millions of unborn infant Americans
to the Peoples Republic of China, which will probably be flooded under
"post global warming" water by then anyway.

The judge for this evening's title match is the indelibly black civil
rights activist and social commentator Edward Lawson, who most of you
Bill-of-Rights-Fans will recognize from his 1983 U S Supreme Court
"California Walkman" Case or his repeated appearances on Oprah, Larry
King and every one else, as documented at:
http://edwardlawson.com,
http://youtube.com/watch?v=0ETaiYugYxw or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_C._Lawson

"Mr. Lawson could you give our fight fans a few words on where you think
this evening's fight is going to go?"

In a contest where every body is wrong, let me start with Brother Imus.
We can assume he is guilty of normal male locker room language, at
best, or "Birth of A Nation" expletive outtakes, at worst. In either
case, the Bill of Rights Doctrine of constitutionally protected
un-popular speech is advanced, if Brother Imus has your permission to
say "nappy hoes."

The honest open public exchange of ideas between blacks and whites,
young and old , men and women, Satan and Jesus is only possible, if you
give every side, every opportunity to speak their mind, in their own
words. Honest open public discussion is impossible in the milk toast,
mealy mouth, mumbling of politically correct speech, a.k.a. censorship.
Brother Imus if he gives a voice to his audience, of the NASCAR dudes
(and their beer bellies), the Archie Bunker heirs or the Casual Klux
Klan, than Brother Imus has performed a public service, in bringing
honest opinions to the air waves. And that is the only way you will
ever have a chance to see them, talk to them or change them.
When Brother Imus and his audience come out of the closet, it's the same
as when Elton and his audience come out of the closet. You should
support them both. Because, regardless of whatever you might think of
the individuals, their honesty advances your best interest.

The solution is not to muzzle Brother Imus.
The solution is for all of the nationally own black television and cable
networks to counter those errant Imus-isms.
The solution is for all of the nationally owned black radio networks to
counter those errant Imus-isms.
The problem is that there are zero black national radio, cable or
television networks.

The difference between Martin Luther King's Montgomery bus boycott of
1955 and Al Sharpton's Madison Avenue march 2007 is the sum of all
the black billionaires, many of the biggest athletes are black
millionaires, many of biggest Hollywood actors are black millionaires,
many of the biggest music idols are black millionaires, many of the
biggest television personalities are black millionaires. But all these
millions and millions and millions of black millions add up to zero
black owned national radio networks, zero black owned national cable
networks, zero black owned motion picture studios and zero black owned
national television networks. And so all of black America is obliged to
bend down on our collective knee, and beg white Brother Imus, "please,
please massa Imus, don't say da "n" word on yoe sho. Niggers don't need
a Million Man March. We need a March of Millionaires.
And the harvest of black zeroes goes further.

If we turn to the other team in Imus vs. Al et al "Rumble in the Jungle,
we find there are more zeroes to go around.

The only good that has come out of Brother Imus's mis-mouthing is a
modern day "acid test" that illustrates that there is zero black
leadership, zero black movement, zero black political organization, and
zero black financial organization, which add up to the death of black
power.

If brother Imus had called Brother Bill Gates a "nappy headed hoe."
Brother Bill would not have bothered to say a thing. That's' real
power. ", (and Brother Bill really is a hoe. Have you seen the price
tag on the new Microsoft operating system! ) The magnitude of all the
empty histrionics is a measure of the impotents and irrelevance of Al
Sharpton and Jessie Jackson, as they waddle to the microphone, that
neither of them or any other black man owns, to yet again announce
for the millionth time, that they are going to drag a bunch of
protest signs up Madison avenue, in an antiquated minstrel show of
senile church ladies, old ideas and a few old men that represent almost
nobody.

And finally let's turn to the young sisters on the Rutgers basket ball
team. Ladies you are the referee in this evenings wrestling match.
Ladies if you look at the roll model of the older generation, you might
find more militant black power, if you all dropped out of Rutgers and
instead form a Rap Group called the "Nappy Hoes", because your
generation has failed to foster a new generation of black leadership,
that would replace the older generation, which has ripened pass its
prime and rot as empty symbols and symbolic actions. The rag tag
remains that the right wing ruled won't worth assassinating.
The average hip hop rapper has more independent black power, then the
people who will parade before the media, in your name. They are false
prophet who can not protect you from words or deed that might harm you.

This whole thing has nothing to do with the life of Brother Imus, and
everything to do with the death of black power.
Brother Imus won't be on the radio for the next two weeks. He's on
punishment, on his yacht. But I bet the first call to his absent show
will be one of his listener named Brother Voltaire, who will simple
say" I do not believe in what you say, But I will defend to the death
your right to say it."

No one will call the black talk show host, on the black owned national
network, because a half century after Montgomery, if simply dose not
exist.

In good conscience, can we blame Imus for our own failings? In common
sense can we compound our injury, by killing free speech that forces us
to face our failings, which we would prefer to blame on others."

The measure of any man is how he responds when his children are
attacked. Real or imagined, this Imus attack on our children reveals an
older generation of black leadership, that is ideologically bankrupt,
and a younger generation of black youth, that has squandered its
inheritance of affirmative action, organization and righteous struggle.

Imus didn't do that.
The Bill of Right's Free Speech didn't do that.
Sincerely yours,
Edward Lawson
http://edwardlawson.com
[e-mail]

The other night, Chris Rock appeared on the Bill Mahar HBO show. Mahar
referred to the use of "the N word." Chris Rock said that the person
did not use "the N word," he called him a nigger.

GOOD FOR HIM!

Norman Horowitz
Part time racist
All the time Smart Ass
Full time American

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