OT: Jason Whitlock is on point.

[Jackdog]

http://thebiglead.com/?p=1038

Good interview. My wife and I couldn't agree more with Mr Whitlock and this quote about a Civil Rights movement in 06.

"Dude, it’s in the air. Black people are tired of letting idiots define who we are. It’s dangerous. I grew up loving hip hop music. But the [bleep] is way out of hand now. Flavor Flav went from fighting the power with Chuck D to a minstrel show on VH1. You have all of these young rap idiots putting out negative images about black men and black women, and it’s on us to stop it and say enough is a enough. It’s not on white people. And it’s not on old black people like Cosby and Oprah. We have to police our own. W.E.B. Dubois talked about the talented 10 percent leading the black masses. We’re letting the Ignorant 5 lead us straight to hell. The Ignorant 5 are telling white folks, “Yeah, this is how we really is. Let me bojangle for ya, boss. You say step and I’ll show ya I can fetch.” And what’s even more dangerous, the Ignorant 5 are telling black kids, “It’s cool to be locked up. It makes a man out of you. And don’t embrace education. Dealing dope and playing basketball are better career choices.” The Ignorant 5 is the new KKK and twice as deadly. That’s why you don’t hear ‘bout the KKK anymore. The Klan is just sitting back letting 50 Cent and all the other bojanglers do all the heavy lifting."

Amen. It is hard to raise a young Black man these days with the media giving the "Ignorant 5" such a huge platform to dance on. I know my wife and I are doing something right when we see the way our son respects his teachers and elders. Doesn't showboat when he excels on the field and never shows his underware to the public. In other words. He respects himself and his rich Black heritage.

I give so much respect to single Black mothers who raise fine upstanding men in our communities with so many negitives around them. End of rant.

[kevinpars]

Some blame also has to go to the media. Kids pay attention and see that it is the T.O.'s and Lawrence Phillips who most often get on the cover of ESPN the magazine and get the media attention, not the Warrick Dunn's or Marvin Harrison's.

I heard Chuck D on the Two Live Stews last week and he was lamenting the fact that rappers have to bring in women from outside to make a music video because there are not enough female rappers and he wondered about how healthy it can be when half the population is pretty much excluded from the music off the top. Not to mention all of the manufactured regional "feuds" between rappers from the south, north and west.

But I have to admit my favorite part of that interview was his rant about Mike Lupica - the rancid chunk of cream that rose to the top of ESPN's sports reporters. I will never forget Lupica whining about the Final Four in St Pete because he had to ride back and forth to the Dome in a limo all the way from Tampa. What a tough life it is for a millionaire sports reporter!

[Bill_Abner]

Whitlock was fired from ESPN because of that interview, FWIW.

[davet010]

At least some good has come out of it then - Whitlock's previous journalistic efforts have been, almost without exception, abysmal. While this message may be more palatable, I still have some issues with what he is saying.

It may just be me, as well, but the undercurrent in this piece seems to be 'it's still whitey's fault....he's just using these chumps to do his work of dividing the community and keeping them down, rather than the more direct KKK-esque method.'

I would have thought that the message about not being an idiot, staying in school etc is applicable to all teens, regardless of colour. After all, if it's the influence of their music and lyrics that he is decrying, then the 'works' of these artists is probably bought by as many white kids as black ones.

He does get a bonus point for ripping into Lupica, though.

[pk500]

DaveT has a good point: What about all the little wiggers who buy this sh*t and endorse everything that's bad about hip-hop culture? I guess since most of them are upper-middle class or rich kids from the suburbs, they'll grow out of it?

The answer to the problems with youth in the black community is the same as it is in any ethnic community: Personal responsibility and active parenting by two parents.

Is the problem in the 'hood 50 Cent or a 16-year-old girl who is pregnant, with no boyfriend or father around? Is it the incarceration rate of young black males, essentially ripping families in half?

Jack, the reason Dom is a good kid is because of Carol and you. Yeah, he isn't exposed to all of the trash of hip-hop culture, and that helps. But that hasn't happened by accident -- that has happened because you and Carol have ensured that. You have raised him together in a culture of respect and achievement even though half of his young life was spent in a tough part of Detroit.

Take care,
PK

[pk500]

P.S., Jackdiggity: Thanks for turning me on to The Big Lead blog with your link. Just spent a few minutes there, and it's an excellent read.

Take care,
PK

[davet010]

The answer to the problems with youth in the black community is the same as it is in any ethnic community: Personal responsibility and active parenting by two parents.

Take care,
PK

I would have to say, at this point, that I do know quite a few single parents who do a bloody great job at bringing up their kids properly in what are often very difficult social and economic circumstances. The number of the parents doesn't always matter - the effort that they put into the job always does.

[EZSnappin]

The answer to the problems with youth in the black community is the same as it is in any ethnic community: Personal responsibility and active parenting by two parents.

Is the problem in the 'hood 50 Cent or a 16-year-old girl who is pregnant, with no boyfriend or father around?

PK -

you raise good points about parenting and responsibility, but I have considerable issues with your take that single parents are a large part of the problem. There are plenty of outstanding single parents, just as there are plenty of abyssmal two parent arrangements. The problem is one of involvement; kids that aren't encouraged to learn at home, parents who don't know what their kids do, etc. The number of people involved in the role of parents (whether older siblings, grandparents, the community itself) makes that responsibility easier to meet, but it is being done and has been done successfully by lone parents throughout history. It is a tired argument used to both justify one's views and belittle those struggling to make it work.

It is unfortunate that our society as a whole loves to place idiots who entertain us as examples for us to follow. That Whitlock saying this is in any way noteworthy is a sad indictment of the culture we live in.

I don't want to be such a grump, so let me end with a hearty cheer for Jack and his family. Sounds like your efforts have helped make a good young man.

[pk500]

The answer to the problems with youth in the black community is the same as it is in any ethnic community: Personal responsibility and active parenting by two parents.

Take care,
PK

I would have to say, at this point, that I do know quite a few single parents who do a bloody great job at bringing up their kids properly in what are often very difficult social and economic circumstances. The number of the parents doesn't always matter - the effort that they put into the job always does.

Dave, EZ:

You both raise good points. But the stress placed upon a single parent is so steep that it increases their chances of being an irresponsible parent quite a bit.

I'm a parent in a responsible, loving two-parent family, and I know my wife and I are mentally and physically whipped after each day of raising our three young kids. We don't do day care, so the responsibility is all ours. And my wife does the yeoman's work, as I work during the day at home.

How she does it, day in and day out, is beyond me, as raising kids properly at home -- not just plopping them in front of a TV or video game console half the day -- is more mentally and physically taxing than any office or blue-collar job. It truly is the toughest job you'll ever love, and I can only wince through a friendly smile when non-parents or those with kids in day care say to my wife, "Oh, you don't work?"

We love the responsibility and our kids, but it's taxing.

That's why I have a ton of admiration and respect for a single parent who raises a kid. That takes an incredible amount of discipline, love and energy.

The number of people who can do that alone is small. It's easier with a caring, involved partner. That was my point.

Personal responsibility still should be the primary quality of any parent, whether there are one or two. It's just easier when there are two responsible, loving people doing the job.

Take care,
PK

[kevinpars]

Although I am not one myself, it has always seemed pretty clear to me that good parenting is about hard work. The parents I know that have been successful have worked hard to know where and what their kids are doing. Left to their own devices, teenagers are going to find trouble - rich, poor, white, black or brown.

Along the same lines, it is a lack of hard work that characterizes most of the 'reporters' on ESPN these days. Sure, there are a few examples of reporters who know their sport and obviously do the research to keep up with it. But for every one of them there are 5 who just coast on their reputation. Look at Tony Kornheiser. For the first time in years he actually is having to work at his job. The guy looks miserable these days - no more going to bed at 9PM and getting up and doing a sports radio show where he can talk about popular culture and his favorite bands from the 60's. He has to actually study football so he doesn't sound like a complete idiot on Monday night. Instead he sounds like someone who read a bunch of facts and feels compelled to spit them back out during the game.

ESPN has turned into a network of Lee Corso's. Turn up the schtick and make a bold pronouncement every week. It doesn't matter if you are wrong because by next week you will have moved on to the next bold pronouncement. One week it is that Cal is going to the NC game. Then it is that Southern Miss is going to take Florida to the wire in the swamp. Next week he will probably be calling John L Smith his college coach of the year. Or you get Boomer doing his yearly Superbowl predictions and picking the Buffalo Bills. It is old and tired and barely watchable.

It is ironic that Whitlock gets fired for his outspoken comments about the sports reporters instead of his bold and more often than not completely wrong game predictions.

[Bill_Abner]

ESPN -- sucks, and outside of a few select shows, IMO, is extremely bad for sports. It didn't used to be this way (I'd argue the opposite) but with too much power comes too much bull***. ESPN is the maestro of bull***.

As for Whitlock, I respect a free thinker, which he certainly is, but this is the first time I have ever agreed with anything the man has written. He is dead on re: Lupica and "Scoop".

Here is his piece at the KC Star about the firing. Worth a read.

http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascit ... 608294.htm

[RobVarak]

Notwithstanding the content of Jack's post, I think we have a lock for most unlikely subject heading of the year

[Jackdog]

P.S., Jackdiggity: Thanks for turning me on to The Big Lead blog with your link. Just spent a few minutes there, and it's an excellent read.

Take care,
PK

It is a pretty good. I picked up on it in the thread at OS.

PK/EZSnappin....Thanks for the props on Dom. We are blessed. Carol has done a great job with him while I was away. I stll spend way to much time away from him. I have got to become a homebody because before I blink he'll be gone off to college. Kinda like the"Cat's in the Cradle" thing.

[Jackdog]

Notwithstanding the content of Jack's post, I think we have a lock for most unlikely subject heading of the year

[Jackdog]

ESPN -- sucks, and outside of a few select shows, IMO, is extremely bad for sports. It didn't used to be this way (I'd argue the opposite) but with too much power comes too much bull***. ESPN is the maestro of bull***.

As for Whitlock, I respect a free thinker, which he certainly is, but this is the first time I have ever agreed with anything the man has written. He is dead on re: Lupica and "Scoop".

Here is his piece at the KC Star about the firing. Worth a read.

http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascit ... 608294.htm

I agree 100%. I only watch games on ESPN now.

Thanks for the link man. Good read.

I take being a journalist/columnist very seriously. To me, being a contract employee for ESPN did not mean I’d surrendered my right to blast the World Wide Leader in Sports for making the awful TV show “Playmakers,” employing as expert analysts clownish buffoons with drug problems such as Rush Limbaugh and Michael Irvin, and publishing the gangsta-posturing rantings of a poor writer.

OUCH!!

[Brando70]

Good read, thanks for the link, JD. I don't know if ESPN has gone downhill or if I have just gotten older and less tolerant of catchphrases and people like Stuart Scott. I think it's the former.

Page 2 is, for the most part, a wasteland. Simmons is awesome, if for nothing else than he brings the fan's approach and will readily admit when he says something idiotic. I like Whitlock, too, because he isn't afraid to offer opinions that don't fit neatly into one category. As for the network, while I do like Mike and Mike, that's about it. I'm not usually around to watch PTI, but when I've seen it, I don't like the rapid pace of the show -- they just try and cram too much into each segment.

[Jackdog]

Good read, thanks for the link, JD. I don't know if ESPN has gone downhill or if I have just gotten older and less tolerant of catchphrases and people like Stuart Scott. I think it's the former.

Great point. I know I have outgrown the shtick that ESPN has become. Stuart Scott makes me ill. The whole ESPN trying to be hipe thing has driven me away from what used to be a staple on my TV.

[Programmed2Kill]

My opinion on this is I think people should really stop blaming the media and the rappers and video chicks and this and that...and really look in the mirror.

When I grew up, I didn't look up to any rappers or anybody. I didn't let anything in the media sway how I acted in society. To me, it's a matter of respect. People just do not have respect for anything anymore. Respect for others, respect for themselves...hell, respect for respect. People get shown respect and take it as nothing. Unrespectful people will get talked to and get helped and they don't even take it in. They just let it go out the other ear. Too many folks in this world live like they have no head. They just go with anything that is put in front of them. There is no thought process going on in their heads. And when someone tells them about it, they take it as an attack. And they become worse, which is hard to believe.

I see it everyday and it's disgusting. You actually stand there, sit there, whatever...and think to yourself "Why? Why is that person like that? And why are there so many of them around me?" It's a depressing issue. It goes across every race. Not just black people. I can get on my race for alot of things, but it's not just black people. What black people may be rightfully accused of is being more blatant with this lack of respect. Where that comes from is way beyond me.

[dbdynsty25]

HAHA...good points. Yet, somehow it seems to hold very little water when your name is Programmed2kill. LOL...just a ironic blurb.

[Jackdog]

My opinion on this is I think people should really stop blaming the media and the rappers and video chicks and this and that...and really look in the mirror.

When I grew up, I didn't look up to any rappers or anybody. I didn't let anything in the media sway how I acted in society. To me, it's a matter of respect. People just do not have respect for anything anymore. Respect for others, respect for themselves...hell, respect for respect. People get shown respect and take it as nothing. Unrespectful people will get talked to and get helped and they don't even take it in. They just let it go out the other ear. Too many folks in this world live like they have no head. They just go with anything that is put in front of them. There is no thought process going on in their heads. And when someone tells them about it, they take it as an attack. And they become worse, which is hard to believe.

I see it everyday and it's disgusting. You actually stand there, sit there, whatever...and think to yourself "Why? Why is that person like that? And why are there so many of them around me?" It's a depressing issue. It goes across every race. Not just black people. I can get on my race for alot of things, but it's not just black people. What black people may be rightfully accused of is being more blatant with this lack of respect. Where that comes from is way beyond me.

Great post. It is all about respect. Getting and giving. It's becoming extinct in our community and I like yourself have no answer to why. It is a very depressing issue because it's getting worse.

Thanks for your thoughts man.

[Programmed2Kill]

HAHA...good points. Yet, somehow it seems to hold very little water when your name is Programmed2kill. LOL...just a ironic blurb.

I listen to too many reggae mixtapes

[Programmed2Kill]

My opinion on this is I think people should really stop blaming the media and the rappers and video chicks and this and that...and really look in the mirror.

When I grew up, I didn't look up to any rappers or anybody. I didn't let anything in the media sway how I acted in society. To me, it's a matter of respect. People just do not have respect for anything anymore. Respect for others, respect for themselves...hell, respect for respect. People get shown respect and take it as nothing. Unrespectful people will get talked to and get helped and they don't even take it in. They just let it go out the other ear. Too many folks in this world live like they have no head. They just go with anything that is put in front of them. There is no thought process going on in their heads. And when someone tells them about it, they take it as an attack. And they become worse, which is hard to believe.

I see it everyday and it's disgusting. You actually stand there, sit there, whatever...and think to yourself "Why? Why is that person like that? And why are there so many of them around me?" It's a depressing issue. It goes across every race. Not just black people. I can get on my race for alot of things, but it's not just black people. What black people may be rightfully accused of is being more blatant with this lack of respect. Where that comes from is way beyond me.

Great post. It is all about respect. Getting and giving. It's becoming extinct in our community and I like yourself have no answer to why. It is a very depressing issue because it's getting worse.

Thanks for your thoughts man.

Thanks JD.

We have no answer for it, and the scary part is...it's spreading. You can't just run from it.

[Brando70]

My opinion on this is I think people should really stop blaming the media and the rappers and video chicks and this and that...and really look in the mirror.

That's a very good point. When I was a teenager in the 80s, I was a big metalhead. Many of the themes of metal songs were a) getting laid b) getting wasted c) something to do with the devil/occult. And while I engaged in a and b and had a horror fan's fascination with c, the music didn't turn me into an orgy-going, drug-taking Satanist. I had a good family around me, I just happened to like the music (and still do).

I think that's the case with rap today. Granted, it's pretty explicit stuff, but a song like Whitesnake's "Slide It In" didn't leave a whole lot to the imagination, either. I don't think you'll find many cases where someone was a good student and kid and was completely corrupted by the music he listens to. The creation of delinquents involves much more serious issues -- the music is often just a fashion accessory.

The key is to have good parenting. One or two parents, same sex or different, adopted or biological -- if you're raised right, chances are, you'll stay right.

[EZSnappin]

I think that's the case with rap today. Granted, it's pretty explicit stuff, but a song like Whitesnake's "Slide It In" didn't leave a whole lot to the imagination, either.

Wasn't "Spit It Out" on that same album? Subtle innuendos like that just never get old.

"If you don't like it... spit it out!"

[Feanor]

Sometimes good parenting isn't enough - some kids are just rotten.