Re: Celtic tradition, Bob Ryan et. al.

[damekmo@teleport.com]

>Racism, like hate, is a very strong word.

Calling a young African-American male a "punk" is also very loaded and
strong. Would I call Bobby a racist. No. Would I think that someone who did
was way off base? No. Sometimes I think we've reached the point in this
country where anything short of Apartheid isn't racism. The only people
admitting to being racists are White Supremicists, so therefore everybody
else can act in any manner they wish and, "I'm not a racist." No, they
probably aren't. Like everyone else, they're probably struggling with their
prejudices and doing a pretty good job of it. Does that mean that racism
never makes an appearance? We work with people of different races, we eat
with them, we sit next to them at movies and basketball games, they teach
our children, we fall in love them, they invest our money, they represent
us in government. Does that mean that racism is no longer an issue? Does
that mean that just because we vote for them, work with them, etc. that we
never act in a racist manner? I'm sure Bob Ryan is a loving father and
husband. Does that mean that he's never an asshole to his wife and kids?
Since everybody might consider him a loving and caring guy, does that mean
he never has to watch out for times when he doesn't act in a loving and
caring manner? No I don't think that the "Commish" is a racist. I think
he's many things. But just because I don't think he's a racist now and
forever and always doesn't mean he "can't" act like one every now and then,
that he's incapable of letting his prejudices get the better of him. It
happens to all of us whether we live in Chicago, Boston, or Vermont and I
would hope that we all realize we're capable of such things and watch out.
I don't think that Bob Ryan's a racist and I don't think that Antoine's a
"hated punk." Everybody around the league hates Antoine...therefore, hate
him all you want and if you don't...you just don't get it. It's open season
on hating Antoine because the respected "Commish" said everybody's doing
it. Let me make a suggestion here. When some guy crosses the street because
four black males in baggy pants are hanging on a corner, he's making an
assumption. When the police stop African-American males and hassle them for
no good reason, they're making an assumption. When well dressed
African-American professionals get stopped walking in white neighborhoods,
or driving on the highways of New Jersey, assumptions are being made about
them.  They are no longer complex individuals like you, me and Bob Ryan. I
could go on and on with other examples...you guys know the routine. When a
respected reporter sums up a young black male's character by calling him a
punk, and nothing but a hated punk, over and over and over again in a
hyperbolic and shrill tone, he's doing the same thing or at least he's
helping to perpetuate an attitude that allows African-American males to be
seen as simply and ONLY "punks." Everybody on this list seems to want to
give Ryan the benefit of the doubt when it comes to "his" character. He's a
complex individual. However, Antoine's nothing but a punk, over and over
again and I still want to know if it's possible for Bobby to be more
hyperbolic and shrill if Antoine were actually a criminal. This isn't just
disrespect from Bobby....it's hatred and apparently he feels it's
justified. I think Michael Holley understands how dangerous this is, how it
can get out of hand, how easy it is in this culture for minorities to be
stigmatized, and that's why he wrote his "Let's get to know Antoine"
article right after Bob's original punk article. Antoine's flawed like the
rest of us but he's probably also many things that all of us would admire.
He's not just a "hated punk" as Bob Ryan would have us believe, as many
people find it easy to believe "because" of racism. Not the sort of
government directed hang "them" in the streets racism, but the sort of
racism that gets the better of us every now and then because we're all
flawed and human. This is going on too long and I have to watch the
Patriots win another gut wrenching close game. Bob Ryan's not a racist,
that is, not just a racist. It certainly could be that he just has a hard
time with youth culture. Could a reasonable person see an element of racism
in Bob's two year attack on "toine's character? Sure. Are both things at
the same time possible. Sure. I look forward to the "Commish's", how should
I put this....equal opportunity venom in the future.

Did I already say 46 wins?

Paul M.