Thursday, May 14, 2009

The Worst Article Ever Written


In my time as a writer and an avid reader, I have come across some horrendous articles. The kind that leave you with a smaller IQ and a sudden urge to binge drink. Admittedly, some of my own probably fall into that category. But one has risen of the rest, the cream of the crap crop, if you will. And to some, it will be no surprise that the name signed at the bottom is that of one Jason Whitlock.

It sure was no shock to me. I've never been a fan of Whitlock, who has made a living injecting racism into any and every topic known to man. In J-Dubb's world, the previous sentence is proof that I secretly hate black people. It's a shortcut to thinking and offensive.

So I now present to you his worst, in my opinion. "Cuban's out of line and it's Stern's fault" deserves attention. As you already know, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban apparently called the Nuggets' Kenyon Martin a thug to his mother's face, along with reports that many Dallas fans were harassing family members of Nuggets players. Here's my problem:

Does Stern not understand the culture of the league he oversees? Does he fail
to comprehend the position Kenyon Martin is in if he fails to publicly (and
perhaps physically) defend his mama?

Right or wrong, disrespecting a black man's mama publicly has always been a
drop-the-gloves moment. When a billionaire white man does it, it becomes a
ride-or-die episode for the entire neighborhood.

Last I checked, Martin plays in a league dominated by black men hailing from
the don't-talk-about-my-mama culture.


Yes, this is about race. And it's news to me that black men are the only people in this country that take offense to people disrespecting their parents. What's amazing to me is that a champion of race like Whitlock seems to allows fuel the stereotypes rather than seek the reality. Well, not that amazing. It's what he does. The "thug" culture, which is so reviled by minorities, thrives on ideas such as don't-talk-about-my-mama.

Most stereotypes cannot be avoided. Fried chicken and watermelon simply taste good, eat as much as you want. And you should feel anger at anyone stepping up to your mother. Fact is, we all feel that way. To corner the market of loving your mom and act as if it's a higher transgression because it's happening to you is what causes contempt, from both the majority and minority. Injustice is injustice. Cuban was wrong, not because Mrs. Martin has dark skin, but because his actions are indefensible in and of itself.

And I'm just getting started.


He's a billionaire owner who should be well above mixing it up with
fans.

The difference between (Ron) Artest and Cuban is a few billion dollars and
a fair complexion.
There are two different kinds of people. Those who think Cuban is a loudmouth, and those who are glad to see "one of them" owning a major sports team. Most of the time, I fall into the latter group. In this instance I fall into both. Cuban was wrong, and it was his loudmouth persona that made him say the things he did. But I don't set him to a higher standard because of his bank account, and I enjoy the fact that an owner can still be himself (even if that means we have to experience his asshole-ish ways). And by no means do I think he deserves different treatment because he is white, as Whitlock clearly states above. I mean, could you imagine if Tony Kornheiser or Rick Reilly said that Mo Cheeks needs to approach white refs in a different way than Phil Jackson because he was black? J-Dubb would be all over that one.

And one more thing:

I was shocked Wednesday night when Charles Barkley and Chris Webber pretended
that Cuban's apology was enough justice. Sir Charles and C-Webb sounded like
Cuban enablers. They must all play in the same charity golf events.
That's right boys and girls, Barkley and Webber are Uncle Toms! The fact that they didn't immediately join Team Black is proof enough that all their tee-times with The Man have turned them from FUBU to J. Crew. Ridiculous. There is no bigger divider in the world of sports than Jason Whitlock. He draws the lines, he makes you choose a side. Disrespect is different if the two parties have different skin. He does his small part to kill any progress of race relations that has been built in the last few decades. It's as if he is uncomfortable with equality. He commentates on an industry that is minority-dominated, but cannot come to grasps that a white/black confrontation is just a human/human confrontation.

The seeds of discontent and chaos take root in the absence of justice.
Actually, they take root in the presence of hate and ignorance. Two things that consume the public persona of Whitlock, and garner a bank account much closer to Mark Cuban's than yours or mine.

2 comments:

Jeff F. said...

Couldn't agree with you more, Jay. Good aticle!!!

J Fish said...

Thank you. Though, being at odds with Whitlock is like loving oxygen, we all have it in common.

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