Fwd: Re: [Husker] Neal's account of the slur (fwd)

[Bob Beach]

Brendan Patrick Crilly <brendan at skypoint.com> wrote:

>>On the positive side I'm glad that our culture has finally arrived at a
>>point
>>where a John Rocker-type message is no longer considered socially
>>acceptable
>>in the mainstream.




     Good, bad, or indifferent we have come to a place in our society where what a person says is much more damning than what a person does.  It is considered much more severe in the PC world to say something disparaging than to commit a crime.  A person could live an exemplary life for many years and say something racially or ethnically disparaging and it all comes crashing down.  His/her life is over as they knew it and it matters not what kind of example they were before.  They, at the very least would probably be asked to resign from their jobs and they would be expelled from society.


     I will never forget when I was a young boy we used to sing a song in Sunday School which went "What you are speaks so loud the world can't hear what you say."  Another way of saying is it isn't good enough to talk the talk you also have to walk the walk if you expect people to listen to your message.  In today's PC world it is the exact reverse.  The song today would be "What you say speaks so loud the world doesn't care how you walk."


     Now, I am not saying deliberately go out and smear someone.  But, sometimes words do slip but that doesn't necessarily mean that person is a low life.  I would prefer to check what their life has been like prior to the comments.  I do not condone in any way what Rocker said.  But, what he said didn't necessarily characterize him.  According to reports many of the African American players on the Braves were shocked about Rocker's comments.  They said Rocker in the past had even invited young African American players to live with him while they were getting their feet on the ground in the Major Leagues.  They couldn't believe the guy they knew could make those comments.  The sorry thing is the only thing Rocker will be remembered for is his comments one day and not for whatever good things he may have done.


     It doesn't matter what race or creed one is.  It would take a very unusual person to honestly say at no time in their life did they ever utter anything that would be considered racially offensive or degrading, tell a racial joke, or the like.  The difference is most people don't utter them in a public forum so the world doesn't find out. 




 


  

Bob Beach
Man is never too old to learn.  Man only becomes too old when the process of learning stops.