Enough Already

The soft news industry had an interesting convergence this week.

Cable TV "news" and radio talk shows have been obsessed with Don Imus and the Rutgers womans' basketball team. MSNBC has fired Imus. Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson want him gone from CBS radio.

The Reverends Sharpton and Jackson of course have a bit of a pot and kettle problem given Tawana Brawley, Heimetown and Jackson's scholarship for the Duke University accuser, now determined to have been less than truthful, the other story this week. It's too easy to take a shot at them for their attacks on Imus.

But Snoop Dogg has weighed in on Imus' defense of himself and his statement seems to go right to the heart of the differing treatment of a Sharpton or Jackson for their past "indiscretions" than an Imus for his stupidity. When asked why it's OK for him to use the 'ho word, Snoop said:

"'It's a completely different scenario,' Snoop told VH-1. " "'[Rappers] are not talking about no collegiate basketball girls who have made it to the next level in education and sports. We're talking about hos that's in the 'hood that ain't doing sh--, that's trying to get a n---a for his money. These are two separate things. First of all, we ain't no old-ass white men that sit up on MSNBC going hard on black girls. We are rappers that have these songs coming from our minds and our souls that are relevant to what we feel.'"

We have a double standard for judging stupid remarks by "old-ass white men" and professional race-baiters in this country. Reverends and rappers are allowed to make a living dividing the races. A long-in-the-tooth former disc jockey that needs a haircut, suffers the same fate as the stupid white guys that came before him: Fuzzy Zoeller's fried chicken comment about Tiger Woods lost him a Kmart sponsorship, George "Macaca" Allen lost a Senate seat, Jimmy the Greek saying black men are bred to be better athletes got fired by, I think, CBS. The list is longer.

All of our candidates for President are weighing in on the controversy. Obama wants CBS to fire Imus. Clinton characterized Imus as going "way over the line." Pandering to a different base, Guliani and McCain criticized Imus but were willing to forgive. None of the candidates has criticized Sharpton or Jackson since charges have been dropped against the lacrosse players. Jackson even managed some innuendo in his comment about the dismissal: "I hope that all involved will be safe and will outlive their scars. It came to a rather dramatic and mysterious close. We can hope that the young people involved will not be permanently scarred and damaged."

I've only heard Imus a couple of times over the years. Didn't like him. I've heard Sharpton and Jackson for too long. All of them, plus Snoop should shut up. The Country needs to get back to what's important: why hasn't the kid with the hair gotten voted off of American Idol? I know it's a big story because NPR did a segment on it this morning.