Kanye West, His 'rant' & Katrina

[ewerk 30616]

Is that true or rumours?

[Happy Face 29]

No I'm not saying they should "shut up and suffer" but as I said in one of my previous posts vilifying white people is not helping, celebrities like Kanye should be trying to break down the barriers rather than building them up and trying to give black people a siege mentality.

 

It was the whole "they're MY people" that pissed me off, as if the victims are closer to him than to anyone else. Yes the majority of people hit hardest were black people but Kanye has taken the focus of the relief effort and onto racism. Now is the time to get aid to those who need it, after the situation has been sorted is the time to ask questions about whether the fact most of the victims were black contributed to delay in the rescue mission.

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Fair enough, but if he'd played ball how likely are NBC to invite him back to air his grievences after the relief effort? His white right wing audience would be lost and he'd be speaking only to the people that buy his albums, who likely agree with him anyway.

[Guest Sima]

No, apparently we're all too busy laughing at the black people.

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Well I was suppressing my laughter, but if is ok.....

Edited September 5, 2005 by Sima

[sweetleftpeg 0]

Another rumour is that there were Tiger Sharks and Alligators swimming around the city.

 

Reports of Alligators dragging the dead bodies underwater and eating them.

[Guest Sima]

Only black people though.

[sweetleftpeg 0]

Only black people though.

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Republican Alligators?

[Guest Sima]

Only black people though.

28504[/snapback]

 

Republican Alligators?

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Of course, not like those wishy-washy Democrats.

[Happy Face 29]

The government funds for aid are being provided by a cut in benefit budgets too.

 

If this ever happens again, the people who were too poor to leave the city in the first place will be even poorer. But there'll also be thousands more who just scraped together the money for a greyhound bus this time that can't afford it next time.

 

Even more deaths!

 

Way to go George, always thinking.

[Guest Sima]

What else is he supposed to do?

 

You're not seriously thinking he alters the defense budget?

[Happy Face 29]

What else is he supposed to do?

 

You're not seriously thinking he alters the defense budget?

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What defense budget?

 

He's had to borrow £350 Billion or so to spend on his war against "terror". Once "terror" has been beaten I wonder if he'll declare war on "alarm" or is "dread" a more pressing concern?

[Guest Sima]

To the Bush war machine yes, yes it is.

[adios 717]

I don't know this chap from Adam, couldn't even pronounce his first name but racism is still a big problem world-wide and I'm not sure there's ever a bad time to publicise that.

 

I actually agree with J69 that the fact that this disaster is predominantly a 'black problem' is on the surface coincidental but it does point to a much deeper problem, which is being largely ignored.

 

I agree that of course there is still a problem but black people in the USA have come a long way from the 1950's. The problem is allowing black people into the positions of power, because of their history they are more likely to be poorer and less well educated. To add to the problem a lot of black youths from deprived areas don't want to go the education route, they look at their role models, local drug dealer, rappers like Kanye (who isn't the worst of them) rapping about drugs and hos. They have very few positive role models to look up to and relate to.

 

Anyway, Kanye has been trying to highlight racism but he has been doing it in the wrong way IMO. Vilified white people and creating an "us and them" situation isn't helping. The way to do it is by trying to foster relations between both races so that racism doesn't even become an issue.

 

We don't have to look so far afield to see the problem anyway, I was mortified by the way that Irish citizenship referendum played out.

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I was disappointed to see that result but the situation is very different in Ireland than in places like USA and UK. Immigration into Ireland is a relatively recent trend, unlike England where it was going on throughout the 1900's. In Ireland it will take time to get used to it, there are a lot of backward people who have forgotten that the Irish prospered through emmigration. But lets not forget the Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1962 and the Immigration Act 1971 in the UK and the controversy they caused. From my experience in Ireland, in a place with a lot of economic migrants, racism isn't really a problem but it will take 30-40 years for the majority of Irish to get used to it.

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On the highlighted bit, where are you getting that information from? White kids listen to rap music too. Poor areas, inner city areas suffer from an extreme lack of funding in the US, making it virtually impossible to get ahead, that's the real difference. The UK & Ireland come from a far more Socialist background, the US, especially under Bush is far right and becoming increasingly more so.

 

You say there's not really a problem with racism in Ireland. I challenge you to walk down Parnell Street on a Saturday afternoon and not hear people screaming racial obscenities at people just because of their skin colour. And that referendum passed with over 80% of the ballot, a thinly veiled racist law was brought in and our fine Foreign Minister was later congratulated by the Grand Dragon of the KKK.

 

You say further down that this isn't the right time, I think you've been fed the official line. Where will Mr. West's audience be when the relief fund is over? Back seeing which 'sand-niggers' are up for a whooping next over on Fox News.

[Happy Face 29]

I don't listen to Kanye too much but I don't think he advocates drug use.

 

Happy to be corrected ttal.

[adios 717]

What else is he supposed to do?

 

You're not seriously thinking he alters the defense budget?

28525[/snapback]

 

What defense budget?

 

He's had to borrow £350 Billion or so to spend on his war against "terror". Once "terror" has been beaten I wonder if he'll declare war on "alarm" or is "dread" a more pressing concern?

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The next president, Arnold Schwarzenegger, can declare a war on Dredd, Judge Dredd. Then we can settle this in the proper manner of the Hollywood debacle this is becoming anyway in Terminator vs Dredd. We could even give Stallone some silly little country like Mexico.

[Guest Sima]

Only as long as he has a red hed-band

[Gemmill 44894]

I reckon that bloke at Outpost Crystal could chin the pair of them.

[adios 717]

I reckon that bloke at Outpost Crystal could chin the pair of them.

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Someone was talking about supressing laughter over this disaster. Between him and some clip on bbc.co.uk of some black hysterical woman going on about raping babies and old people with no legs I've actually been laughing an unhealthy amount, given that it's a tragedy, like.

[ewerk 30616]

On the highlighted bit, where are you getting that information from?  White kids listen to rap music too.  Poor areas, inner city areas suffer from an extreme lack of funding in the US, making it virtually impossible to get ahead, that's the real difference.

 

I'm not saying that its simply a matter of choice, its a lot more difficult for people in deprived areas to progress as they aren't given the encouragement either from schools or their surroundings. The point I was trying to make is that people like Kanye are in a position to direct them away from the life many of them will fall into. As he said himself, "Always said if I rapped I'd say somethin' significant

But now I'm rappin' 'bout money, hoes, and rims again". Most rappers are like this and IMO aren't the sort of role models these kids need. On the Common song It's Your World he encourages kids to fulfil their potential and has a number of what I presume to be black kids stating their hopes for the future, thats the sort of message rappers should be sending out, not robbing, killing and selling drugs.

 

As I said it isn't easy to progress from these areas but it takes generations, if one family can start it and encourage their kids to do the same then eventually they will get some sort of equality to white people.

 

You say there's not really a problem with racism in Ireland.  I challenge you to walk down Parnell Street on a Saturday afternoon and not hear people screaming racial obscenities at people just because of their skin colour.

 

That may be your experience but I've never seen it. I come from a town in the North with high levels of immigration which only started about 5 years ago. At the beginning it was strange but now it is nothing unusual. The foreigners aren't fully intergrated but I have never heard any racist abuse myself, I am aware that there have been racist attacks in the North but IMO most people condemn this sort of action. Perhaps in Dublin the situation is different, like I say I don't live there but visiting I've never seen any racism.

 

You say further down that this isn't the right time, I think you've been fed the official  line.  Where will Mr. West's audience be when the relief fund is over?  Back seeing which 'sand-niggers' are up for a whooping next over on Fox News.

 

Kanye West is one of the biggest hip-hop stars around. If he wanted to go on Larry King to discuss the situation he could, if he wanted to start a campaign he could. He doesn't have to draw attention to it right now, he has enough power to make it an issue once the more immediate problems have been dealt with.

[adios 717]

I reckon that bloke at Outpost Crystal could chin the pair of them.

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Just been checking up on him, he's still at it, check this out for irony:

 

Law enforcement have absolutely lost their minds. Some guy wearing khaki fatigues and black vests which say Police on them have their faces covered in black ski masks and are touting M4-A1s with front hand grips -- like they're some kind of Delta Force operators waiting to hit the tire house. They're guarding the four corners around the Bell South building for crying out loud. And what, they need secret identities? Come on. You can just tell some of these guys have never gotten out before. Now's their big chance to play Army.

[Happy Face 29]

Sorry dotbum but I hardly agree with a word of that. What you're suggesting is that if black people are the poorest in America, then it's their own fault, they should aspire to higher things.

 

The reason black people are generally the poorest in America is the racist culture keeping black people firmly 'in their place'. This is the reason for positive discrimination in the workplace which most white people are dead against.

 

I've got lots of cousins who've listened to NWA, Snoop Dogg, Ice T, Eminem etc all their lives and all but one never touch drugs. The one that does is black. Now you can tell me it's him that chases that lifestyle, but I believe he's forced into it by a lack of opportunity or encouragement in any activity he chooses to pursue.

 

[sarcasm]And major US networks love putting people on TV who tell everyone how racist they are, really pulls the viewers in that does.[/sarcasm]

 

Edit: Sorry, I meant Ewerk, not Dotbum.

Edited September 5, 2005 by Happy Face

[Gemmill 44894]

I reckon that bloke at Outpost Crystal could chin the pair of them.

28583[/snapback]

 

Just been checking up on him, he's still at it, check this out for irony:

 

Law enforcement have absolutely lost their minds. Some guy wearing khaki fatigues and black vests which say Police on them have their faces covered in black ski masks and are touting M4-A1s with front hand grips -- like they're some kind of Delta Force operators waiting to hit the tire house. They're guarding the four corners around the Bell South building for crying out loud. And what, they need secret identities? Come on. You can just tell some of these guys have never gotten out before. Now's their big chance to play Army.

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Has no one told him that now that the place is largely evacuated he can stop pretending that he's there?

[adios 717]

There's no point arguing over personal experience, I lived in Dublin most of my life and always felt we were racially sound but was shocked by the things I saw in the last couple of years. But there's still the overwhelming yes vote in that referendum and as you say racist killings, we've had a fair few of them in Dublin over the last couple of years. I'm not focusing on one place though. England seems to be having problems with the BNP and hate attacks, a friend of mine from London's just had a metal plate put in his head after being kicked silly by 3 lads, Whether or not his Indian descent has anything to do with that I don't know. And here in France nearly 20% of the vote went to Jean-Marie Le Pen's. In short it's a problem, and with the way terrorists are being dealt with it's not going away.

 

This guy may have dealt with this better, as for him going on talk shows to raise the issues? I've seen one clip of him but he didn't seem to bright, someone's fed him those lines I think. Not exactly Malcolm X.

 

All I'm saying is:

-I wouldn't bury a bloke for putting up with that shite all his life and then reacting to what he saw as injustice. He sees it as black and white, it is maybe more rich and poor.

-Some people are railing against him with some vitriol, spouting the party line, that bothers me. Why the feck has no one mentioned NBC's complete self-interest in all of this?

Edited September 5, 2005 by DotBum

[Guest alex]

From the Viz letters page:

 

How come rap artist Dr. Dre can use the 'N' word on his multi-million selling albums and win a MOBO award, yet when I used it at my son's football match I was asked to leave the park? Once again, it's one law for the rich and another for the poor.

Reg Ashcroft, Bradford

[Happy Face 29]

From the Viz letters page:

 

How come rap artist Dr. Dre can use the 'N' word on his multi-million selling albums and win a MOBO award, yet when I used it at my son's football match I was asked to leave the park? Once again, it's one law for the rich and another for the poor.

Reg Ashcroft, Bradford

28644[/snapback]

 

[adios 717]

Sorry dotbum but I hardly agree with a word of that.  What you're suggesting is that if black people are the poorest in America, then it's their own fault, they should aspire to higher things.

 

The reason black people are generally the poorest in America is the racist culture keeping black people firmly 'in their place'.  This is the reason for positive discrimination in the workplace which most white people are dead against.

 

I've got lots of cousins who've listened to NWA, Snoop Dogg, Ice T, Eminem etc all their lives and all but one never touch drugs.  The one that does is black.  Now you can tell me it's him that chases that lifestyle, but I believe he's forced into it by a lack of opportunity or encouragement in any activity he chooses to pursue.

 

[sarcasm]And major US networks love putting people on TV who tell everyone how racist they are, really pulls the viewers in that does.[/sarcasm]

 

Edit:  Sorry, I meant Ewerk, not Dotbum.

28634[/snapback]

 

I was having a moment there where I thought this bloke I've been talking to and me were in fact the same person, babbling in the corner of the forum. Be a bit weird that.