Don Imus

A few people have asked my opinion recently on the situation with Don Imus. I've given this incident a lot of thought as of late. I've never agreed with what Don Imus said (nor did I see the point of it) but I also don't agree with him getting fired over it.

I've never cared for Don Imus as a radio personality. But I can appreciate him as an icon in the industry much like Howard Stern, Mark & Brian, Scott Shannon and a host of many others.

This incident is just going to make radio that much more difficult to o as a career and less fun for listeners to listen to. This kind of politically correct bullshit is going to abolish the human element from radio.

If radio station companies are going to buckle over every single complaint about what their jocks are saying on the air, they'll eventually replace all radio personalities with computers.

Radio became a goddamn police state after the whole Janet Jackson incident and "Nipplegate". Who would have thought that Janet's tits on TV would carry over to hefty fines on radio stations across the United States.

Why have there been fines? Because some people can't take a joke. Because we've become a society offended by everything. EVERYTHING! Many, many stations across the United States even went as far to edit out swear words from songs that they've been playing FOR YEARS. Are you kidding me? Ohhhhhhhh... so I'm supposed to forget they're saying "fuck" or "shit" or "goddamn" or "asshole" in a favorite Alice In Chains song, a Who song, a Rolling Stones song and so many other songs.

Let's not forget all the wonderful and colorful words and imagery we can hear in Top 40 and Rap/Hip Hop hits on the air RIGHT NOW!

Even if I were to get back into radio, I guarantee that I would be having no fun because everything coming out of my mouth would be censored because the station wouldn't want to suffer any kind of complaint or fine or anything.

Fuck that.

Now, I'm not saying that things that Don Imus said should be tolerated and laughed at. However, I'm trying to make it clear that sometimes people say things without thinking about the overall effect because they get caught up in the moment.

Take what happened to Michael Richards. I watched that video several times and was flabbergasted by how he blew up. But then I thought about the situation. I don't sincerely feel that he wasn't being racist more than hurtful.

I think he was up there trying to do his stand up and these guys in the audience were being rude and loud. He reacted by trying to be funny and heckling them back. Then it got more heated when these guys wouldn't shut up.

I feel that Michael was being as brutal as possible and melted down on stage because he was so angry by their behavior. He took the easiest and unfortunate way to deal with these guys by going off on their race. I believe he did this because he wanted to embarrass them as much as he felt embarrassed by them for their heckling.

But it does make you think if Michael Richards has issues with race with how venomous he was with his words. It's much like Mel Gibson and his ruthless anti-Semitic remarks when he was pulled over for drunk driving.

Let's face it, all of us have some kind thought regarding other races. We all poke fun and joke about other races including our own. But people like Don Imus or Michael Richards or Mel Gibson get carried away and make mountains out of molehills.

Actually, in the Don Imus and Michael Richards cases, Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson made mountains out of molehills. Especially in the Don Imus case. I feel that Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson cause as much commotion as they can so they can suck up as much of the celebrity spotlight as much as they can. I don't think they give a damn about race issues more than they do their own advancement in certain professional and political circles.

Of course, I'm probably being called a racist right now by some. I may be thought of as insensitive and uncaring over those who may have been hurt by the remarks made by the likes of Don Imus, Michael Richards and Mel Gibson.

Well, I was shocked by all of these incidents. I've been involved with a racial situation that cost me my job and my career not long ago. Since then, I've been quiet about issues like these that happen.

I don't want to be quiet. I'm angry. It's all such pansy ass bullshit. Perhaps Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson need to have a talk with the shitheads that caused such strife about manners, respect and etiquette.

Maybe they need to realize that Don Imus was getting carried away by trying to be "hip" and, instead, came off looking like an old fart who made a bad choice of words thinking it was funny. And maybe Mel Gibson needs to get some daily therapy.

And, in the case of me, I need to have a better understanding of racial tolerance? I do. But I'm tired of feeling like I can't speak out about such issues because I was involved in one of my own that really took a toll on my life.

Do I agree with what Don Imus said? No. I've already pointed that out. I think he acted out of stupidity and came off looking like a douche bag. Michael Richards was angry because he was trying to perform and people kept interrupting. And Mel Gibson was drunk and was letting things from his upbringing come out.

Are these legitimate reasons to speak such harsh, racial words? To the people that speak them, yes. Look at the whole picture. Consider the circumstances. Stop buying into the one-sidedness of these issues and try to see beyond that.

I will always feel bad and hurt by the situation I was involved with a couple of years ago. I think about it a lot. It especially hits me hard when I see situations like Don Imus or Michael Richards and wonder if I, too, came off looking like that. I'm sure I did and I have to live with that. I'm ashamed of what happened and how it all turned out.

However, what started out as a bad situation from my words turned into a HUGE situation by the person affected by those words and blowing it all out of proportion. As a matter a fact, instead of just talking to me and members of management, this asshat decided to make a scene and threaten me with physical violence in the presence of co-workers during a staff meeting.

From my perspective, it went from a misunderstanding involving race to a serious situation involving someone who found it necessary to utilize the situation as a way stand on a soapbox and mislead people in what had actually occurred.

Actually, I'd like to say that the way this person acted towards me in this meeting was much like Michael Richards blowing up on stage during his stand up. This individual was looking to hurt and embarrass me in the most obvious way possible because he was very upset. And he accomplished that.

He also accomplished making an ass of himself, costing me my job and costing my former employer thousands of dollars paid to me for the unprofessional way they dealt with the situation from the start. I bet the individual that I offended and caused this commotion wishes they could have brought in Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson to make it even more of a goddamn circus.

As you can see, I still have issues over this. Yeah, I got paid. But what does that fix? It's the same with Don Imus. Yes, he got fired... whoopee. But we all know damn well that he'll be back on the air, with more money, with another big broadcasting company.

Is Don Imus a racist? I don't think so. Is Michael Richards? I don't think so. Am I? NO! But I've been labeled as such by some just like these two.

One of my friends, who is an Arab, says that we're all racist in some form or fashion. He especially hates people from the East Coast. That makes me laugh so hard! People from the East Coast are a complete race to him and he doesn't like them.

That's awesome!

I don't know if I've explained my views well here or not. I guess my Arab friend is right. I've made it clear about my views regarding illegal Mexicans coming into this country and taking advantage of the system we have here.

Oh, don't get me started on that. Because if I've made any positive remarks or enlightenment with this blog, I'll ruin it with my views and frustrations involving the current illegal immigrants flooding our country.

I can't help but wonder what Howard Stern thinks of all this mess with Don Imus. I wonder if he feels Don Imus was wronged or if he's having a field day with his firing (since he and Imus are enemies) or if he's playing both sides of the issue.

Too bad I don't have satellite radio. Then I would know. Pretty soon we'll all need satellite radio because radio as we know it is going to get real lame, real quick.

Please welcome the latest in technology for AM/FM radio stations, a limited edition "George Orwell" Dell computer. It doesn't speak. It doesn't have an opinion. It doesn't raise awareness. It doesn't have a sense of humor. It doesn't take your calls. It doesn't have ideas. It doesn't entertain. It's perfect for any broadcaster looking to assist in creating a New World Order.

I miss radio and love it dearly. It's just too bad that shit like this is going to kill it for everyone.

-Mike The Janitor
©2007
Millenoma Publishing