Posted on 04/30/2014 4:25:45 PM PDT by rickmichaels
Three years ago, I wrote in National Review:
Let us accept for the sake of argument that racism is bad, that homophobia is bad, that Islamophobia is bad, that offensive utterances are bad, that mean-spirited thoughts are bad. So what?
As bad as they are, the government’s criminalizing all of them and setting up an enforcement regime in the interests of micro-regulating us into compliance is a thousand times worse. Likewise, as bad as Donald Sterling is, what the NBA is doing is a thousand times worse:
“The views expressed by Mr. Sterling are deeply offensive and harmful. That they came from an NBA owner only heightens the damage and my personal outrage,” [Commissioner Adam] Silver said. “I am banning Mr. Sterling for life from any association with the Clippers association or the NBA. Mr. Sterling may not attend any NBA games or practices, he may not be present at any Clippers facility, and he may not participate in any business or decisions involving the team.”
Everyone seems to agree that Sterling is a racist and always has been: He said he wouldn’t rent apartments to blacks because they smell; and he has referred to the players of his Los Angeles Clippers as “niggers”. All this has apparently been widely known for years, although not so well known that the NAACP hasn’t lavished multiple awards on him, including his now hastily canceled Lifetime Achievement Award. Which seems odd.
(Excerpt) Read more at fullcomment.nationalpost.com ...
Why not a geriatric basketball team? What is wrong with that? Are you some kind of Gerontophobic?
“As bad as they are, the government’s criminalizing all of them and setting up an enforcement regime in the interests of micro-regulating us into compliance is a thousand times worse.”
Classic straw man by Steyn. Looks like NBA can do whatever they want to their individual franchises. If Sterling does not like it, he can start his own Basketball association.
If this whole incident were a western then what has happened is that the cowardly sheriff has scuttled out the back door of the office leaving behind the keys and a rope. The NBA is run by the saloon sotted mob while the thieves in their midst rifle the lynch victims pockets for ownership papers to his personal business. Silver, such a rich name for a character constructed solely from base metal.
Uh, actually, no, he just used that as an example, and stated that he still thought it was a bad idea by the NBA.
I was tired of the Donald Stirling story within five seconds of first hearing it. I admit proudly that I have no idea what he said, except that it was outrageously offensive. I don’t know because I don’t care.
I will accept it as a given that he said lots of repugnant things to his mistress. So what? Why does that mean that the NBA has to strip him of his private property? Why then must he pay a multi-million dollar fine?
The only person harmed by his statement was his mistress, and all he owes her is an apology. Why do his private comments require millions of his dollars to be transferred to the racial grievance industry? What have they done to deserve this money?
Frankly, I think the NBA is making a huge mistake. If they are going to set themselves up as arbiters of the appropriateness of everything said in private moments by executives and owners of NBA teams, they are going to wind up handing down an awful lot of fines. And, of course, then they will become responsible for everything that is said. After all, if you control the speech, you are responsible for what is said.
It seems the leftists are being judgmental...something they tell us we should not do.
A hair’s width away from having thought police.
I want every black in the NBA who is doing to back flips and condemning the man for speaking freely in his own home to answer this question honestly: have you ever use the words “honky” or “whitey” or had a conversation about “those white people?” If so, then you should quit the NBA IMMEDIATELY. If Sterling is racist then so are you.
Rush today: “You can find eight NBA players and one coach, a total of nine men who have hooked up with 55 women and produced 72 children over the past few years with no marriages involved. This is also the NBA.
This entire affair reeks of Barry, Holder & Co.
This entire affair reeks of Barry, Holder & Co.
The kenyan has released a totalitarian genie on our society. They don’t even have to be directly involved to have a massive effect on discourse.
Secretly recorded(?) by his soon to be ex-GF and he’s pilloried?
Isn’t the NBA logo racist? It shows a white guy. Aren’t most NBA players black? Racist statement???
+1
Well, said. This is about the race baiting crew building momentum to destroy any white person they can.
Sure there's the racist crap he did 30 years ago, but no, the issue now is this recording that is giving people the vapors.
For all of the howler monkeys crying about "yeah, there's free speech, but that doesn't absolve you of the consequences of your speech."
Now THAT is a false argument. This is NOT a Dixie Chicks moment, where Stirling got up in front of fans and said this.
It was a private conversation, illegally obtained, and leaked to the press. Not in any way related to his position as an NBA team owner.
The one analogy I can think of is grandpa getting drunk at Thanksgiving and going on some rant about "the Jews".
Offensive, sure.
But the point is he didn't make it in public. Nor as part of any public function.
This is thoughtcrime.
For the (many) conspiracy nuts here on FR. Which includes me, of course:
Assume Sterling is a smart old Fox.
Assume he wants to sell the Clippers
Assume his girlfriend needs $50 million or so just to keep up her lifestyle.
Assume they conspire to make the recording and release it to the press.
Now you are probably assuming that all this bad publicity would knock the socks off the value of the Clippers. You may even think this is a Magic Johnson ploy to get the Clippers on the cheap.
But we Conspiracy Nuts (CNs) don’t buy that theory. We think that the Clippers are now much more valuable than they were a week ago. And why would that be, you ask?
Here is why:
The collection of greedy NBA team owners are desperate to get rid of Sterling.
The NBA Commisioner is desperate to get rid of Sterling.
The fans are desperate to get rid of Sterling..
The media is desperate to get rid of Sterling.
Sterling is not desperate at all. And he has a price in mind. And that price is a lot higher than last weeks market value.
He will get his price and so will the girlfriend.
I don't care either.
I don't follow the Clippers (or NBA at all) but I did see that the team won a playoff game last night. Must be an exciting series, I didn't see any empty seats in whatever stadium they were playing.
Now just think about that for a second - the Clippers, like all NBA teams are mostly black athletes. Apparently they don't care what Sterling said either, they all showed up for work and did their best for him.
The fans obviously don't care either, they filled the stadium up, bought their overpriced concessions and cheered for their team, just like always.
So why should I care?
The Obama campaign got a lot of mileage in 2012 over a comment Mitt Romney made in private which was overheard and, if I remember correctly, recorded by a Democrat who happened to be within earshot.
But people will still be free to say insulting things about white Americans and other groups. Maybe not about gays.
If the NBA wants to be fair, they are probably going to have to require that all owners submit tapes for all their phone conversations to the NBA. It is certainly unfair that Sterling gets punished simply because someone taped his conversations, when we have no idea if the other owners are saying the same or worse.
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