MIKE GOLD: Casting the first stone
Don Imus uttered a phrase that was heard around the world. Of course, his radio show is broadcast across the world on sundry radio and cable television stations, but you get the idea.
Last Wednesday Mr. Imus referred to the Rutgers’ women’s basketball team as “nappy headed hos.” Sadly, he wasn’t referring to the late Dan Blocker. On Friday Imus apologized for his remarks in no uncertain terms, and his host company CBS said they’d put his show on a tighter leash.
Now, I’m a First Amendment absolutelist, and there’s not “but” at the end of that sentence. If Winston cigarettes wants to resume sponsoring The Flintstones and the broadcasting outlets want to advertise it, that’s fine by me. It’s free speech, and it always applies to all sides of any debate.
That doesn’t mean that people shouldn’t react to it. If you don’t like Imus for any reason whatsoever, you don’t have to listen to the show. I don’t because after 40 years it’s grown self-righteous and lame – in my opinion. But that’s my right. You don’t have to sponsor it, you don’t have to broadcast it on your affiliated station.
But let’s remember one thing. Everybody says stupid things from time to time. Anybody who has ever been married knows this. Rev. Al Sharpton, who has called for Imus’s termination, should know this – particularly after the Tawana Brawley situation, which Sharpton properly explained away by saying “because I believed her.” He should grant Imus the same license. He made a stupid mistake.
Predictably, everybody you’d guess is calling for Imus’s well-endowed scalp. He committed the sin of unthinking political incorrectness, and he did so in as little as three words. It’s not as if he’s got an entire career making such offensive statements, like, say, Bill Donohue or Louis Farrakhan or any number of other people I could mention.
A couple years ago, Farrakhan renounced his extreme statements and we were expected to take that at face value, and I did. Should we not grant Imus the same opportunity? Last week, in response to his skewering on the current episode of South Park, Donohue admitted he comes on “a bit strong” and he said he laughed his ass off at the teevee show. Should we not grant Imus the same understanding?
Back in the day, my radio show on (then) WEAW-FM in Chicago was followed by a half hour from the syndicated Reverend Carl MacIntyre, a man so far to the right he actually “exposed” both the FBI and the Boy Scouts of America as Communist plots. One of his listeners tuned in early and heard me playing the Grateful Dead’s version of “Turn On Your Lovelight” and got all offended, saying I was promoting prostitution. Like Sharpton, she filed a complaint with the FCC. Being more liberal times (it was during the Nixon Administration) the FCC overseer ruled in my favor – but only after the radio station spent more in legal fees than they did on my show.
Imus was stupid. Don’t listen if you don’t want to, but let everybody else make up their own minds.
Yes, that’s the maarketplace of ideas, which is how this is supposed to work. On the other hand, the First Amendment does not guarantee you a multi-million dollar salary for saying stupid things (if it does, I’m severely underpaid). Sharpton wasn’t getting paid by a major media outlet when he defended Brawley, but Imus is getting money from CBS and MSNBC for being a moron.
A couple of thoughts. I don’t listen to Imus, either, but my first reaction on hearing this story was, "What was he thinking? Imus has been around long enough — he knows better. He knows what will happen." And then the cynical Chicagoan part of me said, "Yeah, he does." Get people talking about you, good or bad; just so long as they talk about you.
Secondly — myself, I DON’T believe there’s an ABSOLUTE right to freedom of speech any more than here is an ABSOLUTE right to anything else in the Bill of Rights. For one thing, there’s libel laws. In times of war, what a newspaper can print gets limited and the courts allow it.
The fact that our rights are not absolute does not mean we do not have rights. I forget who said it but there’s a saying that goes that someone’s right to freedom of expression ends when their fist meets another person’s jaw.
Maybe it’s having been raised RC but I have a mistrust of ANYTHING that is ABSOLUTE because then we have DOGMA. The land where questioning ends, thinking stops, and acceptance is mandatory.
Imus has never been my thing, so I can't express my displeasure with his dunder-headedness by listening to him any less. However, free speech means people can demand he be fired. Free speech doesn't mean they get what they want, but they're allowed to say they want it.
I’m suggesting that the marketplace decides. As long as they bring in the ratings, they get work. That’s capitalism. But they aren’t guaranteed an audience.
Personally, I don’t think firing Imus is a good idea. Not only is it wrong morally and legally, but it also makes a martyr out of him. The public discourse doesn’t benefit from another poor, persecuted straight white man.
I am SO sick of this PC world. Imus is not funny, which is why I don’t listen to him. But fire a guy for saying something stupid? Well among other things that would leave us without a President would it not?
Absolutely. And I, in response, said Al was wrong.
So, you're suggesting free speech rights do not apply to David Letterman, Jon Stewart, Norman Mailer, Ann Coulter, and other rich folk, or are you suggesting free speech rights only do not apply to those folks who, from time to time, act as morons?
Check your mailbox. When you click our confirmation link, your comment will appear right here:Michael Davis (10:29 AM on Mon Apr 9, 2007) Reply to CommentI am SO sick of this PC world. Imus is not funny, which is why I don't listen to him. But fire a guy for saying something stupid? Well among other things that would leave us without a President would it not?
Personally, I was more offended as a Female than anything else. It wasn’t a racist issue at all. And in light of all the comments and public comparisons between rap stars and this incredibly minor comment by Imus, this thing is so way blown out of proportion I can’t believe people are wasting their time on it. News must be incredbly light these days! I guess, now that we actually KNOW who the father of Anna’s baby is, we will have to fabricate news out of thin air! What a waste of TV/Radio/Internet and Press time!
CBS has the right to fire Imus for not representing their corporate image, and sponsors certainly have the right to pull their advertising. CBS put its money where its mouth is: Imus brought in more than $22 million a year. But NBC News is run by a bunch of assholes. They did it to "save the children???" C'mon, give me a break. And for the next two weeks, at least, they're replacing Imus with Mike Barnicle, the columnist who was fired from the Boston Globe for plagiarizing from one of George Carlin's best-sellers. What's NBC News' message to the kiddies — it's okay to steal as long as you're polite about it?
Wow! Good stuff, and getting better and better. I’m on the edge of my seat, already anticipating the next few pages.
I actually enjoyed the use of "blue" language here. It’s appropriate to the story and character that GJ be screaming, "Bitch" and "Whore!"
The line, "Take your tongue out of that pussy, you don’t know where it’s been," is pornographically funny. It might have been too obvious to be funny and too pornographic to actually show BlacJac performing cunnilingus. It’s strange, where I’ve argued against gratuitous sex, nudity, violence and language in ComicMix stories, here’s an example where if you had chosen to show both BlacJac and Mannachs nude and having sex, I would find it perfectly justifiable, given the circumstances of the story. Just showing them necking is a good PG compromise.
I think using the word "pussy" again, especially after calling BlacJac a "cat’s-paw," makes that line too punny and a little redundant.
Mannachs is looking a lot sexier and more feminine here. I wonder if she appeared more monsterish to St. John because he’s gay and thus less prone to her feminine wiles. Why try to seduce what can’t be seduced!
I don’t understand BlacJac’s robe. He looks like he’s dressing up as Hugh Hefner for Halloween.
BlacJac’s daddy looks familiar, but I can’t place him. I will have to go looking through back issues. Is he a Lawkiller? … Nope. Mac Cabre, one of Dancer’s men. Thank you Wikipedia. This makes me want to reread all the old stuff.
*SPOILER ALERT* (I’m going to muse on elements of the story that haven’t been shown.)
Now, where’s Goddess? Maybe Mannach’s possessed her, maybe that’s why the Avatar of Chaos is looking sexier. But I don’t think so. Which leads me to conclude that Mannachs is either supremely stupid or just very instinctual or preprogrammed about her actions. Because if Mannachs read BlacJac’s mind, which she can, she would have seen that his Girlfriend is Goddess. If there is one character who has Cosmic Power on par with the Lord Protector, the power to SHWUMP Mannachs, it’s Goddess. If Mannachs was capable of rational thought she would never touch Goddess’ man. So I don’t think Mannachs is capable of rational thought. She’s an object, a weapon, an animal, trained and set loose to do it’s job. And I’m not sure if self-preservation is a high priority for an Avatar of Chaos, something that is literally hell-bent on the destruction of everything.
But whether Goddess is possessed or not, she is going to be righteously pissed. First with Mannachs for touching her man and then with poor GJ for putting BlacJac in harms way.
For the record: Great writing, John. Great art, Tim. Thank you.
"Is that the best you can do? I 've lived with this nightmare for close to twenty years!" Hey, wait a minute how old is the Grinner here? I placed him n the Demon wars to be early twenties,,,21 maybe 22. Are we saying these RetroJack stories take place when Gaunt is 40? I have him in my mind 55, or 56 (my age.) This story line picks up with him muttering things like "this used to be easier" and hinting he well past his prime and living off his street cred. What gives?
Maybe for the first 15 years after the Demon Wars, Grinner was too hell shocked to even have nightmares about them. I place RetroJack in his fifties too, but forties is possible, he’s lived a hard life. "ReincarnJack" or is it "CloneJack" is physically more like 30, but that comes later.
Okay Russ, I can accept your explanation. Demon Wars at age 21 plus 15 years of shellshock/PTDS/heavy drinking and what Gaunt refers to as "The Dark" taking over. He is now 56 but only has had the nightmares for "twenty years." That makes so much sense in the old days it would have earned you a "No Prize"… and you would have to be Gaunt's age to know why that is true
Thanks. I'll take that "No-Prize!" Personally, I was proud of the pun "hell shocked."And I forgot about "The Dark."
Sorry, gents, but you're both wrong. There was a short GJ story in, I think, issue 24 of the original series. Tim came back specially to draw it. It was set on Gaunt's 50th birthday. THE MANX CAT follows on KILLER INSTINCT and both are set BEFORE the original run. Gaunt, at the time of this story, is somewhere in his early 40s. I did the math; that's why he says "twenty years".– John
I can accept being wrong. 40 years of drinking and hard living can make anyone look a bit grizzled. Heck, I'm 46 and grizzled, and I've led a life of temperance and sloth!Thanks for doing the math and the writing too! Rock on! –Russ