Beneath the Spin * Eric L. Wattree
An Open Letter to Cornel West
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Your explanation for your comment that President Obama is a "Rockefeller Republican in blackface" is as lame and disingenuous a cop out as I've ever heard. You claimed that your critics are trivializing your comment by not getting to the core of your assertion, which was President Obama is a "Rockefeller Republican." Then YOU tried to trivialize the significance of the addendum, "in blackface," as though it was meaningless, by saying, "I have a black face, you have a black face, my mother has a black face," etc.
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Well, if you know that the phrase "in blackface" is going to distract from the core issue, why don't you stick to the core issue and stop adding such racially offensive language? Could it be for the publicity? I think it is, and your cavalier attitude in this matter speaks volumes. Obviously, your passionate craving for publicity and need to promote the Smiley/West Corporation takes precedence over whether or not you offend the Black community. So it seems that your infamous "love for your people" stops at your pocketbook.
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Then just as bad, and just as disrespectful - this time, however, directed at the entire Black community - you have the unmitigated gall to now come on this show, and in your most self-righteous and condescending tone, try to tell Black people who took issue with your comment that they’re just being silly for objecting to your blatantly racist statement. In other words, we’re too stupid to know a racist comment when we hear one.
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Cornel, you’re indulging in the exact same kind of racist act of conflation as any vicious, petty, and unrepentant bigot. You know the kind - the ones who go on Fox News and talk about "Welfare Queens," when everybody in the world knows they’re actually talking about black women in general; or say, "We’ve got to do something about crime," when they actually mean, it’s time to start brutalizing and killing more Black men. Then when they’re confronted with it, just like you, they say, "Ooooh, where did you find that race card? That wasn’t what I meant at all!"
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So "brother," you ain’t foolin’ nobody. The depth of your self-serving racist behavior would make Jesse Helms blush.
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And regarding this so-called "Poverty Summit" at the White House that you and Tavis are calling for - I assume you and Smiley expect to attend to advocate on behalf of "the people." Well, I have one question - what people? No one elected you and Tavis to represent the Black community, and we don't need you to speak for us.
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The Black community is communicating with the White House on a daily basis through thousands of letters, emails, phone calls, and our ELECTED officials. In addition, we just touched base with the president through the polls in the last election. So the president undoubtedly knows more about what's on the mind of the Black community than you do - that's how he knows you're irrevelant.
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So is this so-call summit that you two are calling for designed to help the poor and Black community - after all, you've never done anything for us before - or is it actually about shining a national spotlight on a group of nonproductive, loudmouth, egomaniacs who crave national attention? If your history is any indication, I'd say the latter. So here's a news flash. Your time has passed, and the Black community is sick to death of you. So, please, go away and let us handle our business.
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Cornel,
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Once again you’re trying to defend the indefensible. And once again, you’re trying to blame your critics for your failure to communicate effectively. When you make a comment, it is up to YOU to keep your message focused and uncluttered enough to communicate your ideas effectively, not the listener.
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In addition, when a listener listens to a speaker, he or she is not simply listening to the content of the speaker’s message, he’s also assessing the messenger himself for any subtleties or nuances that might suggest a hidden agenda, reckless and inefficient thinking, or any other shortcomings that might mitigate the weight that he should assign to the speaker’s message. Thus, when you added “in blackface” to your comment, considering it’s racist connotation, you should have known that it would overwhelm what you insist was the “core” of your statement. So the mere fact that you now, in my opinion, feign that the uproar caught you by complete surprise, speaks volumes about either your judgment, or your veracity.
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West, I used to be a huge fan of both you and Smiley’s. But your tendency to engage in reckless, irresponsible, and unsubstantiated statements like the one currently under discussion led me to start researching who you really are nearly five years ago, and what I’ve found is literally embarrassing. Now, with this latest controversy, you’re merely reinforcing what I already know - if you were even close to the “powerful intellectual” that your 35 years of hype has suggested, we wouldn’t even be having this discussion. And brother, that’s comin’ from a common hood rat.
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http://smileyandwest.ning.com/forum/topics/take-em-to-task-blackface-comments
.
And regarding this so-called "Poverty Summit" at the White House that you and Tavis are calling for - I assume you and Smiley expect to attend to advocate on behalf of "the people." Well, I have one question - what people? No one elected you and Tavis to represent the Black community, and we don't need you to speak for us.
.
The Black community is communicating with the White House on a daily basis through thousands of letters, emails, phone calls, and our ELECTED officials. In addition, we just touched base with the president through the polls in the last election. So the president undoubtedly knows more about what's on the mind of the Black community than you do - that's how he knows you're irrevelant.
.
So is this so-call summit that you two are calling for designed to help the poor and Black community - after all, you've never done anything for us before - or is it actually about shining a national spotlight on a group of nonproductive, loudmouth, egomaniacs who crave national attention? If your history is any indication, I'd say the latter. So here's a news flash. Your time has passed, and the Black community is sick to death of you. So, please, go away and let us handle our business.
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FOLLOWUP COMMUNICATION
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Once again you’re trying to defend the indefensible. And once again, you’re trying to blame your critics for your failure to communicate effectively. When you make a comment, it is up to YOU to keep your message focused and uncluttered enough to communicate your ideas effectively, not the listener.
.
In addition, when a listener listens to a speaker, he or she is not simply listening to the content of the speaker’s message, he’s also assessing the messenger himself for any subtleties or nuances that might suggest a hidden agenda, reckless and inefficient thinking, or any other shortcomings that might mitigate the weight that he should assign to the speaker’s message. Thus, when you added “in blackface” to your comment, considering it’s racist connotation, you should have known that it would overwhelm what you insist was the “core” of your statement. So the mere fact that you now, in my opinion, feign that the uproar caught you by complete surprise, speaks volumes about either your judgment, or your veracity.
.
West, I used to be a huge fan of both you and Smiley’s. But your tendency to engage in reckless, irresponsible, and unsubstantiated statements like the one currently under discussion led me to start researching who you really are nearly five years ago, and what I’ve found is literally embarrassing. Now, with this latest controversy, you’re merely reinforcing what I already know - if you were even close to the “powerful intellectual” that your 35 years of hype has suggested, we wouldn’t even be having this discussion. And brother, that’s comin’ from a common hood rat.
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http://smileyandwest.ning.com/forum/topics/take-em-to-task-blackface-comments
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Religious bigotry: It's not that I hate everyone who doesn't look, think, and act like me - it's just that God does.