The Conservative Cat

Man was never funny to me and I never watched Sinfeild either.

In all seriousness, people don't know what they are talking about any more than those hecklers did when they said "you were never 'nuttin, you were just on 'seinfeld' thats it" WRONG he has been acting since the late seventies and he has been in at least seven or eight movies. And Jerry didn't beg him to apologize like some would think, the sales would remain unaffected, just like the fact that Seinfeld re-runs werent pulled from the network either. Kramer didn't lose his cool Michael did. And I didn't here any apology from the black men for calling him a cracker and a 'white-boy'. Racism is as two way street and just because you were called a nigger doesn't give you a free ticket to racially profile either. If you buy a ticket to a movie and don't like it, then get off your fucking ass and leave! That's what people do all the time, you don't sit there and act as immature as you can ruining the show for him and everyone else who DOES like him. They instigated it, they got what was coming to them, unfortunately he choose the the most brazen way to do so.

I agree with this blog but I do have a few points.

1. it’s not the word, it's the way they were said. It's one thing for someone to joke with the intent to be funny, and use a word like nigger or cracker. It's completely different to use a word in complete anger WITH THE INTENT TO OFFEND AND HUMILATE SOMEONE AS IF TO PUT THEM IN THEIR PLACE. It's with the intent that these words have their power, and in this case it was not intended to be a joke. For example, saying there’s a lot of Chinese people here, and saying there’s a lot of f*cking Chinese people here. Same word, different weight and meaning.

2. I'm actually less offended by him yelling nigger, than I am with him saying 50 years ago we would have hung you upside down...etc.. That goes to the heart of images of Jim Crow and the South. If you want to humiliate someone African American, that's how you get to the historical pain. He basically said we used to hang you folk, and you're lucky we don't do it now. Similarly, calling someone a Jew derogatively, it's nothing compared to telling someone we used to throw your kind in a gas chamber, you're lucky we don't do that now. I don't think its funny or comedy material. It's because of this that I believe he really crossed the line.

3. If you were white and went to see Chris Rock and started heckling him - and he lost it and in REAL rage and malice, no longer joking around, started calling you cracker and talked about a painful history as if he wishes it were status quo, I would say he crossed the line as well.

4. Also...I believe that everyone, no matter who you are, is capable of racism whether it's a statement made in anger or a subconsciously directed act. But I don't necessarily think it makes a person a racist. I think that's just a normal part of the human psyche. However having said that, I think it’s naive to think that there’s no difference between the person who initiates racist comments, and one who responds in kind.

My point is only that the primary motive force is anger, not race. He reached for the most hurtful thing he could say and delivered it with willful intent and malice aforethought.

It was the hecklers, not Richards, who started the ball rolling. You can argue that as a professional Richards should have more self-control, but I can't help feeling a little sympathy for the man.