Bill Cosby at it again

[MODU]

Two years have passed, and I still enjoy the new vocal Bill Cosby. 

"Bill Cosby Slammed for Comments in New Orleans"

At a rally attended by Revs. Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton on Saturday, comedian and actor Bill Cosby urged residents of hurricane-ravaged New Orleans, Louisiana, to "cleanse" themselves from the city's history of crime, violence, drugs and teen pregnancies.

Cosby has come underfire by the civil-rights establishment for comments across the US in which he's told young blacks to turn away from influences in rap music, stop violence and underage sex, and focus more on education and morality.

Cosby told the crowd, "It's painful, but we can't cleanse ourselves unless we look at the wound. Ladies and gentlemen, you had the highest murder rate, unto each other. You were dealing drugs to each other. You were impregnating our 13-, 12-, 11-year-old children. What kind of a village is that?

At the rally in N.O. -- a city devastated by Hurricane Katrina last August -- Cosby told 2,000 people in front of the Convention Center of his desire for the city's society to have an "extreme make-over."

As is usual, Cosby is being slammed by most civil-rights leaders and black pundits who claim his comments hurt "the cause."  They've attacked his speeches as being insensitive and wrong.

"They don't like it when [Cosby] puts the blame on pathological behavior in the black community rather than the shop-worn tactic of blaming "whitey" for the problems in black neighborhoods," claims Mike Baker a political analyst.

"The crowd and the speakers expected the usual 'George Bush' bashing and racism allegations. Cosby gave them a mirror and they didn't like what they saw."

According to the latest crime statistics for the embattled city, violent crime is on the rise once again. Some can be attributed to illegal aliens coming to New Orleans for jobs or outsiders looking to exploit the still chaotic environment, but much of the crime is occurring within the black community.

While people such as Rev. Jesse Jackson has voiced concerns over Cosby's speeches, in the past Jackson himself has chastised African-Americans in poor neighborhoods for what came to be known as "black-on-black crime."

Just for old times sake:

[John Dibble]

Good for Cosby. He's a real stand up guy - the black community needs more like him, not more of the ones who cry victim whenever something bad happens to blacks. I know blacks who've worked hard, lived in ways that aren't self-destructive, and thusly met their potential and it is definitely a good thing when it happens.

[afleitch]

Well done Cosby. Once again he has my utmost respect for taking a stand and saying things that every community must say to themselves.

[David S]

Good for Cosby. He's a real stand up guy - the black community needs more like him, not more of the ones who cry victim whenever something bad happens to blacks. I know blacks who've worked hard, lived in ways that aren't self-destructive, and thusly met their potential and it is definitely a good thing when it happens.

^^^^

[MasterJedi]

Well done Cosby. Once again he has my utmost respect for taking a stand and saying things that every community must say to themselves.

Good for Cosby. He's a real stand up guy - the black community needs more like him, not more of the ones who cry victim whenever something bad happens to blacks. I know blacks who've worked hard, lived in ways that aren't self-destructive, and thusly met their potential and it is definitely a good thing when it happens.

^^^^^ to both of those.

[??????????]

Good for Cosby. He's a real stand up guy - the black community needs more like him, not more of the ones who cry victim whenever something bad happens to blacks. I know blacks who've worked hard, lived in ways that aren't self-destructive, and thusly met their potential and it is definitely a good thing when it happens.

Cracker, they ARE victims of the owning class. I support nothing less then full reparations for the black man. I never knew you hated a black, dibble.

[John Dibble]

Good for Cosby. He's a real stand up guy - the black community needs more like him, not more of the ones who cry victim whenever something bad happens to blacks. I know blacks who've worked hard, lived in ways that aren't self-destructive, and thusly met their potential and it is definitely a good thing when it happens.

Cracker, they ARE victims of the owning class. I support nothing less then full reparations for the black man. I never knew you hated a black, dibble.

You forgot the [opebo] [/opebo] tags States. However, spot on impression.

[ATFFL]

Cosby changed his attitude after Tawana Brawley.  He became vocal about things after his son was killed. 

[ian]

He cheated on his wife of a million years.  Yeah, a real stand-up guy.

[John Dibble]

He cheated on his wife of a million years.  Yeah, a real stand-up guy.

Never claimed he was perfect. Not one person on this planet is.

But do you think he's wrong on this issue or something?

[ian]

He cheated on his wife of a million years.  Yeah, a real stand-up guy.

Never claimed he was perfect. Not one person on this planet is.

But do you think he's wrong on this issue or something?

No, but anything he has to say preaching how other people should live their lives sounds like a hypocracy to me.

[MODU]

He cheated on his wife of a million years.  Yeah, a real stand-up guy.

Never claimed he was perfect. Not one person on this planet is.

But do you think he's wrong on this issue or something?

No, but anything he has to say preaching how other people should live their lives sounds like a hypocracy to me.

Not once you have already admitted your faults and are sharing your experiences with others.  Otherwise, everyone would be hypocrits (which everyone is to begin with . . . but hey, who's counting?).

[J. J.]

Cosby expresses openly what the "Black Community" says in private.

[Speed of Sound]

Hey, if Cosby wants to say ut, he should be able to without coming under fire. Sadly, hes misunderstood by many of the radicals.

[John Dibble]

He cheated on his wife of a million years.  Yeah, a real stand-up guy.

Never claimed he was perfect. Not one person on this planet is.

But do you think he's wrong on this issue or something?

No, but anything he has to say preaching how other people should live their lives sounds like a hypocracy to me.

Tell me this - have you ever done one thing in your life that you knew was wrong and regretted doing? I'm gonna wager the answer is yes. I would also presume afterwards that you've told someone what they should do with their lives to some degree. If that's the case then you're just as much of a hypocrite. But that doesn't really meet reasonable standards of hypocrisy - hypocrisy involves not practicing what you preach. If your past actions went against what you are currently preaching, it's only relevant if you're still doing it. If you stopped and are practicing what you preach, then you aren't a hypocrite. Cosby might be a hypocrite if he still cheats on his wife, but unless you can prove he is doing so I wouldn't consider him a hypocrite.

And even if he is a hypocrite, he's saying what needs to be said to the black community. The civil rights 'leaders' who like to cry victim every time something bad happens to blacks are probably far more hypocritical than Cosby anyways - if you want to point out hypocrisy, you might want to give them a looksee. Saying that they need to value education, hard work, and get away from things that are self-destructive is common sense.

[dazzleman]

Cosby expresses openly what the "Black Community" says in private.

It's too bad that they say it in private, and then condemn anybody who says it publicly.

Cosby is right in much of what he says.  More blacks need to start saying it, and maybe things will change for the better.

I read a study today on the worsening conditions for black males in our society -- the dropout rates, unemployment rates, incarceration rates, etc.  Much of this is due to the fact that they have no positive male role models, since our 'compassionate' welfare system helped to subsidize fathers right out of many black homes (among other reasons).

It seems to me that the situation can hardly get worse for those growing up in the inner cities.  Denial of the real issues that Cosby raises does no good for those living in the inner cities.

[dazzleman]

He cheated on his wife of a million years.  Yeah, a real stand-up guy.

Never claimed he was perfect. Not one person on this planet is.

But do you think he's wrong on this issue or something?

No, but anything he has to say preaching how other people should live their lives sounds like a hypocracy to me.

Ian, with all respect, I really think you are dead wrong.  Cosby is addressing serious issues that need to be addressed, and if they are successfully addressed, the biggest winner will be the black community. 

Following your philosophy, nobody would ever be able to advocate any type of positive change if they were less than perfect, which is an impossibility.

The current situation hurts blacks more than anybody else.  White people, despite paying lip service to integration, have chosen to largely isolate themselves from blacks in order to avoid living with the effects of the social problems that Cosby is attempting to address.  But where do blacks who want to avoid these problems go?  The toughest position in society today is that of a black person who aspires to something better than what is available in the inner cities, and faces rejection from the black community and is uncertain of acceptance by the rest of society.

If Cosby can make the lives of these people a bit easier by getting people to address longstanding and worsening social problems, then the hypocisy of which you accuse him is a very small price to pay.

[TeePee4Prez]

Cosby expresses openly what the "Black Community" says in private.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I agree.  I've said this a million times before.  If it weren't for economic issues, there would be many more black Republicans.  I find on social issues they are sometimes more Republican than whites on issues such as church and state, gay marriage, etc.  I rarely see white Bible thumpers where I live but plenty of blacks who are.

[dazzleman]

Cosby expresses openly what the "Black Community" says in private.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I agree.  I've said this a million times before.  If it weren't for economic issues, there would be many more black Republicans.  I find on social issues they are sometimes more Republican than whites on issues such as church and state, gay marriage, etc.  I rarely see white Bible thumpers where I live but plenty of blacks who are.

There's a lot a think none of us understand here.

For one thing, it's hard to understand how a demographic group that is said to be highly conservative socially has the vast majority of its children born out of wedlock.

That is the thing I can't get past.  The bible thumping is one thing, but in terms of everyday life, many members of the black community have taken the destructive aspects of social liberalism to heights not dreamed of even on the upper west side of Manhattan, or in San Francisco.

[TeePee4Prez]

Cosby expresses openly what the "Black Community" says in private.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I agree.  I've said this a million times before.  If it weren't for economic issues, there would be many more black Republicans.  I find on social issues they are sometimes more Republican than whites on issues such as church and state, gay marriage, etc.  I rarely see white Bible thumpers where I live but plenty of blacks who are.

There's a lot a think none of us understand here.

For one thing, it's hard to understand how a demographic group that is said to be highly conservative socially has the vast majority of its children born out of wedlock.

That is the thing I can't get past.  The bible thumping is one thing, but in terms of everyday life, many members of the black community have taken the destructive aspects of social liberalism to heights not dreamed of even on the upper west side of Manhattan, or in San Francisco.

I forgot to mention that I notice this amongst older and middle aged blacks, not younger ones.  True, it's common to see 38 year old grandmothers in that community, but they're the ones who are the Bible thumpers- after they had a kid at 18 and their kid had one at the same age. 

[Filuwaúrdjan]

That is the thing I can't get past.  The bible thumping is one thing, but in terms of everyday life, many members of the black community have taken the destructive aspects of social liberalism to heights not dreamed of even on the upper west side of Manhattan, or in San Francisco.

Poverty is actually the main reason for that sort of thing (similer patterns exist in poor, socially conservative places in the U.K and always have done) but not in the way that people think.

[dazzleman]

That is the thing I can't get past.  The bible thumping is one thing, but in terms of everyday life, many members of the black community have taken the destructive aspects of social liberalism to heights not dreamed of even on the upper west side of Manhattan, or in San Francisco.

Poverty is actually the main reason for that sort of thing (similer patterns exist in poor, socially conservative places in the U.K and always have done) but not in the way that people think.

Actually, I think it's the reverse, that these behavior patterns cause poverty, and prevent people from ever escaping it.

It's like alcoholism -- does the alcoholic drink because he has problems, or does he have problems because he drinks?  A little bit of both, usually, but one thing's for sure -- his problems won't be solved while he's still drinking.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Actually, I think it's the reverse, that these behavior patterns cause poverty, and prevent people from ever escaping it.

While they certainly don't help to escape from poverty, problems like that (and associated things like drug abuse, like widespread alcoholism, like anti-social behavior, etc) certainly don't cause the problems either. Best way to look at them is as secondary problems, in that while they are basically symptoms of wider social problems, they are also social problems in their own right (and in some areas extremely serious ones at that) and as such, have to be dealt with.
One thing that can be suprisingly effective is repainting doors and stuff.

Besides many of those things are also done by people in affluent areas, it's just that the latter have ways of avoiding certain consequences of their actions.

[DanielX]

The cause of black poverty goes far back, to slavery and segregation. The social problems Cosby is pointing out sustain the poverty in an era when blacks face much less outside oppression than in the past.

[phk]

Cosby expresses openly what the "Black Community" says in private.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I agree.  I've said this a million times before.  If it weren't for economic issues, there would be many more black Republicans.  I find on social issues they are sometimes more Republican than whites on issues such as church and state, gay marriage, etc.  I rarely see white Bible thumpers where I live but plenty of blacks who are.

For one thing, it's hard to understand how a demographic group that is said to be highly conservative socially has the vast majority of its children born out of wedlock.

That isn't some earth-shattering ocurrence.

Socially liberal Connecticut has a lower ocurrence of adultery than Socially conservative Alabama.

Socially liberal Massachusettes has a lower rate of divorce than Socially conservative Oklahoma.