Imus reality check by black commentators

Imus fallout continues because it goes to the core of certain social problems.

Consider the "I'm victimized" position of Obama who, for the first time, has given me reason to think he's truly another dim bulb in the company of many dim-bulb presidential candidates.

His take: "He (Imus) fed into some of the worst stereotypes that my two young daughters are having to deal with today in America. The notions that as young African-American women — who I hope will be athletes — that that somehow makes them less beautiful or less important. It was a degrading comment..." He also called for the resignation of ol' Imus.

Fortunately, there are more intelligent African American leaders than Obama. Among them is Michelle Malkin, a black columnist for the New York Post, who wrote, in part, yesterday:

"The number one rap track is by a new sensation who goes by the name of 'Mims.' The 'song' is 'This Is Why I'm Hot.' It has topped the charts for the last 15 weeks. Here's a taste of the lyrics that young men and women are cranking up in their cars:
------
This is why I'm hot
Catch me on the block
Every other day
Another bitch another drop
16 bars, 24 pop
44 songs, nigga gimme what you got
We into big spinners
See my pimping never dragged
Find me wit' different women that you niggas never had
For those who say they know me know I'm focused on ma cream
Player you come between you'd better focus on the beam
I keep it so mean the way you see me lean
And when I say I'm hot my nigga dis is what I mean
-----
She ends her column with this:

"One dumb radio/television shock jock's insult is a drop in the ocean of barbaric filth and anti-female hatred on the radio.

"Imus gets a two-week suspension. What kind of relief do we get from this deadening, coarsening, dehumanizing barrage from young, black rappers and their music-industry enablers who have helped turn America into Tourette's Nation?"

Now, read the last two paragraphs of this column by Jason Whitlock, also an African American, published yesterday in the Kansas City Star:


"I don’t listen or watch Imus’ show regularly. Has he at any point glorified selling crack cocaine to black women? Has he celebrated black men shooting each other randomly? Has he suggested in any way that it’s cool to be a baby-daddy rather than a husband and a parent? Does he tell his listeners that they’re suckers for pursuing education and that they’re selling out their race if they do?

"When Imus does any of that, call me and I’ll get upset. Until then, he is what he is — a washed-up shock jock who is very easy to ignore when you’re not looking to be made a victim.

"No. We all know where the real battleground is. We know that the gangsta rappers and their followers in the athletic world have far bigger platforms to negatively define us than some old white man with a bad radio show. There’s no money and lots of danger in that battle, so Jesse and Al are going to sit it out."

Jason's column is on the money. I urge you to read it from the beginning.