The Firing of Juan Williams From NPR

TheMercenary · 10-21-2010, 12:42 PM

This is BS. NPR made a big mistake.

glatt · 10-21-2010, 12:45 PM

Quote:

Williams' presence on the largely conservative and often contentious prime-time talk shows of Fox News has long been a sore point with NPR News executives.

They have been looking for an excuse to get rid of him.

classicman · 10-21-2010, 02:14 PM

Quote:

"But when I get on the plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous."

He told the truth. An ugly truth that many people are too ashamed to admit.

Quote:

NPR issued a statement praising Williams as a valuable contributor but saying it had given him notice that it is severing his contract. "His remarks on The O'Reilly Factor this past Monday were inconsistent with our editorial standards and practices, and undermined his credibility as a news analyst with NPR," the statement read.

Bold mine - Apparently honesty is inconsistent with NPR lately. Fuck them.
More opinions here.

monster · 10-21-2010, 03:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by classicman

He told the truth. An ugly truth that many people are too ashamed to admit.

For real? I don't think that. Am I in the minority? Srsly?

Shawnee123 · 10-21-2010, 03:30 PM

Quote:

He told the truth. An ugly truth that many xenophobic unthinking people are too ashamed to admit, and should be.

Don't worry, I FTFH.

xoxoxoBruce · 10-21-2010, 03:38 PM

Quote:

Williams' presence on the largely conservative and often contentious prime-time talk shows of Fox News has long been a sore point with NPR News executives.

I see, so NPR doesn't want to fair and balanced either.

Undertoad · 10-21-2010, 03:38 PM

This is some new level of political correctness and I think Richard Fernandez put it well when he calls it a new form of blasphemy: things that simply cannot be said.

Quote:

This is the modern age of faith, and how. Under these circumstances occasions of offense are likely to multiply and not diminish. Belief, and therefore blasphemy, is back. Ironically it has returned just as the secular world was congratulating itself on creating a multicultural world in which religion had been banished to domestic altars. It was in fact creating its parody all along: a patchwork of monocultures, a series of echo-chambers, a checkerboard of ghettos each with its own public idol living in uneasy proximity with each other.

At this rate there must eventually come a time when we simply cannot understand each other, when people suddenly jump up at the mention of opening an egg on the big, or mayhap, on the little end, when the demand for reasons itself will have become the ultimate disrespect.

classicman · 10-21-2010, 03:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by monster

For real? I don't think that. Am I in the minority? Srsly?

Yes. And since you are a "loser" your opinion doesn't count.

glatt · 10-21-2010, 03:41 PM

I don't think it either, but "many people" is a meaningless phrase. "Many people" starts with an "m" like "most people" but it doesn't mean "most people" at all. "Most" means "greater than 50%." It has a mathematical definition. "Many" is arbitrary and could mean anything. Anywhere from oh, 4 people, to 5 billion people.

Shawnee123 · 10-21-2010, 03:42 PM

I'm frightened and cold.

Shawnee123 · 10-21-2010, 03:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by glatt

I don't think it either, but "many people" is a meaningless phrase. "Many people" starts with an "m" like "most people" but it doesn't mean "most people" at all. "Most" means "greater than 50%." It has a mathematical definition. "Many" is arbitrary and could mean anything. Anywhere from oh, 4 people, to 5 billion people.

Anything could mean one thing or two things or many things or most things or all things. Anywhere could mean one where or two wheres or many wheres or most wheres or all wheres.

classicman · 10-21-2010, 03:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by glatt

"many people" is a meaningless phrase.

I intentionally said many to leave it arbitrary. I would guess that it is a lot more than you want to believe.

Shawnee123 · 10-21-2010, 03:52 PM

It was the topic of discussion on This Week with Christiane Amanpour recently. Very heated opinions on both sides. I do think that feeling is more prevalent than is known.

Flint · 10-21-2010, 03:58 PM

I often wonder whether what I'm observing people do is pretend to feel a certain way because they are "supposed to" ... and furthermore: do they realize that they are doing this, or is it embedded deep enough to escape their own self-perception? This thought often occurs to me when the "obviously right" thing doesn't feel obvious to me. The worst part of this is that it feels like a horrific dystopian sci-fi novel--but it is real, and it is really happening. A chorus of all-agreeing voices hammer down every inconsistency. This doesn't feel like enlightenment, it feels like intellectual tyranny.

Lamplighter · 10-21-2010, 04:27 PM

Do Catholics, Jews, or Amish in their customary attire make Juan nervous too ?
Probably not.

There's a bit of irony there...
People (used to) say that sort of thing about being on a bus with black men,
but of course Juan is not bigoted like those people.

In my opinion, these sort of events are part of the way society changes for the better.
When people see there are negative consequences of bigotry,
they tend to think twice about belittling the minority.

10-21-2010, 12:42 PM	#1
TheMercenary “Hypocrisy: prejudice with a halo” Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Savannah, Georgia Posts: 21,393	The Firing of Juan Williams From NPR This is BS. NPR made a big mistake. __________________ Anyone but the this most fuked up President in History in 2012!

10-21-2010, 03:42 PM	#10
Shawnee123 Why, you're a regular Alfred E Einstein, ain't ya? Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 21,206	I'm frightened and cold. __________________ A word to the wise ain't necessary - it's the stupid ones who need the advice. --Bill Cosby

10-21-2010, 03:52 PM	#13
Shawnee123 Why, you're a regular Alfred E Einstein, ain't ya? Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 21,206	It was the topic of discussion on This Week with Christiane Amanpour recently. Very heated opinions on both sides. I do think that feeling is more prevalent than is known. __________________ A word to the wise ain't necessary - it's the stupid ones who need the advice. --Bill Cosby

10-21-2010, 03:58 PM	#14
Flint Snowflake Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Dystopia Posts: 13,136	I often wonder whether what I'm observing people do is pretend to feel a certain way because they are "supposed to" ... and furthermore: do they realize that they are doing this, or is it embedded deep enough to escape their own self-perception? This thought often occurs to me when the "obviously right" thing doesn't feel obvious to me. The worst part of this is that it feels like a horrific dystopian sci-fi novel--but it is real, and it is really happening. A chorus of all-agreeing voices hammer down every inconsistency. This doesn't feel like enlightenment, it feels like intellectual tyranny. __________________ **************** There's a level of facility that everyone needs to accomplish, and from there it's a matter of deciding for yourself how important ultra-facility is to your expression. ... I found, like Joseph Campbell said, if you just follow whatever gives you a little joy or excitement or awe, then you're on the right track. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Terry Bozzio**

10-21-2010, 03:41 PM	#9
glatt ™ Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Arlington, VA Posts: 27,717	I don't think it either, but "many people" is a meaningless phrase. "Many people" starts with an "m" like "most people" but it doesn't mean "most people" at all. "Most" means "greater than 50%." It has a mathematical definition. "Many" is arbitrary and could mean anything. Anywhere from oh, 4 people, to 5 billion people.

10-21-2010, 04:27 PM	#15
Lamplighter Person who doesn't update the user title Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Bottom lands of the Missoula floods Posts: 6,402	Do Catholics, Jews, or Amish in their customary attire make Juan nervous too ? Probably not. There's a bit of irony there... People (used to) say that sort of thing about being on a bus with black men, but of course Juan is not bigoted like those people. In my opinion, these sort of events are part of the way society changes for the better. When people see there are negative consequences of bigotry, they tend to think twice about belittling the minority.

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