Relax, Paula Deen is just being Jimmy The Greeked!

[Boss]

So Paula Deen, who grew up in the Southern United States, at some point in her life, used a racial slur... the "N" word. Is this surprising to you? I think most people in the South have said the word at least once, it's not like the word automatically means you are a racist to the core and no amount of time can ever change that. Some people, do indeed feel ashamed for using that word in the past, and realize they were wrong. Not just about the word, but about their attitude. Some people actually grow through their life experiences, and become better in character as people, as they mature. Racism is a belief that one race is superior or inferior to another, it has nothing to do with colloquial or socially-inclined language, or youthful ignorance.

I grew up in southern culture, around white people who used the word freely in private, and every now and then, in public as well. They would let one slip out, and cringe, while looking around to see if any black folk were nearby. I don't know if they were racists, or if they ever repented, I don't have the ability to see inside their heart. I can only go by my own heart and life experience. I won't say that I never used the word, but I never felt comfortable saying it, every time that it came from my lips, it felt awkward and wrong. I don't recall ever saying it as an adult. I know that I am not a racist, I don't believe we have race anymore, we're all part of the universal gene pool now.

What is happening to Paula Deen is appalling to me. It's the same thing that happened to Jimmy The Greek, who made some off-key comment about Africans being bred as naturally better athletes, or something. The firestorm which ensued, ended his public life for good. They are destroying Paula the same way, because these are the scapegoats. The examples to be made that we have 'overcome' our racism, when nothing is further from the truth. Every now and then, a sacrificial lamb has to be offered up, so that the institutional racism can continue with a clear conscience.

Take the food biz, for example. Paula Deen made a fortune on her cooking shows, featuring cuisine that largely came from Western Africa, and was brought to this country by slaves. Barbecue, a Southern tradition... came from Africa. But this story is never told. Plantation museums feature blacks as "servants" while every single morsel of the food on the elaborate dining table, was literally "slaved over in the kitchen" which was detached from the main house. What black people have contributed to Southern food culture, is completely ignored, while people like Paula Deen get wealthy off the heritage. I can get far more upset with Paula for this, than for using the "N" word.

I can never forget the first time I had "soul food" in Mississippi. It shocked me, because I was expecting to have something I never had, and it was just like what my grandmother used to cook. I always called it "old-fashioned" cooking. So much of what we call "southern culture" is the result of influence from African culture. Promoters and marketers avoid honesty to play to a white market. Cheerio's recently pulled a commercial because it featured a biracial couple and their mixed child, and this was viewed as too controversial. ...But you see, they've sacrificed Paula for saying the "N" word, so it's all okay!

 

[Boss]

I really thought this thread would generate some comments. I guess everyone must be tired of the whole Paula Deen thing? Maybe they are too wrapped up in the next scapegoat, Zimmerman? Yep, I said it, he's another example of someone who is singled out, portrayed as a racist, and our crucification is supposed to cleanse our souls and make us whole again.

 

[Katzndogz]

Paula Deen used that banned word to her husband describing the man who had just carjacked her.

She has nothing to apologize for. She's moved beyond apologizing to a naked plea to recognize her suffering.

Ding ding Deen . People love to see others suffer. It makes them feel superior.

 

[Boss]

Paula Deen used that banned word to her husband describing the man who had just carjacked her.

She has nothing to apologize for. She's moved beyond apologizing to a naked plea to recognize her suffering.

Ding ding Deen . People love to see others suffer. It makes them feel superior.

I actually think it's more insidious. I think we destroy these people in order to continue in our lily white comfort zone. As long as, every now and then, there is a Paula Deen, George Zimmerman, or Jimmy The Greek, to hoist up on the scaffolds for public crucifiction, we can continue practicing underlying racism in society as a whole. We throw out these little morsels of apathy, to show we're not racists... look, we destroyed Paula Deens career for saying the "N" word, we can't be racists! Look, we sent a man to prison for shooting a black guy, we can't possibly be racists! Meanwhile, as I pointed out, in the food industry alone, billions of dollars have been made off of "southern culture" and "southern cuisine" without the first mention that it came from black people who brought it from Africa.

Recently, in my home state of Alabama, the largest magazine in the south, "Southern Living" published a list of the "Best Barbecue in the South," the Top 5 were all white-owned businesses. I personally know of three black-owned barbecue joints who are better than any on their list, and they weren't even mentioned. Paula Deen got wealthy, and we made her wealthy, buying her books and DVDs, watching her shows, etc., off of what is essentially African cuisine, brought here by slaves. Did you know this? Has Deen or anyone else bothered to mention it? Of course not, because the whole "southern culture" thing is promoted to appeal to white people. Ever seen any black people on Duck Dynasty? Every show, the white folks end up at a table full of Miss Kay's southern cooking, featured prominently in the show, and it is never mentioned that much of it comes from African culture, or Caribbean, Creole and Jamaican culture. No, because you see, white folk don't want to see that shit. And hey.... look.... they've sacrificed another token racist, to show you they aren't racist at all... so it's all okay!

 

[TheOldSchool]

I forgave her. I'm sure I curse a hell of a lot worse than she does.

She was near Julia Child's level as an icon and now she'll be forgotten. I wish all of her supporters hadn't abandoned her so quickly.

 

[Pogo]

I really thought this thread would generate some comments. I guess everyone must be tired of the whole Paula Deen thing? Maybe they are too wrapped up in the next scapegoat, Zimmerman? Yep, I said it, he's another example of someone who is singled out, portrayed as a racist, and our crucification is supposed to cleanse our souls and make us whole again.

There are about a thousand threads on Paula Deen, so your audience is diluted.

Actually they're also deluded, since the lawsuit filed against Deen really has nothing to do with anything she said, recently or in the past. But these mystery comments from years ago, the fuel of media circus that loves drama and hates detail, keep floating to the surface like so many turds in the toilet that is TV.

Very good point about the African derivation of Southern cuisine though (e.g. "Gumbo"-- Bantu word for okra)-- not to mention other things like the banjo so ubiquitous in bluegrass music.

When I was little kids my mother, who grew up on a farm in the deep South, once heard the n-word uttered from one of her children. She immediately corralled all of us and laid down the law that she was never to hear that word from any of us again. And she never did.

 

[Boss]

I really thought this thread would generate some comments. I guess everyone must be tired of the whole Paula Deen thing? Maybe they are too wrapped up in the next scapegoat, Zimmerman? Yep, I said it, he's another example of someone who is singled out, portrayed as a racist, and our crucification is supposed to cleanse our souls and make us whole again.

There are about a thousand threads on Paula Deen, so your audience is diluted.

Actually they're also deluded, since the lawsuit filed against Deen really has nothing to do with anything she said, recently or in the past. But these mystery comments from years ago, the fuel of media circus that loves drama and hates detail, keep floating to the surface like so many turds in the toilet that is TV.

Very good point about the African derivation of Southern cuisine though (e.g. "Gumbo"-- Bantu word for okra)-- not to mention other things like the banjo so ubiquitous in bluegrass music.

When I was little kids my mother, who grew up on a farm in the deep South, once heard the n-word uttered from one of her children. She immediately corralled all of us and laid down the law that she was never to hear that word from any of us again. And she never did.

The banjo is a great illustration, I am glad you mentioned that. Recently, on another forum, the question was raised: "Who has had the greatest influence on modern American music?" Of course, the names reeled off... Elvis, The Beatles, etc... My answer was "African-Americans!" Nearly every genre, has some African influence.

Like you, I was raised in a family which simply didn't tolerate such language, it was just not appropriate. We did have relatives who used epithets, among the grown ups, mostly older ones, who simply grew up in a different culture. As I grew older, I found that many of the people around me, in school and work, were also prone to use the word, always in non-mixed company, of course. So I think it all stems back to how you were raised, and we were raised not to use racial slurs. In my family, I think a lot of this stems from our heritage and family history more than anything esle.

My family came here from the Black Forests near Germany, they were German peasants who fled persecution into the Black Forest to live, and became known as the original "Black Dutch" people. As history would have it, the term "Black Dutch" can apply to a variety of mixed-breed or socially outcast races of people, so it has become somewhat ambiguous. My ancestors were here before the Colonies were even settled, they lived in the Carolinas, and migrated southward into Georgia and Alabama. Along the way, they married Native Americans, people of Creole descent, people of Asian descent, and no telling what else, because they were insatiable horn dogs, most of them had huge families. But we're Mutts. There is no particular "race" of people for me to claim allegiance to, or to oppose. Whenever someone calls me a racist, I literally laugh out loud when reading it. We're all part of the HUMAN race, no matter where our family came from or who they screwed, or screwed over. So-called "race relations" should be just that simple. We can't change our past by stripping down Confederate flags or crucifying people because they, at one time, uttered a racially offensive word! It's what lies in our hearts that matters.

 

[Pogo]

I really thought this thread would generate some comments. I guess everyone must be tired of the whole Paula Deen thing? Maybe they are too wrapped up in the next scapegoat, Zimmerman? Yep, I said it, he's another example of someone who is singled out, portrayed as a racist, and our crucification is supposed to cleanse our souls and make us whole again.

There are about a thousand threads on Paula Deen, so your audience is diluted.

Actually they're also deluded, since the lawsuit filed against Deen really has nothing to do with anything she said, recently or in the past. But these mystery comments from years ago, the fuel of media circus that loves drama and hates detail, keep floating to the surface like so many turds in the toilet that is TV.

Very good point about the African derivation of Southern cuisine though (e.g. "Gumbo"-- Bantu word for okra)-- not to mention other things like the banjo so ubiquitous in bluegrass music.

When I was little kids my mother, who grew up on a farm in the deep South, once heard the n-word uttered from one of her children. She immediately corralled all of us and laid down the law that she was never to hear that word from any of us again. And she never did.

The banjo is a great illustration, I am glad you mentioned that. Recently, on another forum, the question was raised: "Who has had the greatest influence on modern American music?" Of course, the names reeled off... Elvis, The Beatles, etc... My answer was "African-Americans!" Nearly every genre, has some African influence.

Like you, I was raised in a family which simply didn't tolerate such language, it was just not appropriate. We did have relatives who used epithets, among the grown ups, mostly older ones, who simply grew up in a different culture. As I grew older, I found that many of the people around me, in school and work, were also prone to use the word, always in non-mixed company, of course. So I think it all stems back to how you were raised, and we were raised not to use racial slurs. In my family, I think a lot of this stems from our heritage and family history more than anything esle.

My family came here from the Black Forests near Germany, they were German peasants who fled persecution into the Black Forest to live, and became known as the original "Black Dutch" people. As history would have it, the term "Black Dutch" can apply to a variety of mixed-breed or socially outcast races of people, so it has become somewhat ambiguous. My ancestors were here before the Colonies were even settled, they lived in the Carolinas, and migrated southward into Georgia and Alabama. Along the way, they married Native Americans, people of Creole descent, people of Asian descent, and no telling what else, because they were insatiable horn dogs, most of them had huge families. But we're Mutts. There is no particular "race" of people for me to claim allegiance to, or to oppose. Whenever someone calls me a racist, I literally laugh out loud when reading it. We're all part of the HUMAN race, no matter where our family came from or who they screwed, or screwed over. So-called "race relations" should be just that simple. We can't change our past by stripping down Confederate flags or crucifying people because they, at one time, uttered a racially offensive word! It's what lies in our hearts that matters.

"Elvis and the Beatles" never mind that they got their stuff directly and knowingly from the African culture. Then of course there's Jazz, called "America's classical music".

You might like this essay on that topic, Boss... (it's a download but well worth the read)

I hadn't heard the term "Black Dutch". But some of my father's folks were Black Irish.

 

[wavingrl]

Paula Deen used that banned word to her husband describing the man who had just carjacked her.

She has nothing to apologize for. She's moved beyond apologizing to a naked plea to recognize her suffering.

Ding ding Deen . People love to see others suffer. It makes them feel superior.

I don't like to see others suffer, if we must go 'on the record'.

There were other comments --I'm certain that has been noted somewhere.

Notably--in an interview with the NY Times she made a comment about an employee--'he is blacker than that board'--said with affection but that takes my breath away as much as the Word.

She needs to revise and adapt. Give up the Past.

I grew up eating Southern food--yay me. Butter, if it was available --it was used. Due to the Great Depression and rationing in WW2--many in the South ate less lavishly. It wouldn't have made a very interesting show --green beans, sweet potatoes and cornbread, biscuits and buttermilk.

She made a mistake--beyond 'saying the N word'. Got swept away by fame, perhaps?

oh well--time to move on.

 

[dilloduck]

I really thought this thread would generate some comments. I guess everyone must be tired of the whole Paula Deen thing? Maybe they are too wrapped up in the next scapegoat, Zimmerman? Yep, I said it, he's another example of someone who is singled out, portrayed as a racist, and our crucification is supposed to cleanse our souls and make us whole again.

There are about a thousand threads on Paula Deen, so your audience is diluted.

Actually they're also deluded, since the lawsuit filed against Deen really has nothing to do with anything she said, recently or in the past. But these mystery comments from years ago, the fuel of media circus that loves drama and hates detail, keep floating to the surface like so many turds in the toilet that is TV.

Very good point about the African derivation of Southern cuisine though (e.g. "Gumbo"-- Bantu word for okra)-- not to mention other things like the banjo so ubiquitous in bluegrass music.

When I was little kids my mother, who grew up on a farm in the deep South, once heard the n-word uttered from one of her children. She immediately corralled all of us and laid down the law that she was never to hear that word from any of us again. And she never did.

O hell ya the media loves drama--they will encourage race wars.

 

[Pogo]

Paula Deen used that banned word to her husband describing the man who had just carjacked her.

She has nothing to apologize for. She's moved beyond apologizing to a naked plea to recognize her suffering.

Ding ding Deen . People love to see others suffer. It makes them feel superior.

I don't like to see others suffer, if we must go 'on the record'.

There were other comments --I'm certain that has been noted somewhere.

Notably--in an interview with the NY Times she made a comment about an employee--'he is blacker than that board'--said with affection but that takes my breath away as much as the Word.

She needs to revise and adapt. Give up the Past.

I grew up eating Southern food--yay me. Butter, if it was available --it was used. Due to the Great Depression and rationing in WW2--many in the South ate less lavishly. It wouldn't have made a very interesting show --green beans, sweet potatoes and cornbread, biscuits and buttermilk.

She made a mistake--beyond 'saying the N word'. Got swept away by fame, perhaps?

oh well--time to move on.

I wonder if this is a clue to my years-long quest...

I've been trying to figure out for several years why butter is all but illegal in the South. I go to a restaurant, ask for butter, they bring margarine, I ask again for real butter, they claim they don't have any. That never happens in the north.

The WW2 rationing is notable, but it existed in the north as well, plus it was three-four generations ago, so that doesn't explain it. Any ideas?

(That's why I've been saying if Paula Deen uses a lot of butter and also claims to be from the South, something is just not adding up)

 

[dilloduck]

Jimmy the greek ? I was thinking Howard Cosell.

 

[wavingrl]

Paula Deen used that banned word to her husband describing the man who had just carjacked her.

She has nothing to apologize for. She's moved beyond apologizing to a naked plea to recognize her suffering.

Ding ding Deen . People love to see others suffer. It makes them feel superior.

I don't like to see others suffer, if we must go 'on the record'.

There were other comments --I'm certain that has been noted somewhere.

Notably--in an interview with the NY Times she made a comment about an employee--'he is blacker than that board'--said with affection but that takes my breath away as much as the Word.

She needs to revise and adapt. Give up the Past.

I grew up eating Southern food--yay me. Butter, if it was available --it was used. Due to the Great Depression and rationing in WW2--many in the South ate less lavishly. It wouldn't have made a very interesting show --green beans, sweet potatoes and cornbread, biscuits and buttermilk.

She made a mistake--beyond 'saying the N word'. Got swept away by fame, perhaps?

oh well--time to move on.

I wonder if this is a clue to my years-long quest...

I've been trying to figure out for several years why butter is all but illegal in the South. I go to a restaurant, ask for butter, they bring margarine, I ask again for real butter, they claim they don't have any. That never happens in the north.

The WW2 rationing is notable, but it existed in the north as well, plus it was three-four generations ago, so that doesn't explain it. Any ideas?

(That's why I've been saying if Paula Deen uses a lot of butter and also claims to be from the South, something is just not adding up)

I don't have a good answer. Margarine is cheaper?

Paula Deen marketed 'The Old South'. The Barefoot Contessa markets the Hamptons and so on and so forth. Fantasy, as far as I am concerned. They have to make it exciting and interesting. What is really cooked and eaten is different?

I should stop posting--it is my theory that wherever there were similar ingredients people developed similar recipes. I watch the Food Channel when there is nothing else to watch---today Giada de Laurentis made chicken soup---I am certain that is a fairly universal dish? lol.

 

[Boss]

Paula Deen used that banned word to her husband describing the man who had just carjacked her.

She has nothing to apologize for. She's moved beyond apologizing to a naked plea to recognize her suffering.

Ding ding Deen . People love to see others suffer. It makes them feel superior.

I don't like to see others suffer, if we must go 'on the record'.

There were other comments --I'm certain that has been noted somewhere.

Notably--in an interview with the NY Times she made a comment about an employee--'he is blacker than that board'--said with affection but that takes my breath away as much as the Word.

She needs to revise and adapt. Give up the Past.

I grew up eating Southern food--yay me. Butter, if it was available --it was used. Due to the Great Depression and rationing in WW2--many in the South ate less lavishly. It wouldn't have made a very interesting show --green beans, sweet potatoes and cornbread, biscuits and buttermilk.

She made a mistake--beyond 'saying the N word'. Got swept away by fame, perhaps?

oh well--time to move on.

Why does it "take your breath away" that someone makes the observation an employee is very black? Is this all she said? If so, I don't find that "racially offensive," to be honest, if the man was indeed "very" black. We've become too caught up in just this sort of over-sensitivity to words... they're just words, they don't mean anything more than intention of the person who said them.

I swear, George Orwell was the luckiest son of a bitch in the world... He was born in a time where his novel 1984, became an all-time classic sci-fi novel, but if it were published today, would be a boring and predictable commentary on the mundane culture we now live in! It just blows me away.... Goodspeak.... that's where we're at today! Say what the authority wants you to say, or be destroyed. Think only good thoughts, or be vanquished.

She used an inappropriate word, years ago, in a fit of anger, which she has apologized for, in fact, it is her addressing it which has caused the firestorm. Now, every sentence she utters is perused for signs of racist thought... oooo, she said that man is black as the blackboard... oooo... racist! I don't know if Deen is racist, only Deen knows if she is. I am far more incensed at the lack of acknowledgement in our culture, of the contributions from black Americans. Oh, but that's right... we have Black History Month now, and MLK's Birthday... and look.... we just crucified another user of the N word... see?

 

[wavingrl]

Paula Deen used that banned word to her husband describing the man who had just carjacked her.

She has nothing to apologize for. She's moved beyond apologizing to a naked plea to recognize her suffering.

Ding ding Deen . People love to see others suffer. It makes them feel superior.

I don't like to see others suffer, if we must go 'on the record'.

There were other comments --I'm certain that has been noted somewhere.

Notably--in an interview with the NY Times she made a comment about an employee--'he is blacker than that board'--said with affection but that takes my breath away as much as the Word.

She needs to revise and adapt. Give up the Past.

I grew up eating Southern food--yay me. Butter, if it was available --it was used. Due to the Great Depression and rationing in WW2--many in the South ate less lavishly. It wouldn't have made a very interesting show --green beans, sweet potatoes and cornbread, biscuits and buttermilk.

She made a mistake--beyond 'saying the N word'. Got swept away by fame, perhaps?

oh well--time to move on.

Why does it "take your breath away" that someone makes the observation an employee is very black? Is this all she said? If so, I don't find that "racially offensive," to be honest, if the man was indeed "very" black. We've become too caught up in just this sort of over-sensitivity to words... they're just words, they don't mean anything more than intention of the person who said them.

I swear, George Orwell was the luckiest son of a bitch in the world... He was born in a time where his novel 1984, became an all-time classic sci-fi novel, but if it were published today, would be a boring and predictable commentary on the mundane culture we now live in! It just blows me away.... Goodspeak.... that's where we're at today! Say what the authority wants you to say, or be destroyed. Think only good thoughts, or be vanquished.

She used an inappropriate word, years ago, in a fit of anger, which she has apologized for, in fact, it is her addressing it which has caused the firestorm. Now, every sentence she utters is perused for signs of racist thought... oooo, she said that man is black as the blackboard... oooo... racist! I don't know if Deen is racist, only Deen knows if she is. I am far more incensed at the lack of acknowledgement in our culture, of the contributions from black Americans. Oh, but that's right... we have Black History Month now, and MLK's Birthday... and look.... we just crucified another user of the N word... see?

eh--If we aren't on the same page we are in the same chapter.

I said in another thread that it seems like she needs to revise and adapt the way she runs her business. She started with nothing, delivering sandwiches and then the restaurant. What may have been ok in the beginning is clearly not working now.

The comment about 'he is blacker than that board' makes me think she is 'locked into the stereotypical Southern' personna. I don't find it quaint or charming, personally. That is her 'schtick'?

I don't think she is a racist but I think she needs to abandon the 'I is what I is' outlook.

Albany, GA---a very small southern town. In some county in that area the town displays the Confederate flag and from time to time there is an article about it. Won't take it down --that sort of stuff. Times have changed.

I am a native Georgian, about Paula Deen's age. It is true --the good and the bad about the South. She didn't need to perpetuate a stereotype that is no longer accurate. I guess that is my point. She is an educated woman, with an empire and needs to demonstrate that--rather than clinging to the Past. jmo.

 

[Pogo]

Paula Deen used that banned word to her husband describing the man who had just carjacked her.

She has nothing to apologize for. She's moved beyond apologizing to a naked plea to recognize her suffering.

Ding ding Deen . People love to see others suffer. It makes them feel superior.

I don't like to see others suffer, if we must go 'on the record'.

There were other comments --I'm certain that has been noted somewhere.

Notably--in an interview with the NY Times she made a comment about an employee--'he is blacker than that board'--said with affection but that takes my breath away as much as the Word.

She needs to revise and adapt. Give up the Past.

I grew up eating Southern food--yay me. Butter, if it was available --it was used. Due to the Great Depression and rationing in WW2--many in the South ate less lavishly. It wouldn't have made a very interesting show --green beans, sweet potatoes and cornbread, biscuits and buttermilk.

She made a mistake--beyond 'saying the N word'. Got swept away by fame, perhaps?

oh well--time to move on.

Why does it "take your breath away" that someone makes the observation an employee is very black? Is this all she said? If so, I don't find that "racially offensive," to be honest, if the man was indeed "very" black. We've become too caught up in just this sort of over-sensitivity to words... they're just words, they don't mean anything more than intention of the person who said them.

I swear, George Orwell was the luckiest son of a bitch in the world... He was born in a time where his novel 1984, became an all-time classic sci-fi novel, but if it were published today, would be a boring and predictable commentary on the mundane culture we now live in! It just blows me away.... Goodspeak.... that's where we're at today! Say what the authority wants you to say, or be destroyed. Think only good thoughts, or be vanquished.

She used an inappropriate word, years ago, in a fit of anger, which she has apologized for, in fact, it is her addressing it which has caused the firestorm. Now, every sentence she utters is perused for signs of racist thought... oooo, she said that man is black as the blackboard... oooo... racist! I don't know if Deen is racist, only Deen knows if she is. I am far more incensed at the lack of acknowledgement in our culture, of the contributions from black Americans. Oh, but that's right... we have Black History Month now, and MLK's Birthday... and look.... we just crucified another user of the N word... see?

First time I've heard this quote; I don't see anything racially offensive by the observation of somebody's scale of blackness (and it doesn't look like Wavingrl said that either). As it stands the statement makes no judgement, so it can't be racist. But I do find it a strikingly odd observation to make. Kinda makes me wonder what's going on in her head that she'd focus on skin color -- as opposed to, say, demeanor, abilities, voice, how he's dressed, the normal sorts of things one observes in people.

Secondarily it's curious she would then go ahead and verbalize it -- the "did I say that out loud?" moment. Could be she either is used to being around people who wouldn't find it weird, or that she simply doesn't understand what a filter is?

 

[wavingrl]

I don't like to see others suffer, if we must go 'on the record'.

There were other comments --I'm certain that has been noted somewhere.

Notably--in an interview with the NY Times she made a comment about an employee--'he is blacker than that board'--said with affection but that takes my breath away as much as the Word.

She needs to revise and adapt. Give up the Past.

I grew up eating Southern food--yay me. Butter, if it was available --it was used. Due to the Great Depression and rationing in WW2--many in the South ate less lavishly. It wouldn't have made a very interesting show --green beans, sweet potatoes and cornbread, biscuits and buttermilk.

She made a mistake--beyond 'saying the N word'. Got swept away by fame, perhaps?

oh well--time to move on.

Why does it "take your breath away" that someone makes the observation an employee is very black? Is this all she said? If so, I don't find that "racially offensive," to be honest, if the man was indeed "very" black. We've become too caught up in just this sort of over-sensitivity to words... they're just words, they don't mean anything more than intention of the person who said them.

I swear, George Orwell was the luckiest son of a bitch in the world... He was born in a time where his novel 1984, became an all-time classic sci-fi novel, but if it were published today, would be a boring and predictable commentary on the mundane culture we now live in! It just blows me away.... Goodspeak.... that's where we're at today! Say what the authority wants you to say, or be destroyed. Think only good thoughts, or be vanquished.

She used an inappropriate word, years ago, in a fit of anger, which she has apologized for, in fact, it is her addressing it which has caused the firestorm. Now, every sentence she utters is perused for signs of racist thought... oooo, she said that man is black as the blackboard... oooo... racist! I don't know if Deen is racist, only Deen knows if she is. I am far more incensed at the lack of acknowledgement in our culture, of the contributions from black Americans. Oh, but that's right... we have Black History Month now, and MLK's Birthday... and look.... we just crucified another user of the N word... see?

First time I've heard this quote; I don't see anything racially offensive by the observation of somebody's scale of blackness (and it doesn't look like Wavingrl said that either). As it stands the statement makes no judgement, so it can't be racist. But I do find it a strikingly odd observation to make. Kinda makes me wonder what's going on in her head that she'd focus on skin color -- as opposed to, say, demeanor, abilities, voice, how he's dressed, the normal sorts of things one observes in people.

Secondarily it's curious she would then go ahead and verbalize it -- the "did I say that out loud?" moment. Could be she either is used to being around people who wouldn't find it weird, or that she simply doesn't understand what a filter is?

I have known some 'Good Ol Boys and Girls'. That is what I think this is and as far as I am concerned that sort of attitude needs to change. 'I am a private business owner and I will run my business as I see fit'.

I haven't read the entire transcript of the deposition, fyi. When she says things like--''I don't know what would be offensive to others'--she seems to be 'out of touch'--maybe an attorney advised her to respond that way? Until the pending litigation is adjudicated I don't have much of an opinion.

'black as that board'--yes, that is something that might be said in a small Southern town. Something I would never say. But, she has created a personna--'Quintessential Southerner' or something. It is not a good business practice--I hope someone can provide some assistance.

I will share this--when I lived in Savannah many thought I was 'too liberal'. Race relations were 'different' there. People said things that I would never say. Civil rights were taken seriously in Atlanta, I can vouch for that.

I suppose HLN will televise this trial, now that sufficient interest has been created. 3 more weeks of George Zimmerman. Meanwhile--who knows what Edward Snowden will choose to do

 

[Boss]

I said in another thread that it seems like she needs to revise and adapt the way she runs her business. She started with nothing, delivering sandwiches and then the restaurant. What may have been ok in the beginning is clearly not working now.

I don't know, I think that is sort of like saying someone needs to tell Oprah and Trump how to run a business, the woman obviously did something very right, she was a major success. The only reason anything "isn't working now" is because it was revealed she said a bad word once, and described a man's blackness.

The comment about 'he is blacker than that board' makes me think she is 'locked into the stereotypical Southern' personna. I don't find it quaint or charming, personally. That is her 'schtick'?

I don't think she is a racist but I think she needs to abandon the 'I is what I is' outlook.

Again, we have no context of what she was saying, just that she said something people took offense with. Are we no longer allowed to be socially awkward? If that's the case, I'm in huge fucking trouble, I'll tell you that. Not from racist things, but just saying something before thinking about how it might be interpreted, I am the worlds worst. I'll blurt out... "So when are you expecting?" to a 'seasonally-overindulgent' associate, and get that look of shock from them, to be informed they are indeed, NOT pregnant, thank you very much. I usually follow up with... are you sure? lol... jk. But seriously, I think I can speak for many, we sometimes SAY something without thinking, it doesn't MEAN anything.

Albany, GA---a very small southern town. In some county in that area the town displays the Confederate flag and from time to time there is an article about it. Won't take it down --that sort of stuff. Times have changed.

I am a native Georgian, about Paula Deen's age. It is true --the good and the bad about the South. She didn't need to perpetuate a stereotype that is no longer accurate. I guess that is my point. She is an educated woman, with an empire and needs to demonstrate that--rather than clinging to the Past. jmo.

Yeah, but you don't know anything here... you are projecting a southern stereotype onto Deen for what you perceive she said that was "offensive" and not giving her any benefit of the doubt. Is that fair, in your mind? Would you like to be judged the same?

What the hell is wrong with the Confederate flag? Is removing it going to remove racism? Will it remove the past or change our history in any way, other than to put it out of mind? Again, we are dealing with a SCAPEGOAT.... something you can drag up on the scaffold every so often, and say... LOOK AT US... we're not racist anymore! It's a sham and a lie, and you know it. Instead of spending time trying to have the flag taken down, why not teach youth the roles black people played in the Civil War? I bet you didn't know that much of the crucial scouting for Grant and the Union and Shilo and Manassas, was conducted by black spies, who blended right in with the plantation slaves. Or that the Confederacy had a unit comprised of Native Americans and free blacks, and they never lost a single battle. No, the history books of full of Abe Lincoln and how he fought the Civil War to free the slaves, like some early incarnation of Dr. King. This white-guilt-cleansed version of history, is perhaps the very first 'scapegoat' perpetrated on us, to continue allowing a racially-divided culture and society.

It carries on through the 20th century, and all of the FDR and LBJ programs for the "poor unfortunate minah-tehhs" another "token" for us to parade around and claim we're not racist anymore. Here's another check for you to stay at home and have more black babies without fathers... see, we're not racists anymore. Hey, let's pass a law that people have to hire you because you're black, because... after all, who could ever expect an ignorant black to compete on the same level playing field, see? We're not racists anymore! Bailout and rebuild your failing and corrupt cities over and over again... SURE... we're not racists anymore! And if anyone dares to question or challenge the money we are pouring your way, we'll make sure to call them out as racists, who want to keep you in chains!

 

[Sallow]

Paula Deen used that banned word to her husband describing the man who had just carjacked her.

She has nothing to apologize for. She's moved beyond apologizing to a naked plea to recognize her suffering.

Ding ding Deen . People love to see others suffer. It makes them feel superior.

I don't like to see others suffer, if we must go 'on the record'.

There were other comments --I'm certain that has been noted somewhere.

Notably--in an interview with the NY Times she made a comment about an employee--'he is blacker than that board'--said with affection but that takes my breath away as much as the Word.

She needs to revise and adapt. Give up the Past.

I grew up eating Southern food--yay me. Butter, if it was available --it was used. Due to the Great Depression and rationing in WW2--many in the South ate less lavishly. It wouldn't have made a very interesting show --green beans, sweet potatoes and cornbread, biscuits and buttermilk.

She made a mistake--beyond 'saying the N word'. Got swept away by fame, perhaps?

oh well--time to move on.

Why does it "take your breath away" that someone makes the observation an employee is very black? Is this all she said? If so, I don't find that "racially offensive," to be honest, if the man was indeed "very" black. We've become too caught up in just this sort of over-sensitivity to words... they're just words, they don't mean anything more than intention of the person who said them.

I swear, George Orwell was the luckiest son of a bitch in the world... He was born in a time where his novel 1984, became an all-time classic sci-fi novel, but if it were published today, would be a boring and predictable commentary on the mundane culture we now live in! It just blows me away.... Goodspeak.... that's where we're at today! Say what the authority wants you to say, or be destroyed. Think only good thoughts, or be vanquished.

She used an inappropriate word, years ago, in a fit of anger, which she has apologized for, in fact, it is her addressing it which has caused the firestorm. Now, every sentence she utters is perused for signs of racist thought... oooo, she said that man is black as the blackboard... oooo... racist! I don't know if Deen is racist, only Deen knows if she is. I am far more incensed at the lack of acknowledgement in our culture, of the contributions from black Americans. Oh, but that's right... we have Black History Month now, and MLK's Birthday... and look.... we just crucified another user of the N word... see?

I don't get the 1984 thing.

She wasn't fired from a government job.

A private enterprise fired her.

Guess what.

They can do that.

 

[Sallow]

I said in another thread that it seems like she needs to revise and adapt the way she runs her business. She started with nothing, delivering sandwiches and then the restaurant. What may have been ok in the beginning is clearly not working now.

I don't know, I think that is sort of like saying someone needs to tell Oprah and Trump how to run a business, the woman obviously did something very right, she was a major success. The only reason anything "isn't working now" is because it was revealed she said a bad word once, and described a man's blackness.

The comment about 'he is blacker than that board' makes me think she is 'locked into the stereotypical Southern' personna. I don't find it quaint or charming, personally. That is her 'schtick'?

I don't think she is a racist but I think she needs to abandon the 'I is what I is' outlook.

Again, we have no context of what she was saying, just that she said something people took offense with. Are we no longer allowed to be socially awkward? If that's the case, I'm in huge fucking trouble, I'll tell you that. Not from racist things, but just saying something before thinking about how it might be interpreted, I am the worlds worst. I'll blurt out... "So when are you expecting?" to a 'seasonally-overindulgent' associate, and get that look of shock from them, to be informed they are indeed, NOT pregnant, thank you very much. I usually follow up with... are you sure? lol... jk. But seriously, I think I can speak for many, we sometimes SAY something without thinking, it doesn't MEAN anything.

Albany, GA---a very small southern town. In some county in that area the town displays the Confederate flag and from time to time there is an article about it. Won't take it down --that sort of stuff. Times have changed.

I am a native Georgian, about Paula Deen's age. It is true --the good and the bad about the South. She didn't need to perpetuate a stereotype that is no longer accurate. I guess that is my point. She is an educated woman, with an empire and needs to demonstrate that--rather than clinging to the Past. jmo.

Yeah, but you don't know anything here... you are projecting a southern stereotype onto Deen for what you perceive she said that was "offensive" and not giving her any benefit of the doubt. Is that fair, in your mind? Would you like to be judged the same?

What the hell is wrong with the Confederate flag? Is removing it going to remove racism? Will it remove the past or change our history in any way, other than to put it out of mind? Again, we are dealing with a SCAPEGOAT.... something you can drag up on the scaffold every so often, and say... LOOK AT US... we're not racist anymore! It's a sham and a lie, and you know it. Instead of spending time trying to have the flag taken down, why not teach youth the roles black people played in the Civil War? I bet you didn't know that much of the crucial scouting for Grant and the Union and Shilo and Manassas, was conducted by black spies, who blended right in with the plantation slaves. Or that the Confederacy had a unit comprised of Native Americans and free blacks, and they never lost a single battle. No, the history books of full of Abe Lincoln and how he fought the Civil War to free the slaves, like some early incarnation of Dr. King. This white-guilt-cleansed version of history, is perhaps the very first 'scapegoat' perpetrated on us, to continue allowing a racially-divided culture and society.

It carries on through the 20th century, and all of the FDR and LBJ programs for the "poor unfortunate minah-tehhs" another "token" for us to parade around and claim we're not racist anymore. Here's another check for you to stay at home and have more black babies without fathers... see, we're not racists anymore. Hey, let's pass a law that people have to hire you because you're black, because... after all, who could ever expect an ignorant black to compete on the same level playing field, see? We're not racists anymore! Bailout and rebuild your failing and corrupt cities over and over again... SURE... we're not racists anymore! And if anyone dares to question or challenge the money we are pouring your way, we'll make sure to call them out as racists, who want to keep you in chains!

The Confederate flag is a symbol of racism and slavery.

Flying it normalizes both.

I never understood why it isn't illegal to do so.