When keeping it real goes wrong: The Seinfeld Edition

I swear to you that this is not the ideal topic that I thought would bring me out of blog retirement. But sometimes things happen that I just can’t keep quiet about, so I may as well use my domain to voice my opinion.

By now, you may have heard of that little snafu involving Michael Richards, affectionately known as Kramer from Seinfeld. I have to tell you that I have always been a fan of this show. Now, I don’t know if I can really watch it and genuinely laugh again – oh well to that.

Well, after hearing part of the video footage, I honestly was just irritated about the entire thing, but said very little about it to my friends. Then I get a call to check out David Letterman because Richards made comments about the incident.

I heard what he said, and NOW I am pissed off. I was irked before, but not shocked. I adopted my dad’s pragmatic attitude about racism long ago, so this type of thing simply doesn’t shock or awe me. Honestly, I feel that most of us have internal prejudices that we simply chose to hide because we know of the repercussions that it would bring. So now we have the dinner-party racism that is buried in fake smiles, double entendres, and back-handed compliments. Is this really progress? If we can’t honestly deal with our biases, prejudices, and bigotry can we really expect anything to get better?

No, I don’t propose we go round yelling racial epithets at whim. Saying cracker ass cracker when I get pissed off at white people is no way to promote understanding. It’s reactionary, inflammatory, and pointless. However, I am the first to admit that I have intolerance, not to be proud, but to hopefully figure our why I do, and work on it. I won't make it seem as if I have never had an un-pc thought in my life because that would be bullshit.

But when it comes to realizing where our problems are, it’s time for us to own up to our shit. Acknowledge the ugliest part of it so that it doesn’t become a cancer eating away at us until we are placed in a situation that is charged with so much intensity and ignorance, we spew out the cancer on other people.

But back to why I am pissed off. Richards seemed to be visibly shaken at the mere thought that those horrific words could ever pass his lips. As if some internal, never seen before demon, was exorcised against his will, and against his nature. He is NOT a racist he says. Fu*k you, Richards, if you have to actually say that shit, chances are homie, chances are..

When it comes to racism white people simply don’t fuc*ing get it sometimes. They are part of the problem. They throw just as many hats in the ring as anybody else and denying that shit gets us nowhere. I didn’t want to see him horrified at his behavior, I wanted to see him own that shit…don’t say “those remarks” …say MY REMARKS. You said it. Repeatedly, with a little bit of visual imagery thrown in for shits and giggles. That wasn’t a foreign mutant thought, lying dormant in the recesses of your mind. It was at the tip of your tongue and it came out loud and clear.

You were pissed off at black people and the first thing you went for was something hurtful to show just how pissed you were. Good job mf’er. Just admit that you said what you were thinking. You have been in the industry for years, surely you have sucked plenty of times on stage... have you felt compelled to react this way before? Maybe so, but that sh*t wasn’t on Youtube, now was it?

Then for Jerry Seinfeld to say that Richards was broken up about it? Um fu*k you. What does he need to be broken up about exactly? Being seen stripped of his humor and politeness to reveal a not so shiny KKKramer?
Richards is no fu*king victim of circumstance. He knew exactly what he was saying, “losing his cool” was not the problem – he lost his integrity, which is way worse in my book.

I doubt there was anything he could have said to have actually smoothed things over to appease anyone. I don't think he should have gone on that particular show, people were laughing in the audience - which further proves how fu*ckin clueless Hollywood is about this kind of thing. I just really disliked how he didn't seem to own up to what he said and did, and using the Katrina card was just poor taste altogether.

Damn, will I ever laugh heartily at "Sponge worthy" again? Doubt it.

Posted by Bulletproof Diva at November 21, 2006 08:00 AM | TrackBack