Real Racism: Clippers Owner Bids GF to Avoid Blacks in Public

Boges · May 1, 2014

3-4 days ago this case was the top news-story in the US-media. Oh dear oh dear, surely trivial things like the Ukraine crisis or the civil war in Syria which both could lead to a WW III are completely meaningless when something as outrageous as this happens.

Until bullets start to fly Ukraine isn't all that interesting to middle America. Racism and Basketball, now that's interesting. Especially when Oprah and Matt Damon are lining up to buy the team.

guyser · May 1, 2014

In Toronto, absolutely yes. The rest of Canada, not all that much.

The most popular sport in Canada for youth is basketball. (12-17)

Stems largely by our immigrant s and where they have come from, popular basketball hot spots, so they bring that love with them.

bush_cheney2004 · May 1, 2014

The sport of basketball was invented by a Canadian....James Naismith

Boges · May 1, 2014

The sport of basketball was invented by a Canadian....James Naismith

I think every Canadian knows that, there was a Heritage minute about it.

bush_cheney2004 · May 1, 2014

I think every Canadian knows that, there was a Heritage minute about it.

Does every Canadian live in Finland or other nations ?

Boges · May 1, 2014

Oh you're speaking to the non-Canadians on the board.

Cool.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzsbZ3oem3Y

-TSS- · May 1, 2014

Oh you're speaking to the non-Canadians on the board.

Cool.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzsbZ3oem3Y

OK, I admit my ignorance.

bush_cheney2004 · May 1, 2014

Nice heritage video....so where are all the "black" players ?

Boges · May 1, 2014

Dunno, Ask Adolph Rupp.

Edited May 1, 2014 by Boges

Argus · May 1, 2014

Argus,, I'm not sure I'm getting your point here. Are you asking me why the NBA has certain issues with certain behaviours, but not with others?

Just being cynical. Apparently everyone knew he was a racist whoremonger, and a lousy team owner refusing to put much money into the team for a long time. Suddenly he has a fight with his slutty girlfriend and everyone's reacting with outrage.

May 1, 2014

Apparently the NAACP were on their third award to him when this story broke.

Boges · May 1, 2014

Just being cynical. Apparently everyone knew he was a racist whoremonger, and a lousy team owner refusing to put much money into the team for a long time. Suddenly he has a fight with his slutty girlfriend and everyone's reacting with outrage.

Cuz all that other stuff wasn't on TMZ.

Edited May 1, 2014 by Boges

bleeding heart · May 1, 2014

Well, we'll be sure from here on in to ask Argus what are the proper avenues for decent outrage.

I assume the American Tea Party, Somalian immigrants, and some nebulous entity called "the left" are the prime candidates.

-TSS- · May 1, 2014

Could this be possible in Canada: Someone being taped in his home against his will and what he said used against him and take away his property? I highly doubt it.

jbg · May 1, 2014

Could this be possible in Canada: Someone being taped in his home against his will and what he said used against him and take away his property? I highly doubt it.

I will repeat, this is the culmination of other racist remarks and bad behavior on his part. He also refused to honor the self-insurance for a player who needed prostrate cancer surgery and his teammates raised the necessary funds.

He did nothing to endear himself to anyone.

guyser · May 1, 2014

Could this be possible in Canada: Someone being taped in his home against his will and what he said used against him and take away his property? I highly doubt it.

IN the case of audio there is no confusion. Anyone can be taped by anyone else in on the conversation, just as what happened to Ford.

What property is bing taken away? His Chain of Office? Itd be nice but he has to resign or be voted out....which will happen later this year , if he doesnt croak in the meantime.

Boges · May 1, 2014

Could this be possible in Canada: Someone being taped in his home against his will and what he said used against him and take away his property? I highly doubt it.

It shouldn't have been happened in the USA. It's illegal to tape people against their will in California.

bush_cheney2004 · May 1, 2014

The legal recording of conversations varies by federal and state laws in the U.S.....some require only one party consent while others require two or more party consent. There are other variations depending on the circumstances and methods used. Some recording technologies will provide and audible beep or other indication to all parties to inform them that some form of monitoring or recording is happening.

cybercoma · May 2, 2014

I don't know if anyone posted this video (audio only) of Bomani Jones discussing the Sterling issue yet. In 2006, Jones wrote an article about Sterling's racism. That article received more views in the last few days than it did when he first published it. After making some jokes about the situation, he gets into a very real discussion of racism in America through the lens of Sterling's comments.

What's also missing from this issue is the detestable misogyny from Sterling.

Big Guy · May 2, 2014

I was thinking that the "snitch" girlfriend who did the illegal taping might have made a few dollars in appearance fees or maybe an upcoming book but Sterling seems to be litigation friendly and do not doubt that the girlfriend will find herself on the receiving end of a costly civil suit.

Rue · May 3, 2014

Boges maybe yer right too yah. Just doesn't smell right to me. I mean he was a mark, an easy set up if you ask me to take down.

Either way its a moot point what he did was unacceptable and forced the NBA's hand.

I have a problem with some of the people now jumping on the bandwagon to denounce him. Some of them as BH said have made their share of ignorant comments including about their own people or have engaged in questionable behaviour as well.

cybercoma · May 3, 2014

People are criticizing Sterling now because they feel it's safe to do so. They don't speak out about racism any other time black players and commentators bring it up. As I posted earlier, ESPN's Bomani Jones wrote an article 8 years ago about Sterling's racism when it was really affecting people. He was rounding up black people and latinos and throwing them out of his housing. That's even worse. That stuff kills people literally. Yet nobody batted an eyelash about that. If we would just stop and listen to the people whom the racism is directed towards when they say they're experiencing racism, we could make society a hell of a lot better place. But no. It's easy for those not experiencing it to deny it.

Edited May 3, 2014 by cybercoma

jbg · May 3, 2014

Blacks can be racists too (link, excerpts below):

A principal, the human resources director, two guidance counselors and four teachers are suing the superintendent of Greenburgh schools over creating what they described as a hostile workplace rife with harassment and filled with racial, religious and sexual slurs.

They are seeking unspecified damages against schools Superintendent Ronald O. Ross and members of the Board of Education as individuals, who they say refused to respond to complaints and encouraged bullying and disrespect. They are also suing the school district because, the suit states, there is "no effective procedure for investigating and resolving complaints" against the superintendent.

According to the suit, which refers to incidents taking place over the past three years, Ross referred to black employees as "oreos," "an Aunt Jemima," "an Uncle Tom," a "California raisin" and "sell-outs;" routinely called female employees a term legitimately used for female dogs; made light of an employee's battle with cancer; publicly announced the weight loss of one female employee while adding that another one had apparently found the weight; referred to several employees by their religion; and referred to white employees as "white devils," "trailer trash" and "crackers."

Shady · May 4, 2014

People are criticizing Sterling now because they feel it's safe to do so. They don't speak out about racism any other time black players and commentators bring it up. As I posted earlier, ESPN's Bomani Jones wrote an article 8 years ago about Sterling's racism when it was really affecting people. He was rounding up black people and latinos and throwing them out of his housing. That's even worse. That stuff kills people literally. Yet nobody batted an eyelash about that. If we would just stop and listen to the people whom the racism is directed towards when they say they're experiencing racism, we could make society a hell of a lot better place. But no. It's easy for those not experiencing it to deny it.

Not sure how he was "rounding up blacks and latinos." Where did he store them after he rounded them up? Anyways, nobody was denying Sterlings behavior in the past. That's why he was sued and ultimately lost several years ago.

Boges · May 5, 2014

A white person could never write this, well the couldn't but they'd be shouted down. I usually find Jason Whitlock insufferable. I'm not saying he's right here but he's an opposing voice in this debate.

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/10857268/removing-donald-sterling-la-clippers-owner-fix-our-culture

Removing Donald Sterling from the NBA solves nothing. It sets a precedent that will likely boomerang and harm the black players and coaches who are shocked and outraged that an 80-year-old man with a documented history of bigoted actions also has bigoted private thoughts.

Let's be careful here. From the owner's box to the locker room, professional sports are overrun with wealthy men in complicated, volatile sexual relationships. If TMZ plans to make "pillow talk" public and the standard is set that "pillow talk" is actionable, it won't be long before a parade of athletes joins Sterling on Ignorance Island.

A right to privacy is at the very foundation of American freedoms. It's a core value. It's a mistake to undermine a core value because we don't like the way a billionaire exercises it. What happens when a disgruntled lover gives TMZ a tape of a millionaire athlete expressing a homophobic or anti-Semitic or anti-white perspective?

Sterling getting turfed from the NBA in a matter of 4 days is an example of mob rule. As has been noted, there's ample evidence that Sterling was racist long before last week. But with the immediate nature of our society now people can get "removed" as the owner of a billion dollar franchise for "pillow talk" from a scorned lover.

Does Michael Jordan get the same treatment as Sterling if he says something homophobic, sexist etc on tape from someone taping him? It's been reported that the Orlando Magic owner is an open opponent of Same-Sex marriage. We saw a founder of Firefox get forced out of his company for a simple donation to anti same-sex marriage organization. So why not force the Orlando Magic owner out?

It's a precedent that many could find worrisome.

Again Sterling is a vile racist, but it seems what happened to him last week is something we haven't seen yet. It's a start of something new were people are accountable for their words no matter where they are. We see this with Rob Ford. You really have to watch what you say or do even when in the company of friends or lovers. It also doesn't seem to matter anymore that taping someone without their permission is usually illegal.

Edited May 5, 2014 by Boges