1 Hmmm... i think the "ho" comment is part of the entire racist comment that people are upset about. he wouldn't have called white women "hos."

2 I've not followed the story very much at all. But I think you're right, Pheonix. The focus has been on the "nappy headed" and almost nothing has been said about the fact he called them "hos." In the not too distant past, you could find yourself arrested for implying that a woman was not chaste. Now, attacking a woman's chastity doesn't even raise an eyebrow, nobody cares.

3 Imus would have called white women hos, I think. In fact, he actually did, since the Rutgers team isn't all black. And I've heard the term ho thrown around for white women of ill repute quite often -- including the ever so popular compound insult, crack ho. It's a symptom of a much larger problem -- a total lack of respect for others.

4 Don Imus I’ve never been a big fan of Don Imus or for that matter, Howard Stern. I’ve never gotten into the ‘Shock-Jock’ phenomenon, preferring to listen to music when I switch-on the radio. But… Apparently this Mr. Imus called a fine group of Rutgers female basketball players… “…nappy headed ho’s…” He was calling this predominately black group of athletes by that descriptive, which is not racially acceptable, especially if you’re a ‘whitie,’ which Mr. Imus clearly is, and since a video of the players was running in the show’s background and everyone could clearly see that this was a predominately black group, there was NO mistaking to whom these words were directed. As a ‘sidebar,’ thank you Judge Ito and “Court Tv,” there are a lot of ethnicities that have “nappy” hair; it is not a phenomenon reserved exclusively for blacks, for “nappy” references anyone with “downy or shaggy hair.” However, there is another problem… actually several problems: There’s a double standard: If you tune to any radio station or watch any television show geared to the black audience, you will hear those above-referenced words… along with, “Bitch,” “Bitches,” “Ho’s” ad infinitum or perhaps… ad nauseaum. These are black people calling other black people these disgusting words, the same words which were used to force Don Imus from his Shock Jock Seat. Furthermore, there is the problem of ‘Freedom of Speech.’ Yep, we just blew-off the First Amendment, which supposedly allows anyone in the United States to say anything (aside from yelling “Fire” in a theatre) without fear of censorship or retaliation from a Federal agency. Ah… but there is the usual band of Tv-mongerers, those who wait for a way to make a fast buck through others’ misfortunes. Why… the honorable Reverend Al Sharpton, that paragon of righteousness, the man who championed a Ms. Brawley, a challenged young woman who claimed she was mistreated or, I believe the accusation was, “raped” by another… at least until it was proven she hallucinated – I believe that’s a kindly way to categorize the reduction in accusation, has immediately come to the fore, happily ensconcing himself in front of cheap hotel podiums, a plethora of microphones planted in front of his honorable mouth. Where were the honorable Jesse Jackson or the equally honorable and formidable Gloria Allred, one might ask? Well… apparently they were snoozing… or involved in other hugely important cases involving ample coverage from television cameras. When you have ‘slow news cycles,’ editors are at a big disadvantage, for they have to fill giant “Breaking News” voids with newsworthy events…. And what could be more newsworthy than a silly Shock Jock suffering a brain fart during a live show? Of course, the Coach of the Rutgers basketball team was quick to condemn the above “brain fart,” calling it a deliberate smack against all womenkind. During this news conference, she reminded us of all the trials and tribulations of her childhood, and then extrapolated those experiences onto the backs of these valedictorians and honor students, these…. Wait. Hold on for a second – Are all these basketball stars, these scholarshipped students “honor students” and “valedictorians?” If so, this must be quite a team! When I went to college, most of the scholarshipped athletes were shoehorned under the radar of the Admission’s process, owing to the usual lack of scholarship that goes hand-in-hand with outstanding athletic prowess. Look – Being committed to athletic excellence requires that one put aside the books and practice… practice… practice; it’s not easy to be outstanding in both academics and athletics… because not even Job would have enough time to excel at both. Since Rutgers and all colleges need athletics to attract alumni money, etc., athletics is a BIG BUSINESS – Ask any television network what they pay the universities for the privilege of broadcasting their games? Those universities NEED those dollars, so believe me, they court outstanding athletes in the hope of having a winning team and, therefore, overflowing university coffer’s. You can bet this event will probably cause more than a few Alumni to pull out his/her checkbooks… But that’s not the issue: The issue is… Wait… What exactly IS the issue? How does the honorable Reverend Al Sharpton, or for that matter, any of these honorable self-appointed Guardians of public mores make a living? Well… Ya see… some people watch ‘em on Tv, some corporations watch ‘em on Tv and then tax deductible checks are dispatched, some based on their issuers like/dislike of what these honorable Guardians are doing or causing in society. Further, checks are being written for good and bad reasons …. Because sometimes, people write checks just to stir the pot… Can you believe some people would actually do that? Evidently, there is a direct correlation between how many times these honorable gentlepeople appear on Tv and how many checks they receive at their honorable corporate offices – After all, we all have to make a living, even those among those of us who assess themselves honorable. It’s amazing how many of these honorable people hide behind religious cloth, bandying about the credentials of “Reverend”… By the way – Anyone heard about that camp for children dying of cancer that Don Imus funds with his own money? Yeah – Duh – apparently that SAP Imus uses his own money from his radio/television show to offer terminally ill children an experience they will never forget. Wow – What a moron! You know what… this idiot allows children of ANY color this opportunity. My God – Can you believe anyone would be this stupid? I mean, ‘How’ could anyone who funds something as wonderful as the above camp call those Rutgers basketball players, “…nappy haired ho’s”… and truly believe it? Gee… I don’t know? Do you? Now that Don Imus has no job or income to continue his SAPPY attempt to enrich the lives of these terminally ill children… might the good Christian Reverend (“Let He Who Is Without Sin, Throw The First Stone”), Al Sharpton fund this camp out of the goodness of his honorable heart…? Don’t hold your breath -- The tent’ll be rolled up and the honorable Right Reverend Al Sharpton will have left town and crawled into his woodwork… awaiting the next gathering of Tv cameras… those one-eyed monsters whose job has become one of attracting Rainmakers, Dreamweavers, Sorcerers clothed in the collars of a religious icon but without any belief in the underlying philosophy of Christianity’s Forgiveness.. Copyrightã: April 12, 2007; ‘ted lang,’ imagine, inc.

5 OMG! You'd think Imus was the only person in the world who insulted someone. I rarely listened to the guy. He did apologize for his remarks and that is so much more than what many others who are in the public eye have done. There is no reason at all for Imus to apologize to Sharpton. Imus didn't call Sharpton a HO or nappy-headed. Sharpton did not accept Imus' apology. Wow! What a surprise. Doens't Sharpton claim to be a pastor? Imus ultimately apologized to the group of young women he should have apologized to, case closed. Sharpton wasn't happy, he didn't have enough media attention over it so he got Imus fired. Well, that pretty much says what type of pastor he is. I am so glad Imus is suing CBS radio. Finally, someone has a backbone. I hope Imus sues Sharpton too, for violating his freedom of speech rights and getting him fired over it. If Sharpton was interested in people not saying "HO" or "Nappy-headed" he would have done something about the people who are called rappers. He would have done something about comedy central. There are plenty of people to get fired over saying those words besides Don Imus. I've heard it said about nice upstanding young ladies on TV...black, white, hispanic, and asian. It's a disgusting remark, but the Rutgers team is not the forst ones to be called that. You go Imus. Hope everyone else gets a contract as good as his and grows a backbone too.

6 sorry about my typos above people.