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Sterling ripples
Murica
Sterling ripples
From the ESPN article, Ferry's comments were more than just that Deng had "a little African in him." Apparently Ferry added as a qualifier by "African" he meant he was a two faced liar and cheat. It's not the initial quote that he has African in him that implied racism, but what was meant and inferred by the comment that he had African in him. And it would appear to me that Ferry trying to say he was just reading other people's comments or reiterating comments he heard from others is more of a back pedal than anything. It was in a business environment in front of a dozen people, why would you read or reiterate anything even remotely racially charged or insensitive? I'm betting because Ferry himself personally didn't have any issue with the comments.
I don't have a huge problem with the owner's comments, but I do disagree that with the idea that there is nothing wrong with what he wrote or that all he wrote were facts. They weren't facts. There were a bunch of personal opinion in his comments. He said his theory is that the black fans scared away white fans. Not a fact, an opinion. He wants more 35-55 year old white men season ticket holders because he "thinks" that the black fans don't have the spendable income for season tickets. Not a fact, an opinion. Perhaps some truth lies in those opinions, but they're still opinion more than fact. And instead of trying to look for more 35-55 year old white season ticket holders, he should realize his own demographics. Atlanta metro is has a population of over 50% African American. Atlanta for decades has been a huge African American city in terms of population and culture. There are plenty of successful black owned businesses in Atlanta. Philips Arena is located in northern Atlanta in a predominantly black neighborhood, surrounded by places like Techwood, the MLK Historic Site, Five Points, and two historically black colleges in Morris Brown and Morehouse. Why is he concerned with getting more older white fans when he should cater to his demographics? If there was an NBA team in Honolulu, Hawaii, would he be concerned that there are too many Hawaiians and Pacific Islander fans and he needed to find more 35-55 year white guys? You structure your financial business plan according to your market, your demographics, your target audience. He should look into doing more promos with black owned businesses, college group tickets for the Morris Brown, Morehouse, Georgia Tech, and Georgia State.
Perhaps his comments were not extreme enough to be considered racist, but there were some racial undertones. And at the very least, some of his comments and opinions were certainly born from ignorance.
It's funny how this bull starts and ends at the top. You will never see the jew do something about a black player for making racist remarks and i highly doubt that hasn't happened before.
I didn't take Ferry's comment to mean that at all. No one's a liar and a cheat "in a good way". Rather, I think he meant that Deng has an edge, like he's a great guy off the court but a nasty one on it. Deng is a former refugee, he's had to scrap by at times to get to where he is. I think Ferry's scout was talking about that when making the comment. It's like saying Stephen Jackson had some Port A in him due to how crazy he was on the court (how scrappy and combative he was). It's a reference to his heritage and how that helps him. It's not disparaging.
I agree that the Hawks owner should have tried to cater to his city's population. But if the races were reversed (say the Wolves owner saying the team needed to get more blacks to see the games) no one would have considered him a racist.
I wasn't interpreting what Ferry meant. It's not what I think he meant. He actually said it. He actually called Deng a two faced liar and cheat. It was a disparaging remark.
The ESPN story:
http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/11...acist-commentsAdded Gearon: "Ferry completed the racial slur by describing the player (and impliedly all persons of African descent) as a two-faced liar and cheat."
And let's not twist Deng's background. His family fled the Sudan when he was a small child. He got to England before he was even a teenager. And at a very young age was identified as a basketball player who would participate in national compe ions. He went to private school. You might argue his parents had "to scrap" to get out of the Sudan. But to suggest Luol Deng had some horrible unfathomable and unlikely path to the NBA is stretching the truth.
Faulty logic. It's like saying if Ray Rice's wife was a man, no one would consider him a spousal abuser. You can't just reverse the races.I agree that the Hawks owner should have tried to cater to his city's population. But if the races were reversed (say the Wolves owner saying the team needed to get more blacks to see the games) no one would have considered him a racist.
That was just Gearon's interpretation of what Ferry said, too. He also said Ferry used a slur by saying Deng had African in him. That's not true, and it really calls into question Gearon's understanding of racist language.
Yeah, because him being a kid when he was a refugee clearly couldn't have affected him.And let's not twist Deng's background. His family fled the Sudan when he was a small child. He got to England before he was even a teenager. And at a very young age was identified as a basketball player who would participate in national compe ions. He went to private school. You might argue his parents had "to scrap" to get out of the Sudan. But to suggest Luol Deng had some horrible unfathomable and unlikely path to the NBA is stretching the truth.
Nope. It's like saying that no one is considering what Palmer did to Rice (her hitting him first) to be spousal abuse. It was, and people are just hypocrites by denying it. In the same way, people laud owners wanting diversity when saying they want more blacks, but they lambaste them for saying they want more whites. I'm not saying that the owner didn't have his own biases or that he didn't project them onto his fan base. But I am saying that he isn't a racist simply for that and didn't deserve to be fired.Faulty logic. It's like saying if Ray Rice's wife was a man, no one would consider him a spousal abuser. You can't just reverse the races.
Lol muh white guilt. Oh my goodness the guilt is just killing me inside I must go tell on myself rofl rofl.
It doesn't read like an interpretation. Gearon said Ferry called Deng a two faced liar and cheat. How do you read that as merely an interpretation? I don't. He said Ferry said that. If all Ferry said was he had some African in him, then it leaves it as ambiguous. The rest of what Ferry said gives a pretty strong indication that there is something at the very least prejudice going on with the comments.
Luol Deng left Sudan when he was 3 years old. He wasn't some village kid whose hands they were putting machine guns in. His father was a member of of the Sudanese Parliament, one of the reasons he had the resources and connections to get his family out of the Sudan. Deng moved to England when he was about 9 years old. He went to private school and competed in the British under 15 national team. He moved to the United States at 14 years of age. Do you think he really had to "scrap" to get where he is today? Really? That would be like saying Kobe Bryant has some "ghetto" in him because he was born in Philly even though his dad was a professional basketball player and Kobe lived much of his formative youth in a cultured and relative affluent upbringing in Italy. Yeah, but Kobe still has some of that Philly "ghetto" in him. It's ridiculous. Luol Deng is more British than he is African.Yeah, because him being a kid when he was a refugee clearly couldn't have affected him.
You are analyzing Levenson's quotes incorrectly. He wasn't suggesting he wanted more white people for diversity. He specifically stated in his email that he wanted more older white season ticket holders because he felt black fans didn't have the spendable money. At a minimum, that's a racially charged opinion. At face value, it's a racist comment. If he said he wanted more white people and/or more Latino people and/or more Asian people for better diversity in the crown, that's one thing. That's not what he said. He wanted more older white fans because he thought that demographic could afford it. There's no spinning that. It's not a matter if it's a defensible opinion financially from a business stance. Whether or not, that's a racist comment.Nope. It's like saying that no one is considering what Palmer did to Rice (her hitting him first) to be spousal abuse. It was, and people are just hypocrites by denying it. In the same way, people laud owners wanting diversity when saying they want more blacks, but they lambaste them for saying they want more whites. I'm not saying that the owner didn't have his own biases or that he didn't project them onto his fan base. But I am saying that he isn't a racist simply for that and didn't deserve to be fired.
Wait I just read more so this owner is a yid?
It's an interpretation no matter what, since there isn't a recording out. I can't possibly see how being African "in a good way" means he's dishonest. What the does being African in a bad way mean, then? That he eats people?
I think that Ferry said the that Deng had African in him and clarified that by saying he was a nice store in front and a counterfeit store in the back. That's not a description of a cheat, since a cheat would just have a counterfeit store in front. Gearon interpreted that to mean a slur, which he's admitted. It wasn't, so I personally don't believe Gearon has much credibility to interpret what Ferry was saying. He's just one of those PC idiots looking to be offended.
Point taken on Deng not being a former child soldier. That still misses the point, though. If someone said Kobe "has some South Philly in him" meaning that he was tough and fought for what he wanted, it still wouldn't be an offensive statement.Luol Deng left Sudan when he was 3 years old. He wasn't some village kid whose hands they were putting machine guns in. His father was a member of of the Sudanese Parliament, one of the reasons he had the resources and connections to get his family out of the Sudan. Deng moved to England when he was about 9 years old. He went to private school and competed in the British under 15 national team. He moved to the United States at 14 years of age. Do you think he really had to "scrap" to get where he is today? Really? That would be like saying Kobe Bryant has some "ghetto" in him because he was born in Philly even though his dad was a professional basketball player and Kobe lived much of his formative youth in a cultured and relative affluent upbringing in Italy. Yeah, but Kobe still has some of that Philly "ghetto" in him. It's ridiculous. Luol Deng is more British than he is African.
"Racially charged" is one of the lamest terms in society nowadays. It merely means that some people may interpret it as racist even though it's not explicitly stating it. It's a reality that middle-aged white folk tend to be more affluent than black people. If he said he wanted white people because he feels like they're more moral and would breed a better family atmosphere, that would be racist. It's not like the Hawks are doing well and he just wants fewer blacks at the games. He's looking to tap into a richer demographic, which is something anyone in his position would want. Sure, he could have PC'd it up by saying "we want to tap into all markets and become more diverse in our fan base". Had he been doing a press conference on it, he probably would have said it that way. But it was a private email, and he was en led to actually address the issue instead of sugarcoating it.You are analyzing Levenson's quotes incorrectly. He wasn't suggesting he wanted more white people for diversity. He specifically stated in his email that he wanted more older white season ticket holders because he felt black fans didn't have the spendable money. At a minimum, that's a racially charged opinion. At face value, it's a racist comment. If he said he wanted more white people and/or more Latino people and/or more Asian people for better diversity in the crown, that's one thing. That's not what he said. He wanted more older white fans because he thought that demographic could afford it. There's no spinning that. It's not a matter if it's a defensible opinion financially from a business stance. Whether or not, that's a racist comment.
race and racist arguments are stupid. the same people that say that race should not matter are the ones that start complaining when people do not abide by their standards of political correctness. So does race matter or not?
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