Bill Cosby Scorches Black Culture and Education

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Click on these links to take you directly to the articles: Our Silence is a Hurtful Silence Cosby Has Harsh Words for Black Community Cosby Takes Black Folks to The Cleaners Cosby's comments cut deep The Cos, again

by Bob Schatan
Friday, May 21, 2004

Among the African-American, Black, or whatever the currently politically correct description of the Negro race happens to be, the taboo subject among the elite is the subject of Black underachievement. This underachievement affects the whole of the Black communities and the left-wing extremist media promotes the most base aspects of it unmercifully accenting the violence, the degradation of Black women as "Ho's an' Bitches", trashy lifestyles based on street drug culture, and Rap/Hip Hop/whatever "music" full of threats, trash sex, and little having to do with the positive qualities of life. The Black's primary objects of crime is each other, their communities are called Ghettos, 70% or more of their children are born out of wedlock, and they blame everyone else for the problems they have the power to solve.

Television and movie stars fear to trespass on this ground laden with mines of bigotry planted thickly among the solid soils of reality. To tread here is to risk blacklisting by the major studios as has happened to several conservatives in the media industry. Naturally this makes it a rare experience to have someone speak freely about the problems of Black culture. Bill Cosby is one such rare man who is now mostly beyond the reach of the knives that the major studios would use to slice his opinions to shreds.

It is ironic that he was invited to the Brown vs. Board of Education 50th anniversary by the NAACP. That lawsuit started the process of school integration and an attempt to advance the education of minority children, an attempt that has failed in large part because of the NAACP and poverty pimps such as Jesse Jackson. Bill Cosby, with a PhD in Education, approached the lectern knowingly and what he said shook the foundations of the Black elite present in Constitution Hall, Washington, D.C., home to one of the worst ghettos in our country a couple nights ago.

Among his remarks were:

"Ladies and gentlemen, the lower economic people are not holding up their end in this deal. These people are not parenting. They are buying things for kids – $500 sneakers for what? And won't spend $200 for 'Hooked on Phonics.'

He added: "They're standing on the corner and they can't speak English. I can't even talk the way these people talk: 'Why you ain't,' 'Where you is' ... And I blamed the kid until I heard the mother talk. And then I heard the father talk. ... Everybody knows it's important to speak English except these knuckleheads. ... You can't be a doctor with that kind of crap coming out of your mouth!"

And regarding the one third of all Black youths who've spent time in jail:

"These are not political criminals," he said. "These are people going around stealing Coca-Cola. People getting shot in the back of the head over a piece of pound cake and then we run out and we are outraged, [saying] 'The cops shouldn't have shot him.' What the hell was he doing with the pound cake in his hand?"

Such remarks naturally didn't sit well with the "Blame America First" Black leaders of the NAACP who were present. Among these elites were Howard University President H. Patrick Swygert, a remarkably achieved educator who in 1994 observed money by itself will not improve student performance noting that more money didn't improve student achievement.

Also on hand Kweisi Mfume, the President of the NAACP, who just a couple years ago had an illegitimate baby with a mistress about the same time as Jesse Jackson's, was too shocked to comment on this flagrant breach of their Racial Sensitivities.

But the lawyer for the NAACP's Legal Defense Fund, Theodore Shaw, went to the lectern and pointed out that most folks on welfare weren't Black. But he failed to point out that Blacks, 11% of the US population have the highest percentage of the population on welfare. He even went to far as to lie to the assembled left-wing extremist audience that the problems of the Black community weren't self inflicted which directly conflicted the truths just spoken by Dr. Bill Cosby. Among the luminaries present in the audience were Regis Philbin, Barbara Walters and Rupert Murdoch: representatives of the left-wing media elite, along with Dr. Cosby, to the NAACP.

Jesse Peterson, founder and president of BOND, the Brotherhood Organization of a New Destiny, and a real ordained minister said, "Bill Cosby is right! It's about time that high-profile blacks openly spoke the truth about the problems in the black community. This is what most blacks say in the privacy of their homes, barbershops and amongst other blacks. I'm surprised that he [Cosby] made these comments in front of NAACP leaders." Peterson added, "The establishment black leaders don't want blacks to take responsibility for their mistakes. They want blacks to continue blaming the 'white man.' This type of honest dialogue is long overdue. It's the only way to help black Americans."

My hat is off to one of the few brave men willing to face the wrath of the Black elites for saying what is painfully obvious, "look in the mirror."

One last question: why does the NAACP need a legal DEFENSE fund?

©Bob Schatan

Our Silence is a Hurtful Silence

Armstrong Williams
Friday, June 4, 2004

By now we've all heard about Bill Cosby's remark that ''Lower economic [black] people are not holding up their end in this deal."

Most would agree that little of what Cosby said about the black underclass was politically correct. It was, however, 100 percent right. More to the point, Cosby did something that few black leaders seem willing do: deal publicly and honestly with issues that are ripping apart our community.

That was important not just because of the absence of anything resembling political correctness (black people are not supposed to discuss our community's shortcomings), but because it prompted vigorous public discussion about issues that have plagued black America for too long. That represents an important and much needed change.

Consider for a moment, as Cosby did, the alarming disparity in graduation rates between white students and minority students. According to a recent report conducted by the Civil Rights Project at Harvard and the Urban Institute, only 50 percent of black students graduated in 2001.

By contrast, 75 percent of white students obtained their high school diplomas that year. This is an obvious problem. It will not get better by squinching our eyes. Plainly, someone needs to start talking about the harm we are inflicting on ourselves.

In particular, we need to start talking about the disintegration of the black family unit. I find this as frightening as anything that's happened in our time. Seventy percent of black babies are born to unmarried parents. In effect, transient couplings have replaced the institution of marriage in black America. These "transient couples" are often children themselves and lack the means to provide material support for their family.

Abuse and neglect follow. One national study reported that "severe parent-to-child violence was 114 percent greater in black families than in white families." Many children in abusive households go on to become violent abusers themselves. Countless others will simply never learn how to be responsible, loving parents. The cycle of abuse and neglect will sew child welfare and self esteem issues into an entire generation of black Americans.

We cannot pretend this is not happening. Nor can we lay all the blame at the feet of the white man.

And that's really all Cosby was saying: family and education are the bedrock of our lives. We can't ignore it when these areas are in crisis. Nor can we transfer the blame onto others. Sadly, it seems as though somewhere along the line we lost faith in our ability to deal openly and honestly with the problems facing our community. Many of us don't talk openly about our community's self inflicted wounds for fear that this will only nourish the forces of intolerance. Let's not give ammo to the bigots, most of us reason. (That would explain why Howard University has refused to release transcripts of Cosby's speech.)

This is the wrong response. Refusing to deliberate over issues that are ripping apart our community will only ensure that these important issues remain unresolved. We cannot be so concerned about looking bad to white people that we ignore the very serious problems that are plaguing our community. We cannot pretend, merely for the sake of cultural PR, that these problems do not exist. Good PR is not social change.

Instead of opting for silence, we need to do the hard work of raising these issues to consciousness for examination. But that's nearly impossible to do that when our leaders refuse to speak above a whisper about our self inflicted wounds.

Have we all been so spooked by what white people think of us that we remain silent about our own destruction? If so, I would suggest to our leaders that silence will serve black America poorly if it means that our ability to deliberate and respond to serious problems is thereby weakened.

Our silence is hurtful not only because it prevents us from converging around important topics, but also because it passively suggests that violence and the education gap are uniquely black shortcomings that we have a vested interest in concealing from the public view. They are not. Violence is not hard wired into our DNA. The 50 percent high school drop out rate is not a function of our biology.

These are not manifestly black issues. They are issues of personal responsibility, accountability, and social conditioning. But by shrouding these problems from public view, we isolate ourselves from other members of mainstream America who share this plight. In effect, we turn violence and education into a "black thing." At least one obvious result is that government officials are less responsive to these issues because they're perceived as only affecting a minority of the voting populace.

Sadly, the debate about the racial economic and educational gap is almost never framed that way. We don't talk about how these are behavioral issues because then we would be forced to publicly discuss our own shortcomings. So, instead we tend to rationalize the behavior of street thugs and excuse our own shortcomings as the result of racism.

There is an obvious ripple effect. If black youths are told from a young age that they are victims - that victimhood is an inextricable part of being black - they will ingrain the idea into their self concept. They will actively fail in school, because testing well is something white people do.

But if we actively converge around the ideas of individual striving and personal responsibility, then maybe we can supplant the pressure black children feel to underachieve academically with a positive peer pressure to succeed.

This is the challenge Cosby set before us. I pray the rest of the community can follow suit by converging around an open and honest discussion about the very deep reasons for our own self inflected wounds.

It will be a difficult conversation, but one that is sorely needed.

www.armstrongwilliams.com

Cosby Has Harsh Words for Black Community

Thu Jul 1, 7:27 PM ET

By DON BABWIN, Associated Press Writer

CHICAGO - Bill Cosby (news) went off on another tirade against the black community Thursday, telling a room full of activists that black children are running around not knowing how to read or write and "going nowhere."

He also had harsh words for struggling black men, telling them: "Stop beating up your women because you can't find a job."

Cosby made headlines in May when he upbraided some poor blacks for their grammar and accused them of squandering opportunities the civil rights movement gave them. He shot back Thursday, saying his detractors were trying in vain to hide the black community's "dirty laundry."

"Let me tell you something, your dirty laundry gets out of school at 2:30 every day, it's cursing and calling each other n------ as they're walking up and down the street," Cosby said during an appearance at the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition & Citizenship Education Fund's annual conference.

"They think they're hip," the entertainer said. "They can't read; they can't write. They're laughing and giggling, and they're going nowhere."

In his remarks in May at a commemoration of the anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education desegregation decision, Cosby denounced some blacks' grammar and said those who commit crimes and wind up behind bars "are not political prisoners."

"I can't even talk the way these people talk, 'Why you ain't,' 'Where you is' ... and I blamed the kid until I heard the mother talk," Cosby said then. "And then I heard the father talk ... Everybody knows it's important to speak English except these knuckleheads. You can't be a doctor with that kind of crap coming out of your mouth."

Cosby elaborated Thursday on his previous comments in a talk interrupted several times by applause. He castigated some blacks, saying that they cannot simply blame whites for problems such as teen pregnancy and high school dropout rates.

"For me there is a time ... when we have to turn the mirror around," he said. "Because for me it is almost analgesic to talk about what the white man is doing against us. And it keeps a person frozen in their seat, it keeps you frozen in your hole you're sitting in."

Cosby lamented that the racial slurs once used by those who lynched blacks are now a favorite expression of black children. And he blamed parents.

"When you put on a record and that record is yelling `n----- this and n----- that' and you've got your little 6-year-old, 7-year-old sitting in the back seat of the car, those children hear that," he said.

He also condemned black men who missed out on opportunities and are now angry about their lives.

"You've got to stop beating up your women because you can't find a job, because you didn't want to get an education and now you're (earning) minimum wage," Cosby said. "You should have thought more of yourself when you were in high school, when you had an opportunity."

Cosby appeared Thursday with the Rev. Jesse Jackson (news - web sites), founder and president of the education fund, who defended the entertainer's statements.

"Bill is saying let's fight the right fight, let's level the playing field," Jackson said. "Drunk people can't do that. Illiterate people can't do that."

Cosby also said many young people are failing to honor the sacrifices made by those who struggled and died during the civil rights movement.

"Dogs, water hoses that tear the bark off trees, Emmett Till," he said, naming the black youth who was tortured and murdered in Mississippi in 1955, allegedly for whistling at a white woman. "And you're going to tell me you're going to drop out of school? You're going to tell me you're going to steal from a store?"

Cosby also said he wasn't concerned that some whites took his comments and turned them "against our people."

"Let them talk," he said.

Copyright © 2004 The Associated Press
Copyright © 2004 Yahoo! Inc.

Cosby Takes Black Folks to The Cleaners

By James Hill, BET.com Staff Writer

Posted July 2, 2004 -- Comedian/actor Bill Cosby has caught the media’s eyes again for his Thursday appearance at the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition & Citizenship Education Fund's annual conference when he said, among other things, that Black men need to “stop beating your woman up because you can’t find a job.”

The comedian, actor and author made headlines in May when he said that poor Blacks were not “holding up their end of the deal,” while speaking at a 50th anniversary gala for the landmark Brown vs. Board of Education decision. Those earlier remarks brought both applause and condemnation, but Cosby dismissed his critics as being afraid to air the Black community’s dirty laundry;  he spoke to them again Thursday. "Let me tell you something, your dirty laundry gets out of school at 2:30 every day, it's cursing and calling each other n------ as they're walking up and down the street. They think they're hip. They can't read; they can't write. They're laughing and giggling, and they're going nowhere."
Cosby’s remarks were met with applause as the Rev. Jesse Jackson stood by and nodded in agreement. "I can't even talk the way these people talk,” the “Fat Albert” creator said, "And then I heard the father talk ... Everybody knows it's important to speak English except these knuckleheads. You can't be a doctor with that kind of crap coming out of your mouth."
"For me there is a time ... when we have to turn the mirror around," he said. "Because for me it is almost analgesic to talk about what the White man is doing against us. And it keeps a person frozen in their seat, it keeps you frozen in your hole you're sitting in."
Jackson appeared on CNN where he dismissed the notion of Cosby’s statements as being controversial. “This is a common message,” Jackson said, “Go into any Black church and you’ll hear the same message.” The reverend went on to say that the comic is not trying to tear Black people down, “He’s trying to lift up. Bill is saying let's fight the right fight, let's level the playing field."

Apparently cognizant of the controversy his May comments sparked, Cosby intimated that he didn’t care what White people thought of his statements or if they tried to use them "against our people. Let them talk."

DISCUSS NOW: Does discussing our dirty laundry (school drop-out rates, unemployment and even the word “nigger,”) in public help or hurt us? Do you think Cosby is saying anything new or just saying it out loud?

politicalblowback...I hear you...  Jul 03 2004 11:18:19AM posted by: 192Texas I been reading Ebony, Jet, Essence for over 20 years...so... again, I say...this is nothing new...Jesse Jackson was once on that List...so was Bill Cosby! As Black People, we need to understand the CONCEPT of BLACK CULTURE...and how human development is influence by WHAT WE BELIEVE in OUR CULTURE... The problem we have is that OUR CULTURE has been peiced together...BASICALLY--WE DON'T REALLY HAVE ONE...THAT HAS HISTORY...THE CULTURE OF AFRICAN AMERICAN is a piecemeal of AFRICA and AMERICA...we just MADE ONE UP...since we didn't have one. This is the reason...so many of us are LOST...We are a people without history...just a few of us maybe able to trace our heritage back to Africa...or where ever our ancestors came from...but, will we be welcome... Our African brothers and sisters misunderstand us...JUST LIKE, often times...WE MISUNDERSTAND THEM...making that needed bonding harder... SEEK FIRST TO UNDERSTAND...THEN...TO BE UNDERSTOOD... Understand the CONCERNS of your parents, of your community...of others...YOU JUST MIGHT FIND OUT THAT...YOU HAVE THE SAME CONCERNS...BUT WHEN YOU DISMISSED THEM AS BEEN OLD...AND OUT OF TOUCH... YOU DO ALL OWN PEOPLE...A DIS-SERVICE! WE ARE ONE...OLD, YOUNG, AFRICA, AMERICA, UK, WHEREVER... BLACK PEOPLE OF THE WORLD...WHEN UNITED...IS A POWERFUL FORCE... I agree with Mr. Cosby  Jul 03 2004 11:22:40AM posted by: texas40 Mr. Cosby, Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you for your candid comments. Black people need to come out of denial as to who is to blame for our disappointments and failures. White people do not go home with us at night so they are not to blame for the language and behavior in our homes. Every individual has control over their personal conduct. Some people blame the white press for slanting the statistics. Then don't read the white press. Go see for yourself. Volunteer at a school. Our children can't read, they can't write, they can't put together a coherent English sentence that does not contain explitive deletes. Wise up people. Stop pointing the finger, the other three are pointing right back at you. Mr. Cosby, I am with you all the way. and another thing  Jul 03 2004 11:37:37AM posted by: supaflyqt i know this is an american website but there are black people outside of america too.some of you seem to forget that.you exclude the other black people by using the words "arfican american" and from what i understand that means taken from africa to america during slavery.lets just say black people in any country (especially a white mans country) make ourselves look bad by doing,saying negative things. can someone answere my question,because i really want to know...WHY DO BLACK PEOPLE USE THE WORD NIGGER LIKE ITS A GOOD THING?

Where We Web ©

Cosby's comments cut deep

By Joan Vennochi, Globe Columnist
July 6, 2004

BILL COSBY did it again. He said what many white Americans think but are afraid to say out loud for fear of sounding racist.

Cosby once again blasted segments of the black American community, telling a gathering presided over by the Rev. Jesse Jackson that black children who don't know how to read or write are running around "going nowhere." Warned Cosby: "Let me tell you something, your dirty laundry gets out of school at 2:30 every day, it's cursing and calling each other n----- as they're walking up and down the street."

This candor follows earlier remarks Cosby made in May at a commemoration of the anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision. At that time, Cosby derided some blacks for poor grammar, saying: "I can't even talk the way these people talk, `Why you ain't,' " `Where you is.' "

From a white perspective, it is easy to cheer on Cosby then smugly write off his words as a long-overdue wake-up call for black America. It's their problem, not ours, right?

Their problem it may be, but the big issue -- declining values and standards -- isn't limited to one ethnicity or neighborhood.

Today the American minivan is hip-hopping along the way to soccer games and baseball practice. The beat is a better pickup than caffeine, but listen to the lyrics and the message is a real downer. Not to sound like Tipper Gore, but after a while you realize you are singing about shaking your "tailfeather," "milking the cow," and "double-Ds," with the n-word thrown around as generously as the Beatles used "yeah, yeah, yeah." White boys can't jump, but many of them want to be Kobe Bryant or, short of that, Ja Rule. They want the money, the cars, and the bootylicious babes, and they see no connection between those goals and reading "A Separate Peace." (Incidentally, it is difficult to explain why a certain ethnic slur is unacceptable when they hear their rap idols singing it on their favorite CDs.)

This is the American melting pot, circa 2004. Music and sports, the great energizers of youth, unite as they reflect shared values. The culture, black and white, worships the high-flying world of professional athletes and entertainers, which is ethnically more diverse than corporate and academic America because it doesn't require higher degrees of learning. The racial divide that still exists in America means that black kids who don't become rich rap stars or make it to the NBA are still at a disadvantage compared with white kids who don't make it there either.

But today's youth, black and white, equate success with something quite different than learning how to read, write, reason, and debate. Universally, success is measured one way: in dollars. It doesn't seem to matter how you get them, just get them.

In his recent remarks, Cosby said young black people are failing to honor the sacrifices made by those who struggled and died during the civil rights movement. He is correct, but again, the same premise applies to young white Americans who are forgetting all those great-grandmothers and great-grandfathers who came to Ellis Island as teenagers and wanted one thing for their children: an education. In learning, those immigrants saw the path to economic security, which is something quite different from the mindless acquisition of material wealth. They passed that value on to their children, who in turn passed it on to their baby boomer children, who somehow are failing to pass it onto their own offspring.

Their children all want the magic bullet, the "American Idol" shortcut to fame and material success. They know dialogue and plot lines from "Law and Order," but law school? What a drag. If they can't be professional jocks, they want to be sportscasters. Sportswriting might be OK, but only if spellcheck is part of the job offer.

The economic consequences of that kind of thinking are graver for blacks than whites. To a certain extent, Cosby is saying accept the racial divide for what it is and do not use it as an excuse for failure. As an overall message, telling young people to take personal responsibility is fine as far as it goes. But as local minister Don Muhammad says, "He is pointing out an error, not the direction or way to resolve it."

What is the solution? Cosby doesn't say, but it's something we should all contemplate. There aren't enough jobs in America for kids, black or white, who can't read, write, or speak proper English. And wait until they find out the hard truth: The jobs available to the unskilled and uneducated don't come with mansions and Mercedes, they come with hamburgers and fries. The hip-hop generation is not all black. White America just likes to believe it is. Joan Vennochi's e-mail address is vennochi@globe.com.

© Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company

Reply 1 - Posted by: ltgod, 7/6/2004 2:43:41 AM It may not be exclusively a black thing, but it is very disproportionately a black problem. To pretend otherwise is to perpetuate the problem. That is what Cosby is saying.

Reply 2 - Posted by: pub_crawler, 7/6/2004 2:50:43 AM Here is a radical solution: give ALL the bloody kids a good education!!! Free of left wing indoctrination if at all possible.

Reply 3 - Posted by: JHSMom02, 7/6/2004 3:02:46 AM Thirty years ago, I was teaching at a predominately black private school. One of my eighth grade students couldn't read. I begged the principal (who was black) to move him into a federally funded reading program at the school, but she refused. Apparently he was too old to qualify for the program. But she had the unmitigated gall to tell me not to worry about the child, because he was a good athlete and would be able to play football. I walked away in total dejection. I also quit teaching at that school as soon as my contract was up. And I never heard the child's name again, either as a college athlete or a professional athlete. I guess she was wrong. And that is why we have the problem, educators who don't educate, parents who don't parent, and students who don't study. Our standards have reached down to the lowest common denominator. Or as Rush would say, we are dumbing down our society.

Reply 4 - Posted by: MsCharlotteVale, 7/6/2004 3:09:38 AM It's a myth of the left that if you're poor you're trashy with good reason. That wasn't true in the poor, rural south I grew up in. People tried to show dignity and do better. Being poor didn't used to be synonomous with being low class. Cosby's message won't resonate and it won't change anything. Look at the unwed pregnancy stats and see that it hasn't anything to do with being poor. If you can't find a job you make your own job, etc. That used to be the moral weather vane and it left town.

Reply 5 - Posted by: rotstan, 7/6/2004 3:19:17 AM You will never get a good public education as long as the leftists are in charge of the curriculum. All you will get is a bunch of thereapeutic garbage spiced with Marxism.

Reply 6 - Posted by: StoneP, 7/6/2004 5:21:53 AM I liked the part when he said, "Your dirty laundry gets out of school at 2:30 and ..." One of the cable channels, CNN or MSNBC, aired comments that people had phoned in, and all the ones I heard agreed with Cosby. One black male said Cosby didn't go far enough.

Reply 7 - Posted by: shards, 7/6/2004 6:06:44 AM "The racial divide that still exists in America means that black kids who don't become rich rap stars or make it to the NBA are still at a disadvantage compared with white kids who don't make it there either." But that has never hindered guilt ridden white America from granting blacks places in the workforce, or law school, (eg. University of Michigan) through affirmative action, the unspoken quota system, the EEOC, etc., ad nauseum. There has been a complicity in white America to lower its standards because of guilt. Why should they 'try' when they are allowed to slide?

Reply 8 - Posted by: Bill Schafer, 7/6/2004 6:23:18 AM The so-called "GREAT SOCIETY" program created under the Democrats when Lyndon Johson was President destroyed the unity in the black families. Girls found out that they could get all kinds of benefits if they became pregnant and had a kid out of wedlock. They got money for the child, money for an apartment , and food stamps, then they could have their lover come live with them. It went down hill from there!!!!

Reply 9 - Posted by: minalou, 7/6/2004 6:24:13 AM Man Cosby sure has some commie blacks in a spin over this..I saw one and can't remember his name but have seen his big mouth all over the news shows..No one can talk but him scream I should say.Anyway he started on about Cosby and his affair and all that typical dem stuff when they have nothing else..I yelled well dummy what about your Pervert President that you loved so well,what about old Jessie Jackass that has no telling how man kids out of his marriage and what about just about any filthy dem with a past.. Mr Cosby is saying what should have been said a long time ago and he is getting flack from the blacks( I won't call these blacks leaders because all they can lead is welfair moms and deadbeat dads..All of them want to keep the blacks ignorant so these filthy pigs can cash in..I say good work Mr Cosby at least he admitted his wrong but supports his child out of wedlock..Where as we the people have to support the others that have kids without knowing which one is the dad.

Reply 10 - Posted by: veryrightofcenter, 7/6/2004 6:33:37 AM This may be an aside, but my kids and I re-watched Spiderman yesterday. In the movie, the cast is white, of course. However, I noticed that the blacks in the movie (tiny parts) were the following: head teacher of a groups of white kids, police officer, and huge newsroom executive, in New York City. In the crime scenes in which Spidey battles, the perps are white or "questionable"-- they could be hispanic. Not one black criminal. Now if this is not PANDERING I do not know what is. Black cops are a distinct minority in New York City. Possibly you might get a black schoolteacher but then the classroom ould be predominatly blcak, not predominatly white. And anyone who has ever been mugged, attempted to be raped (as I once was) or reads the papers at all knows that blacks commit far more crimes that is proportionate to their demographic slice of the American pie. I have seen this in other movies as well. Trying to give a false sense of reality so as not to come off "prejuidce" or "profiling."

Reply 11 - Posted by: MMC, 7/6/2004 7:10:20 AM The welfare mentality- cross ethnicity- is pervasive in the school system. As a former educator- in the public schools- we were forced to teach to the goals of Outcome Based Education. If you are not familiar with Goals 2000, it is worth reviewing. Our schools enable children to stay dumb. We teach to the lowest standard, and make children who 'get it' wait until all the other children jump over the low hurdle. Yes, all children can learn...However, all children learn differently. We have proved that lower classroom numbers do not insure Johnny will read. We have proved that more money does not make a better school (Washington DC). Here is what makes a school system succeed: Parents- two, married, a religious belief, children involved in extra curricular activities (sports or academic)...and parents involved in every aspect of their children's education. I have made it a study of high school top achievers. The above paragraph is the common denominator in all the the top students- regardless of economic background.

Reply 12 - Posted by: doggone, 7/6/2004 7:26:02 AM Are there any smart black people that can lead and set an example that are in their 30's. I haven't seen or heard of any. Since we wen't down the desegregation road in the 60's education has gone downhill for whites and blacks.

Reply 13 - Posted by: erp, 7/6/2004 7:49:13 AM If Blacks aren't kept in ignorance and poverty, how can the poverty pimps live like Michael Moore.

Reply 14 - Posted by: oudry, 7/6/2004 7:53:15 AM A few posters back someone talked about Spiderman and the parts which blacks play in the film. Talk about pandering...ever watch the Reynolds Wrap ad in which a black and white cook a meal wrapped in aluminium? The white one is the stupid one and the black one is the bright light. It's like in Hollywood when the homely Jewish kid always gets the goregous white blonde, more a vicarious management wet dream scenario than reality. Why do we get images like this? Who out there is selling what? Huh?

Reply 15 - Posted by: MMC, 7/6/2004 7:53:39 AM #12 Those are totally out of line comments.

Reply 16 - Posted by: Halfgenius, 7/6/2004 8:03:11 AM From my prospective, the blacks Uncle Tom any successful black that steps forward to chastise them. They make attempts to destroy their careers with the aiding and abetting of the DNC, black caucuss and the LMSM. they therefore remain muffled and silent out of fear of reprisal. That Cosby has chosen to finally speak out is encouraging, what is now needed is many more prominate blacks to jump on the band wagon and get the thing rolling, maybe, with a little devine guidance, we can turn this sickening situation around and as in Iraq, and against the wishes of the Parti Le 'Rat free them....again.

Reply 17 - Posted by: jc96, 7/6/2004 8:07:11 AM spend an afternoo watching Maury, Judge Judy, Ricki Lake and such and you'll see stupid ignorant folks come in all shapes, sizes and colors. Spend the next afternoon watching Peoples Court ( Judge is Cuban I think) Joe Brown (black), Oprah (black) and Dr Phil (way white) and you'll still see stupid ignorant people but they're upstaged by thier hosts in which you see that smart folks loaded with common sense also come in all shapes, sizes and colors. Cosby nails it.

Reply 18 - Posted by: Benblayke, 7/6/2004 8:07:15 AM Hey, where I grew up the Jewish guy did get the good looking blonde and in many cases the good looking brunette! Many attractive women are drawn to intelligence, sobriety and like being treated like a lady which most Jewish men I have known are like. I am not a Jew but my oldest friend is. Generalities usually are wrong most of the time. Many black men that have it all together know that the world is their oyster for the taking in the USA due to corporate and government desire for a diverse work force. This hurts education IMO but I do not blame them for going for the higher pay. The large minority lower class needs to listen to Cosby's comments and the leaders of the NAACP also instead of extorting money and becoming professional victims.

Reply 19 - Posted by: YY4U, 7/6/2004 8:14:00 AM #10 - Interesting viewpoint. Watch "Law and Order" sometime. The police Lt. -- a wonderful actress and a personal favorite, by the way -- is black. Rarely is a "perp" black. If they find a couple of black kids who look suspicious -- they're innocent in the end. The message: Blacks don't commit crimes on "Law and Order" unless they're brilliant white collar crimes. No back doctors though because if a doctor is a suspect, he/she is probably guilty unless he/she is an abortionist -- then it's the right wing wacko that did it. Doctors wives kill people, too. Lots of right wing wackos murder lots of people on "Law and Order" -- about as many as blacks DON'T.

Reply 20 - Posted by: amereagle, 7/6/2004 8:17:53 AM The problem Cosby describes have been created, out of whole cloth, by forty years of Guilty Liberal Democrat Social Reengineering and Massive Ego. If even 1/3 of American blacks would vote Republican this time around, assuring freedom of choice in schools, traditional values of hard work and family, and plentiful work and opportunity for all, this problem would right itself in ONE generation.

Reply 21 - Posted by: Muncsdad, 7/6/2004 8:18:09 AM I think #12's comments were fine. They are no more out of line than a lot of the posts on this thread, or the comments that Bill Cosby made. MM

Reply 22 - Posted by: fingerpicker, 7/6/2004 8:35:43 AM eye-opening bloggery ... http://www.bet.com/articles/0,1048,c3gb10014-11047-1,00.html#boardsAnchor

Reply 23 - Posted by: valleystorm, 7/6/2004 8:38:12 AM We cannot afford to have such a large proportion of our population written off as uneducable, as the Democrats have designated the American blacks.

Reply 24 - Posted by: chocoholic, 7/6/2004 8:53:29 AM Blacks and guilt-ridden white liberals will do their best to continue the culture of victimhood with Whitey as the cause of all problems in life. Blaming someone else for all your problems is easy. Taking personal responsibility is hard, and that's why the racial divide won't change in our lifetimes.

Reply 25 - Posted by: Dolley Madison, 7/6/2004 9:02:07 AM This is the new minority; the white kids and others that remain in the public schools, with no help from their parents, with fall into a minority. Too many people are either pulling their children from the failed public school system, or are providing the tutoring needed, to make up for the useful idiot teachers that go along with the agenda of the NEA. Just check out all the tutoring places that have sprung up in the last decade or two; they are filled with students, from Huntington to Sylvan to Kumon, etc. Many of the children graduating from the public system are doing quite well, and achieving good SAT scores. It isn't because of the teachers; it is in spite of them. So, it is not the majority of students that are failing; it will be a minority.

Reply 26 - Posted by: mulhaven, 7/6/2004 9:13:02 AM #4, in my mind, makes a very astute observation. It wasn't that long ago that America had a vast rural and small-town population that lived very well without great wealth. School classes were of mixed grades. And the students of that time were far better educated then those of today. Americans of that era were highly conservative, mainly due to their good education, family values, and their attachment to reality. This was a problem for the left. A problem they have partially overcome by detaching school curriculums from hard-nosed scholarship and by preaching utopian concepts that lead to social disintegration.

Reply 27 - Posted by: Dolley Madison, 7/6/2004 9:15:22 AM Racial divide was made worse by the dimocrats; they deliberately used the blacks to hurt America and further their agenda. And nothing they do works, because they do not want it to work. Also, the DSAUSA, or the Democrat Society of America/USA is a communist organization that has a lot of blacks as members. Until those blacks wake up and smell the coffee, and decide to participate in a free America, their is no hope nor future for them. They will remain in the minority, and in the control of their dimocrat manipulators.

Reply 28 - Posted by: bugboy, 7/6/2004 9:15:51 AM I think Cosby's comments were, not for just the people, but for the arrogant black leadership that these people seem to listen to. Jackson, Sharpton and their ilk would not be national leaders if the blacks would begin questioning the motives of the statements and actions of these so called leaders. Cosby is more of a leader then any Jackson or Sharpton. His words ring true for not only blacks but whites also. IMHO the ruination of the schools began when the ACLU won it first case against the use of GOD in the schools. The moral guiding compass was ripped from the system which now has none.

Reply 29 - Posted by: Duke Of Duval, 7/6/2004 9:16:01 AM Back in the '80s a new fellow came into the group where I worked. I hadn't even seen him but he was located just over the tall cubicle wall beside me. I could hear him talking calmly and intelligently on the phone now and then and to others that came into his work area. A couple of days later, I had occasion to go around into the next area and to my great surprise the man was Black as the Ace of Spades. His speaking of English was perfect and he was dressed sharp as anyone else in our large office. I could not have even guessed remotely that a black fellow was over that wall just from hearing him speak. That man had learned to speak clearly and with no hint of any "ebonics" that one usually hears in such cases. He had progressed from school into one of the largest corporations in the U.S. and into an engineering section that dealt with customers world wide working with complex equipment. This fellow overcame whatever holds back so many.

Reply 30 - Posted by: Shimmer128, 7/6/2004 9:20:38 AM Anyone who expects reason and normalcy from Hollywood (even if filmed in NYC) is about as stupid as the people they are talking about. Sorry, but true. Cosby's complaints: who cares if they apply to others too?? He wasn't talking to others, he was talking, desperately trying to make a point to those of his own race. If he cared about humanity, he would have addressed all people, all Americans. That's my only objection, Blacks, most of them, well, virtually all of them, are blacks first, last and only. They need to realign their priorities and outlook and view themselves as part of the greater whole. As Americans, for instance!

Reply 31 - Posted by: recallhillary.com, 7/6/2004 9:27:25 AM Poster #23 may have hit on part of the "give'em a pass" philosophy for the black community. BET, of course stands for Black Entertainment Television. That's a separatist name. If the network wants to promulgate the ideals of Martin Luther King (please table his Clintonian marital infidelity), then it should be called Brotherhood Entertianment Television. The reason that black kids, teens, and Gen X members wear stupid-looking flat bill sideways baseball caps, and dress like jail inmates (low down baggy jeans) is because black authority figures, let alone white authority figures, are flat out scared to tell these kids that their attire, behavior, and attitude are a rocket ride to perdition.

Reply 32 - Posted by: PoliticalJunky, 7/6/2004 9:27:33 AM The Black community needs to teach its children that getting good marks is not "acting white" but is, instead, the key to the good life. The White community needs to teach its children that it is not "cool" to mimic the talk and actions of gangbangers. This image of Black people as oh, so cool, was fostered by our government some years ago as a way to get us White people to shed our "prejudice". Everything black was praised and rewarded. The strategy has been all too successful.

Reply 33 - Posted by: afortiori, 7/6/2004 9:33:55 AM Ms Venochi states:

Reply 34 - Posted by: Harmony1, 7/6/2004 9:39:09 AM Sometimes the TRUTH hurts; however, it's still the TRUTH. I recall that Bill Cosby has been a die-hard Liberal for years and years; I Also recall that his Son was killed several years ago and left in his car by the roadside. Anyone remember the details? I'm just wondering if I remember correctly that his 28 year old son was killed by a a drugged-up, worthless POS. I may not be recalling the facts correctly but it is good to see Cosby come forward to try to save future generations of young people.

Reply 35 - Posted by: Zelle1485, 7/6/2004 9:45:20 AM #32 is right , the *cool* black rappers have had more influence on our white children than we care to admit. Who were the first to wear the crotch dragging pants and who followed, who started with the caps worn a crazy angles and who followed, the influence shows in thousands of ways. We have allowed their *cool* to become our *cool*. The poster who implied that the white student pool has been dumbed down is absolutely right.

Reply 36 - Posted by: raphaela, 7/6/2004 10:02:06 AM My husband and I were watching a documentary on the life and times of Willie Mays. Several of his contemporaries (negro) were interviewed and to a man they spoke beautiful english. It occurred to me that the language of the ghetto-ized negro children and teens is like infantile speech: it's made up and unintelligible. These kids have been neglected and abandoned by their families and mainly their fathers. The commie-crats have created this group of know-nothings through social engineering in order to dominate them. They are the pawns of their black brothers and sisters in positions of leadership. It is a pity.

Reply 37 - Posted by: tootsweet, 7/6/2004 10:02:40 AM #8 is certainly right. I would add that the boyfriend better not actually live there, because it would reduce her child support benefits. This gave the boyfriends no incentive to take care of or marry the girl, since everyone knew it would reduce the payments. What we subsidize, we encourage.

Reply 38 - Posted by: afortiori, 7/6/2004 10:03:03 AM Darn quotation rules... If I may: Ms Venochi states at the end of her mindless rant: What is the solution? Cosby doesn't say, but it's something we should all contemplate. I disagree. Cosby begins an answer, which Laura Washington from the Chicago Sun-Times continues: Cosby's plea to parents, Before you get to the point where you say 'I can't do nothing with them' -- do something with them. Like: Teach our children to speak English. When the teacher calls, show up at the school. When the idiot box starts spewing profane rap videos, turn it off. Refrain from cursing around the kids. Teach our boys that women should be cherished, not raped and demeaned. Tell them that education is a prize we won with blood and tears, not a dishonor. Stop making excuses for the agents and abettors of black-on-black crime. It costs us nothing to do these things. But if we don't, it will cost us infinitely more tears.

Reply 39 - Posted by: fed up, 7/6/2004 10:05:20 AM It's time for all American families to turn off their televisions (it's pure poison), sit down and eat dinner around the table like a family and spend quality time with your kids. Before it's too late.

Reply 40 - Posted by: 4light, 7/6/2004 10:10:08 AM what kids need, black or white or shades in between, is good parents. Mom and Dad together raising children. How many of these non-achievers come from stable two parent families?

Reply 41 - Posted by: nancyb, 7/6/2004 10:16:33 AM In the late 1800s and early 1900s, at Ellis Island, immigrants with certain contagious diseases such as tuberculosis were denied entry and put right back on the boat they arrived on for a return trip. Problem: today not enough is melted out of the melting pot before the American Pie is cooked. I'd like to see some criteria of quality, mental and phycsical, applied to would-be immigrants. What happened to merit, anyway?

Reply 42 - Posted by: MrJack, 7/6/2004 10:22:59 AM Dr. Cosby is an educator par excellence. He is taking on two of the biggest obstacles that teachers have to confront: ignorance and apathy (I don't know and I don't care).

Reply 43 - Posted by: esgaroth, 7/6/2004 10:23:08 AM I will kindly thank one poster for leaving out my generation, which is actually Generation REAGAN, thank you very much!, out of the group they have lumped as having bad taste in clothing and manners. Most of Generation Reagan are in their mid-thirties now, well beyond the silliness of teen fads and dress the way they should in order to take care of their families. The generation referred to is more the group born after 1980. Please keep it straight.

Reply 44 - Posted by: sherlock, 7/6/2004 10:23:09 AM I guess Cosby is rich enough now, that he can say how he feels about his race without it hurting him very much, but, his comments should have been preached from the rooftops a-l-o-n-g time ago. By the way, wonder how Opie (Ooops) i mean Oprah feels about her race? and why is she not commenting about it? Lord, knows she is rich enough to have her say-so on just about anything she cares to comment on....come Oprah, help your people by giving them some "Pearls Of Wisdom" from the "Know it all" "Self appointed" experts you have on your show all the time.

Reply 45 - Posted by: LadyK, 7/6/2004 10:31:41 AM 30 is right. I don't like this "afro american" garbage. I am not "dutch american" or portugese american or german american or french american..... I am an American. If I wanted to think of myself as Irish American then I wouldn't be an American....my loyalties would be to Ireland. And then should maybe consider returning to Ireland. You get my point. On race questions on forms that say what race or ethnicity are you... I always write: As long as you continue to ask this question there will be racism in America.

Reply 46 - Posted by: One small Voice, 7/6/2004 10:41:16 AM Is it cool to act black? Is it cool to act white? Is it cool to go to school and get good grades? Is Jesse Jackson cool? Is Bill Clinton cool? Is it cool to have your pants hanging off? Who tells us what is cool? That seems to be the problem.

Reply 47 - Posted by: Jauhara, 7/6/2004 10:44:39 AM #19, you are only half right. The earlier episodes of Law & Order, in the early 1990's featured a lot of stories that were by no stretch of the imagination PC. In fact, some of the most unforgettable episodes tackled affirmative action, etc. But, having said that, you are still quite right, that the bulk of the shows are horribly PC nowadys. Especially when they deal with Muslims.

Reply 48 - Posted by: Hermoine, 7/6/2004 10:45:12 AM I disagree with one thing she said: What is the solution? Cosby doesn't say, but it's something we should all contemplate. Cosby did address what to do. He told black parents to quit cursing in front of their kids, quit letting them listen to harmful music and start helping them in school. He kept pounding home the need for parents to help their children get an education. She may have only heard one side of the message, but Cosby definitely addressed the solution side, which simply put is: Start taking responsbility for yourself and have pride in your community.

Reply 49 - Posted by: R. Edgar , 7/6/2004 10:45:57 AM As somebody has commented on this site previously, this almost guarantees perpetual employment to those of us "old farts" who were mostly educated before all the "progressive" innovations of the last thirty years totally infested us. Just check the idiots on your local tv stations! Saw a 4th of July graphic on the Sunday news, celebrating "IndependAnce Day". What's IndependAnce, a gathering of the incontinent shaking their bootys? Sheesh, what morons!

Reply 50 - Posted by: Muguy, 7/6/2004 10:48:01 AM In this country, the opportunity is there-- Minorities get preferrential treatment getting into college, preferrential treatment in financing, etc A person who stays uneducated is a fool....there are literacy programs, public libraries, public internet access in libraries, etc There is no reason a person has to remain ignorant

Reply 51 - Posted by: John of Gilknockie, 7/6/2004 10:48:49 AM Congratulations to Mr. Cosby for standing in the face of an oncomming gale and speaking the truth. Give the man a lamp and pray that his search yields more positive results than that of Diogenese.

Reply 52 - Posted by: Texas Pete, 7/6/2004 11:00:32 AM I would disagree with #30's comment that if Mr. Cosby cared about humanity he'd be talking to everyone and not just black Americans. When dealing with a national problem it's best to start in one's own neighborhood. Further, it isn't like there aren't plenty of white folks telling kids to pull their pants up, turn their hat around and stand up straight.

Reply 53 - Posted by: YY4U, 7/6/2004 11:04:56 AM It's the media again. Cosby is getting airtime because of his extreme celebrity. But Walter Williams, Ph.D., Thomas Sowell, Ph.D., Shelby Steele, Ph.D., Clarence Thomas (can't remember the initials of a law degree), Condy Rice, Ph.D., General Colin Powell probably are vitually unknown among the uneducated blacks. Why? Because the media promote Reverends Sharpton and Jackson as role models. Why would they do that? Because the Democrats depend on the blacks remaining on the plantation, voting as they're told, shuffling to the tune of "ole Massas" Kerry, Kennedy, Clinton et al.

Reply 54 - Posted by: handk, 7/6/2004 11:07:44 AM I like your cheeky attitude with those pesky forms, #45. Most of the time I check "Other" or write in "Decline to state", but if I'm feeling annoyed or put upon I'll write in something like "Guamanian", "Sumerian" or "Slobobian" just to stir the bureaucratic cesspool. And, yes, that the question is asked is the plainest of declarations that racism is still a problem in America.

Reply 55 - Posted by: Ratt, 7/6/2004 11:23:37 AM "young white Americans who are forgetting all those great-grandmothers and great-grandfathers who came to Ellis Island as teenagers and wanted one thing for their children: an education. In learning, those immigrants saw the path to economic security, which is something quite different from the mindless acquisition of material wealth. They passed that value on to their children, who in turn passed it on to their baby boomer children, who somehow are failing to pass it onto their own offspring. " How does Cosby dragging the black community over the coals become a failed effort by the White Baby Boomers ? Stop harping on the White Folk . Cosby keep it in the KISS mode and told the African American Population how the cabbage grows. It's not Whitey's fault the blacks have poor economic or academic statistics . The best way to get ahead is thru education , not population.

Reply 56 - Posted by: Christie, 7/6/2004 11:28:19 AM I was talking about this with my daughter the other morning and suddenly found myself in tears. A man I adore, grew up listening to and laughing (at) with my family over his wonderful humor, has thru force of necessity, (no one else will do it), taken the impossible job of 'wake-up-call man' for the black community. I saw Jesse Uh-Jackson trying to untwist his shorts as Bill laid it out without so much as a pinch of sugar. Sure, the white community is just as bereft of decent, moral values, if not more so. Look at M and M: public enema #1. There are too many other examples to list here but Billy (and 'wife), OJ; Britney, Christina, Madonna and Michael Jackson are on the top of the scumbag list leading the zombie lemmings over the edge...it's Rome all over again. These people almost make me regret my decision to have children.

Reply 57 - Posted by: valleystorm, 7/6/2004 11:40:41 AM The so-called Ebonics is a relic of the English spoken by many immigrants from the British Isles centuries ago, by both the educated and uneducated. Blacks learned this English as slaves. It's astonishing that black parents and leaders do not demand that their children give up a slave-language!

Reply 58 - Posted by: SteelBreeze, 7/6/2004 11:42:25 AM Be a good parent to your kids and most of this problem goes away. It is as simple as that. By the way - did you all catch the irony of Cosby talking about this stuff at J.J.'s Rainbow meeting of the minds?

Reply 59 - Posted by: hoglah, 7/6/2004 11:51:04 AM Too bad Cosby didn't throw the two sorry 'Reverends' into the mix. These shysters are doing far more for themselves financially than they will ever do for the black people.

Reply 60 - Posted by: Hermoine, 7/6/2004 11:55:33 AM Me thinks Cosby is playing the Reverends' game. . .he is turning the tables on them and using them to suit his purposes. Very smart.

Reply 61 - Posted by: luckydog, 7/6/2004 12:11:36 PM People, people, nothing will ever change. Absolutely nothing will EVER change, in regards to this issue, until we totally reject political correctness. That is what Dr. Cosby was and is talking about. This has been his message or theme throughout his entire career. I've watched and listened to Bill Cosby since Fat Albert and he has always had a positive, non-politically correct view of the world. He is speaking out so forcefully now because he see's the danger signs as well as the wreckage of the present and past.

Reply 62 - Posted by: YY4U, 7/6/2004 12:15:05 PM Regarding the forms that ask for race. I always put "Human".

Reply 63 - Posted by: booshkindoggin, 7/6/2004 12:23:25 PM It is correct that this is far more than a black problem. Morality needs to be championed and a nation that turns its back on religion has no realistic method to fill that void.

Reply 64 - Posted by: bla bla, 7/6/2004 12:24:21 PM FYI: In the 20's, 30's, 40's & 50's -- American Blacks had the SMAE percentages of violent crime, single motherhood, & unemployment, and -- because of racial discrimination -- were much more poor than they are today! What has changed? Welfare & a collective liberal guilt that America harmed their ancestors so badly that we must excuse & enable everything bad thing they do & hand them more money for doing nothing. Whatsmore, Native Americans are struggling under the same system. Victimhood protected by false guilt will destroy any race of people if allwed to go on like it is in America today.

Reply 65 - Posted by: pepperblue, 7/6/2004 12:26:50 PM Cosby's right for everyone. Parents MUST return to being the primary teachers of their children. I deal with entry level workers (all classes and colors) each day and am continually frustrated with their inability to communicate, problem solve, and most important, think independently. UGH!

Reply 66 - Posted by: gop_guys, 7/6/2004 12:47:46 PM Anyone who has the wisdom to help get black Americans educated and get them out of the ''victimhood'' mentality will change the direction of this great country of ours. Men must stay married, go to church, love their children, work hard, and see that their kids stay in school. The government must end entitlements that encourage slothfullness.

Reply 67 - Posted by: nattering_nabob, 7/6/2004 12:54:19 PM I was watching "The N Word" documentary on TRIO this past weekend and there's this part where Stanley Crouch keeps hearing all this n-this and n-that language being spoken. He turns around and it's a bunch of white teenagers talking. He was just shocked.

Reply 68 - Posted by: YY4U, 7/6/2004 12:54:38 PM What always fascinates me is how "whites" are always supposed to "help" others. Africa is a mess, so WE are supposed to pump money in there to "help" them. The Middle East embraced a religion of barbarism and despotism and WE are supposed to bring them democracy. Rwandans butchered Hutus or vice versa and WE were expected to stop the slaughter. Haiti is a powder keg, so send in the marines. Columbia can't control the coco fields, so the US has to help. Afghanistan has let a small bunch of thugs take over their country, so WE are supposed to root them out. At least Cosby is saying to blacks that they need to help themselves. AMEN.

Reply 69 - Posted by: Society Dweller, 7/6/2004 2:18:42 PM

Reply 70 - Posted by: MedPig, 7/6/2004 2:32:35 PM #31 - I was once told by an old Correctional Officer that the pants hanging look, originally called 'sagging', started in West Coast jails, with the Homosexuals, who were advertising that they were 'Open for Business'. Keep in mind, too, that many jails tend to buy only a few sizes of clothing, and the skinny, inner-city kids can't hold them well. So, they decided that it made them look like other guys they had seen in jail, and therefore, MUST be 'Cool', and got the street name 'Jailing' for a brief period. From there, everyone decided to look that way. Given that if there is ONE thing the average teen male is, it's Homophobic, it was fun when I was working as a cop to tell them all this, and ask them WHY they were advertising for Gay Sex? Sometimes, it's good to know your History...

Reply 71 - Posted by: gop juggernaut redux, 7/6/2004 2:55:08 PM I never thought it's just a black problem. Blacks are Americans, just like every one of us. I care about them torpedoing their own lives because they are AMERICANS and if they destroy their lives, it hurts this country. Not to mention that we have to pick up the tab for the kids they can't afford to raise, not to mention all the crime and drug problems that stem from poor parenting.

Reply 72 - Posted by: SouthernNotStupid, 7/6/2004 2:55:44 PM It's a problem all over? Bull and Horse hocky chips. Get out of the big cities and hang with the religious white crowd and it goes away. Ditto the religious black crowd. We still have good values, strong families, do well in school and have happy, satisfying lives. Uncle Sam - you're now the problem, not the solution. However watch for this to be spun as a need for more Fed involvement and money.

Reply 73 - Posted by: msjena, 7/6/2004 3:01:51 PM What is mind-boggling to me is that the liberals and many blacks protested loudly when Pres. Bush proposed tying Head Start funding to actually teaching kids something. In Head Start, we have these kids at an age before they are corrupted by smut videos and school's not cool attitudes. We should be teaching them letter-sounds and other pre-reading skills just like my daughter got in her expensive pre-school.

Reply 74 - Posted by: DepuTJones, 7/6/2004 3:10:17 PM The "Baggy pants" did originate in prisons, though the homosexual twist is new to me, but...The size issue was prevelent and 44's became the norm as there were never enough uniforms to fit everyone correctly. The style, as I said did originate in prison.. Isn't that special? Let's have our children emulate criminals...What a wonderful world.

Reply 75 - Posted by: Brown Bear, 7/6/2004 3:12:43 PM It would be a wonderful event if Mr. Cosby could become a major leader of the Black community and take the place formerly held by JJ and Sharpton.

Reply 76 - Posted by: PoliticalJunky, 7/6/2004 3:46:10 PM No. 49 is right. Previous generations did receive a better education. I have two examples to give you. 1. I have a friend who is 77 years old and still working as a secretary. She says she is the only one who takes shorthand, knows grammar and can spell. 2. All my son's friends, except one, went to college. After some years the friend dropped his drug habit and, in his early 30's, started college. He had been a fairly good student in his high school days but far from a top student. When he graduated from college a few years ago he was No. One in his class. My son gives him great credit and we are thrilled for him, but we think he was helped because his competition was so weak.

Reply 77 - Posted by: Hillarys dry cleaner, 7/6/2004 3:57:28 PM I want a job where I can be paid to produce sludge like this. She says it's everyone's problem, not just a black problem. She doesn't understand Cosby's point.

Reply 78 - Posted by: recallhillary.com, 7/6/2004 3:59:02 PM Per #70 & #74, thank you for the information. Previously, all I knew was that "alleged" criminals under arrest and in jail (not prison) had their pants belts confiscated to forstall (but not prevent) suicide attempts. This the baggy pants. A lot more homeboys are regularly arrested and spend time in jail before trial. Thus the gansta-style pants. I did not know that criminals sentenced to prison were issued large-waist pants. I thought that many guys in prison got coveralls, eliminating pants & shirts. Whatever, now I'd like to know the styiistic derivation of the singularly absurd "special olympics" look of flat-brimmed, sideways baseball caps. I know it's rappers, but where in the world did they get the idea that this looked cool?

Reply 79 - Posted by: ivanhoe, 7/6/2004 4:03:25 PM #37 today the boyfriends live with them but they dont let the welfare office know

Reply 80 - Posted by: MedPig, 7/6/2004 4:19:43 PM #78 - Maybe they're just 'too cool' to care which way the brim faces? Or it's a 'stylin' thing'? Or, they're just too stupid to care? Or, maybe even that it keeps the sun out of their eyes during drive-bys... Who knows? I'm not even sure THEY do...

Reply 81 - Posted by: weejun, 7/6/2004 4:53:58 PM It may not just be a black problem, but at least there are whites who will point out and condemn declining values and standards. Try to find that among the black community leadership: you won't. There is NO condemnation from the black leadership of the black groups whose rap lyrics degrade women and advocate killing cops, and Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, Julian Bond et. al. will never come out against rappers as well as the overall anti-education slant of a large percentage of the black population (being educated and doing well in school is a "white" thing). Until the leadership steps up to the plate and faces reality, it will only get worse.

Reply 82 - Posted by: One small Voice, 7/6/2004 5:26:36 PM More Jesse Jackson less Bill Crosby, success is the white man's secret.

Reply 83 - Posted by: Happy Katy, 7/6/2004 7:38:40 PM The great part of Bill Cosby's speak-out at the Rainbow-Push show was the hopping-around dismayed reaction of Jesse Jackson. What is now not spoken of: Mr. Cosby was given a theme to speak on.... instead he totally disregarded it and went off on his own tangent. Jackson and others freaked out, but couldn't stop it. Now Jesse has been on talk shows affirming what Bill said, but is spinning and subverting the meaning of the message to try and make it more favorable to his bribery cause.

Reply 84 - Posted by: veryrightofcenter, 7/6/2004 7:59:12 PM The term for the behavior of whites trying to act like ghetto blacks is "whigger."

Reply 85 - Posted by: Joan Toast, 7/6/2004 8:39:10 PM THE POOL PLAYERS. SEVEN AT THE GOLDEN SHOVEL. From The Bean Eaters by Gwendolyn Brooks We real cool. We Left school. We Lurk late. We Strike straight. We Sing sin. We Thin gin. We Jazz June. We Die soon.

Reply 86 - Posted by: steph_gray, 7/6/2004 9:05:44 PM I can only say that I am absolutely bursting with pride in Mr. Cosby that he had the stones to say this!

Reply 87 - Posted by: ranelles, 7/6/2004 9:27:45 PM I was so proud of Bill Cosby.

Reply 88 - Posted by: Cor-vet, 7/6/2004 10:19:57 PM Most of the posters on the BET web page the day after the Cosby speech, still perceived the problem blacks face as originating from the whitey's! Blacks in England speak like proper Englishmen, but I assume that because blacks have only been in America a couple of hundred years, they have not learned to correctly speak english!

Reply 89 - Posted by: Rob Roy, 7/6/2004 10:35:59 PM A couple of years ago, a black kid in my town was shot dead in the projects. He had been visiting his cousin, who got into a beef with someone else there; the victim was trying to play the peacemaker, and got shot. He was a straight arrow and a star athlete and had been given scholarship offers to play college football. His status as a college-bound athlete attracted media coverage; even the Police Commissioner came to the funeral, because the kid's mom worked as a civilian police aide. But Fatboy Sharpton, J-Jackass, and the other professional "civil rights" whiners were NOWHERE AROUND. Had this kid been killed by a white kid in a racial confrontation, or shot by a cop, YOU CAN BET THEY WOULD ALL BE OUT THERE, and the outraged soundbites would be flying. But he was just a black kid killed by some other black kid over some stupid thing. Not very much to build a movement on, is it? Black-on-black crime? Ho hum. Nowhere near as "sexy" as "speaking the truth to power" and "fighting racism". NO WONDER Al, Jesse and their ilk had BETTER THINGS TO DO.

Reply 90 - Posted by: jbgusa, 7/6/2004 10:43:18 PM You're so right about that. Sad and touching story. I wish all people would learn the value of education, and peace over conflict.

Reply 91 - Posted by: tpehl, 7/7/2004 12:36:27 AM GW said it best: “The quiet bigotry of lowered expectations.”

The Cos, again

Jewish World Review
July 14, 2004 / 25 Tamuz, 5764

Walter Williams

http://www.NewsAndOpinion.com | Bill Cosby rattled the cages again a fortnight ago in his address before Jesse Jackson's 33rd Annual Rainbow/PUSH Coalition conference in Chicago. Let's look at some of his remarks.

Cosby told the audience that being poor had a different meaning to older generations and said the "housing project was set up for you to move in, move up and move out." Cosby's family moved out of Philadelphia's Richard Allen housing project, and so did mine. I don't know what Cosby's mother told him about being poor, but my mother frequently said, in the middle of one scolding or another, "We have a beer pocketbook but champagne tastes." One of my grandmother's favorite admonitions was "You don't have to be rich to be clean." Yesterday's gross material poverty among blacks is all but gone. In all too many cases, it has been replaced by the worse kind of poverty — poverty of the spirit.

Bill Cosby also admonished blacks to stop blaming the white man for our problems. "This is a time, ladies and gentlemen," Cosby said, "when we have to turn the mirror around." He's right again. Nobody can sensibly argue that racial discrimination has altogether disappeared. The relevant question is: How much of what we see can be explained by racial discrimination? The 70 percent illegitimacy rate among blacks is devastating, not to mention unprecedented, but can it be blamed on discrimination? Is the white man responsible for today's all-time high number of black single-parent families? What about the crime rate that has turned many black neighborhoods, once stable and civilized, into battlegrounds and economic wastelands?

Cosby also talked about a pathological culture that has emerged among many blacks referring to one another as "niggers" and music that refers to black women as "bitches" and "whores." Added to that pathology are the verbal and physical reprisals against blacks who speak and carry themselves properly and seek to excel academically. I'd sure like to hear the argument for the case where hard work and academic excellence make one a race traitor — acting white.

What to do? Addressing Bill Cosby's critique is a long, challenging journey, but as with any journey, we're closer to its end by taking the first step, even if it's a small first step. When the fall semester begins, teachers should refuse to accept "I be," "Why you ain't?" and "Where you is?" They might ask students who use such language whether they know anyone who's successful and speaks that way, except Snoop Doggy Dog. They might also refuse to accept poor enunciation like "axe" for ask and "wiff" for with. Check it out with Cosby if you don't believe me: None of the Richard Allen kids he and I grew up with spoke that way.

Inner-city school teachers should show some honesty and let students and their parents know that those A's and B's received on past report cards are phony and at best only C's, D's and possibly F's anywhere else. Fraudulent grades exacerbate other problems. When a black kid has all A's and B's and makes the dean's list, what will he and his parents blame for his failure to get a decent SAT score, get into college or get a job? They're going to blame it on racial discrimination. All they'll see is that white kids with A's and B's do well and their kids with the same grades do not.

Finally, along with these tiny first steps, black parents, teachers, politicians and civil rights organizations should condemn the conduct of young blacks who do not take advantage of today's educational opportunities — condemn it as a gross betrayal of the memory, struggle, sacrifice, sweat and blood of our ancestors.

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