Sigmund Freud made a living out of telling people that everything is a phallic symbol. In other words, Freud used to say that everything looked like a dick. So, everyone expected him to make a big deal out of cigars looking…well…dick-like. Add the fact that a cigar is something people stick in their mouth and suck on, and you’d think that Sigmund would have hit that softball out of the park.
But he didn’t. In fact, he once said, “Sometimes, a cigar is just a cigar”. What he meant is that some things are just simple. They don’t need to be overanalyzed or overthought.
I’m really getting sick of hearing people try to make everything about race. It seems like every time I turn around, I see somebody taking a totally-non-racist thing out of context and using it as an example of racial discrimination.
Well, actually, it doesn’t just “seem” that way. It is that way. Crying “racist” when it’s not racist is a favorite pastime of the Left, and examples of this in action are everywhere.
I was listening to a podcast the other day when a listener called in to ask why people reporting the news on TV all sound alike.
Interesting question. Right? If you tune into any news broadcast anywhere in the country, you’ll hear people who all sound pretty much the same. It doesn’t matter if you’re in Boston, the Bronx or the deep South, the folks reading the news and weather on TV and the radio are articulate and easy to understand. They all sound like they’re from the Midwest.
The reason? People from the Midwest have a superpower. They have the remarkable ability to be easily understood by everyone who speaks English. Essentially, a Midwestern accent is no accent at all. When you listen to someone who pronounces words correctly, it’s not only easier to understand what they’re saying, it’s also easier to understand what they’re telling you. Because if you don’t have to struggle to understand the words they’re using, you can focus all your attention on the message they’re sending.
A guest on the podcast was relating his experience as a broadcast journalist. He happened to be black. Guess what? Apparently, expecting people to speak so they can be understood is racist.
He was bitching about how he couldn’t find a job in broadcasting until he learned how to speak without his accent. So obviously that’s a poke at black people which obviously means that it’s a racist thing to do.
Except it’s not. If you treat everyone exactly the same, how can it be considered racist?
Black people aren’t the only ones with accents. There are countless white people across the country who also had to learn to speak clearly to work in their chosen profession. But you don’t hear them bitching.
Now, if it was limited to just the pronunciation of certain words like “axe”, “hisself”, “sammich” or “baffroom”, then maybe he’d have a point. But it isn’t. So he doesn’t. Besides, I know a lot of white people who speak with accents or dialects that don’t necessarily help them present themselves as knowledgeable and intelligent. And every single one of them would also be required to drop their accent to get a job as a newsreader.
The next guest was a black woman. Her gripe was that she had to change the way she looked to get a job. She signed a contract giving the producers control over her weight, clothes, hairstyle and makeup. If she wanted to change her appearance in any way, according to the contract, she had to get prior approval.
Of course, she believes that this is discrimination against black people and that having to ask someone else if it’s OK to cut your own hair is, in her own words, “demeaning and makes me feel less than human”. And, it’s obviously racist.
I have two things to say to her about this. First, and I said this just a few moments ago, how can anything be considered racist when the same policies apply equally to everyone? And second, you signed the fucking contract. The time to consider how this might affect your feelings was before you put your name on the dotted line.
The people running the podcast could have randomly chosen any person in the broadcasting profession and heard stories of how they had to change their voice, or appearance, or mannerisms to fit in. Because everyone in front of a camera or microphone has similar stories.
Hell, they could have kept the same guests. Their stories were interesting enough. Where things went sideways was when the guests started claiming that they were somehow singled out for special treatment/discrimination because they’re black.
This behavior is no different than Jussie Smollett or Bubba Wallace faking reports of acts supposedly perpetrated by white supremacists. It’s just another example of trying to make something out of nothing.
The only thing being accomplished by being purposely misleading is that you’re going to make it harder for people to believe you when something bad actually is happening. This isn’t only true about pretend racism, it’s true about everything. You’ve heard the story of Chicken Little? Yeah, it’s just like that.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m certain there are plenty of times when black people face challenges that white people don’t. So, let’s talk about those times. But, if there are so few instances occurring that you have to invent one to make your point, then maybe the problem isn’t quite as bad as you’re claiming it is.
Sometimes things are exactly as they appear. They don’t need to be overanalyzed, overthought or made more complicated than they really are. Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. Things may indeed be unfair, but if they’re unfair to everyone in exactly the same way, that’s not discrimination.
If everything is racist, then nothing is racist. If you perceive even the smallest slight as an attack on your race, maybe the problem isn’t the color of your skin.
Maybe the problem is that your skin just isn’t thick enough.
