Racist Remark in Photography !

[PetersCreek]

I could guess at jpfitzgerald's core beliefs but honestly, I didn't see anything overtly racist in his comments. Puerile? I sure think so. Designed to hurt or disparage the OP and/or his excellent photo? Not much doubt in my mind. Racist? Could be...or even probably...but I can also envision the jerk as a thoughtless, hurtful 15-year-old loser posting on his mommy's computer...feeling all smug and invulnerable in his anonymity.

Another perspective for what it's worth:

Never attribute to malice, that which can be adequately explained by stupidity....Robert J. Hanlon

My advice would be to get the comment removed and brush it off. I think both the photo and the photographer are too good to be brought down one tick by such ninnies.

 

[JD in Socal]

...but I can also envision the jerk as a thoughtless, hurtful 15-year-old loser posting on his mommy's computer...feeling all smug and invulnerable in his anonymity.

Never attribute to malice, that which can be adequately explained by stupidity....Robert J. Hanlon

This pretty well sums it up in my opinion. There are a lot of knuckleheads out there in the world, and we can let them bother us too much.

I would forget it and move on.

JD

 

[RMThompson]

It is a stupid remark. No question about that. But I can tell you from the perspective of an American that this kind of attitude did not exist here toward muslims until it was motivated by the rise of terrorism. It is the terrorism that has caused the wars. Hatred like this followed in the wake of terrorist activities and the wars that ensued. They didn't cause them because they weren't there. I don't want to get into a political discussion here and I certainly don't want to defend the racist remarks. But I do want to clarify the causes.

My grandfather was attacked in his home and sliced by a black man. My grandfather's friends all made racist remarks about him, but my grandfather never did.

I asked him why once, even though I agreed with him, why he didn't feel any hate towards black people after being attacked.

He said... "I was attacked by one, not all of them."

That's exactly the problem. Terrorism is caused by a few extremists, in the global scale less than 1/2 of 1% of all Muslims fall under the extremist view, but yet you are sort of justifying these remarks.

If my grandfather was attacked by a cheerleader, or a bald person, or Jay Leno, would I hate cheerleadrs, bald people or not-that-funny guys with large chins? No.

Terrorism is an EXCUSE that people give to hate those who are different then them.

No one hates skinny white boys after what Timothy McVeigh did.

 

[fmw]

I'm not even going to start, Thompson - at least not on the forum in deference to the desire of the management to keep this sort of thing out. Suffice it to say your logic is really faulty. Take care.

 

[ArmyOfNone]

I dont get why this thread shifted towards a political debate,almost.

Anyways, what was the comment on the photo? Maybe Im stupid, but i cant see it.

 

[ArmyOfNone]

I'm not sure what I think these days. But I do believe it's the politicians that caused the wars..... (from both sides).

It's the innocent people on both parts of the divide who are suffering.

Those comments are a disgrace.

I agree 100%. Someone who can find nothing wrong on either side is not looking hard enough.

 

[Alex_B]

Anyways, what was the comment on the photo? Maybe Im stupid, but i cant see it.

I has been removed.

It was just a rather stupid and insulting remark, nothing based on facts, just someone trying to be rude...

 

[hazelwestphoto]

I'm not even going to start, Thompson - at least not on the forum in deference to the desire of the management to keep this sort of thing out. Suffice it to say your logic is really faulty. Take care.

I don't think so. I thought what he said makes sense.

 

[Eric Piercey]

I don't think so. I thought what he said makes sense.

Me too. Perfect sense and well spoken at that.

 

[RMThompson]

Me too. Perfect sense and well spoken at that.

Thanks. I really don't want to disobey the rules of this forum, but it REALLY bugs me when people defend racism. I will say what I have to say, and then drop it, and if I get banned, I really don't care - especially if more than one person reads it.

I am a white guy born in the South USA, and I PERSONALLY have never been a victim of racism.

However, being in the south, I have personally laid witness to racism, in several forms, to the most benign comment to beatings of someone based on only their color of skin.

What is happening now, since 9/11, is a growing hatred of Muslim people, and not only Muslims, but anyone who LOOKS Muslim (which is ridiculous since we are not talking about a race per se), and that includes all people from Iraq, Iran, Syria, the rest of the Middle East, and even as far East as India! The common American has no idea the difference between a Pakistani and an Iraqi, let alone a Sunni and a Shiite.

Many people I consider intelligent say racist remarks almost daily, things like "We should just nuke the whole area" or "Why did they pick on my kid at the airport and not the kid with a towel on his head".

The don't consider themselves racist, in fact, many of them have friends of several races that they consider close. Futhermore, minority on minority racism is growing as well. I can remember talking to a customer of mine, who happens to be a Mexican telephone installer who lives in Texas. He was talking about how sad it makes him to NOT get jobs because he and his team are Mexican. I felt for him, until he got cutoff in traffic while on the phone with me by a black guy, and commented on how N***** should have more money than him.

I was floored. He was JUST talking about racism, and then he spouts a racial epitaph at me, as if I would take to it lightly. I politely excused myself, and lost contact with that customer.

Immediatly after 9/11 I thought of an Iraqi couple I knew in the mall who operated an icecream store. Sure enough, when I talked with them, they were already receiving threats and people were trashing their stand and business was at a standstill. Every Wedensday for three months I had sat in the mall and had dinner with this guy, and nothing changed. I did the same, and I got called named. Terrorist Lover, as people walked by.

There is something terrible brewing in America, something we haven't seen since the days of WW2, when we rounded up the Japanese and placed them in camps. We REALLY need to look inside ourselves and put the shoe on the other foot. What happened on 9/11 was terrible, and YES it was commited by middle easterners, and YES some Middle Easterners celebrated, but it doesn't mean the guy who drives your cab, or fills your gas, or serves you french fries is a terrorist.

Prejudicism is the reason most wars start. The Crusades were started by Muslims who hated Christians (it wasn't the other way around like people think), World War II was started by people who wanted to cleanse the world of all different people... and we can look back and SEE the atrocities, but it seems, many Americans, in the next breath can bash a brown skinned American.

The worst part about Terrorists are their ability to sacrifice. They kill themselves without question, and worse, they allow the killing of innocents who LOOK like them, in order to grow RAGE against Americans.

Please, if you are reading this, ignore skin color, religion, dialect, etc when you judge someone. I have two little girls, and I don't ever want them to think of anyone different. They already know their father would be accepting of any person who treats them of the respect they deserve whether he has brown skin, slanted eyes, a turban, or even if they aren't a man at all.

I hope that we change.

Do YOU?

 

[The_Traveler]

Before everyone gets even more wound up about this, I should say this. I corresponded with the jpfitzgerald and, although his comment was ignorant and juvenile, it was in response to what can be construed as an incredibly insensitive, vicious remark by the OP on this thread.

It may all stem from a terrible misunderstanding and, although that doesn't justify the rudeness of this response, IMO we should all throttle back our feelings and let this be a photography site again.

 

[EOS_JD]

and YES some Middle Easterners celebrated,

RMT
Your post is 100% my views. Racism is wrong. We are all human beings with the same red blood running through our veins. There are extremists on every side of the fence. I'm posting this link which was done as a joke for an Australian TV program and although funny it's quite concerning about how some people think!!!

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJTtxgImixo[/ame]

JD

 

[Arch]

Ok no more talk of terrorists or political views please.

 

[LaFoto]

Has "kombizz" ever been back to follow up on his thread?
Not that I would notice.
So the time has come for all of us to lean back and enjoy our favourite pasttime again, photography, for I begin to fail to see this thread was really that important to the OP ... why should we get worked up on something he tossed out here and never came back to? Therefore I would be happy if this very thread could die from here on with no further comment by anybody.

 

[Alex_B]

' nuff said!