Imus, humor, and the first amendment

Here's a neat piece by Robert Ringer: some reflections on the events leading up to the firing of Don Imus.

As everyone this side of the Milky Way Galaxy now knows, Don Imus got torched last week for referring to the Rutgers women’s basketball team as “nappy-headed hos.” I’m sorry to have to break this to you, but I’m so out of it that I didn’t even know what that meant!

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...I am ideologically compelled to opine that the public beheading of Imus was a bit of an overreaction. For one thing, his enemies have now handed him a fortune in speaking fees, not to mention that it’s probably only a matter of time until he gets an even better deal for a new radio or TV gig.

In any event, give credit where credit is due. The Race Police won another battle by getting Don Imus fired, which undoubtedly made a lot of people happy. But those same people should think about what this means in terms of our ever-decreasing freedom.

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It’s anti-freedom to censor humor, because humor is subjective. It’s anti-freedom (in general) to try to exile people who say things you don’t approve of. And it’s anti-freedom to force people out of their jobs because they say something that certain other people don’t like.

I am an unflinching believer in the morality of the marketplace. If Don Imus deserved to be fired — if enough people decided they were turned off by his comments and stopped listening to his program — he would have been gone. Quickly and efficiently. Because broadcasters care only about the bottom line.

And then he touches on an interesting point:

All we can do is work on making our own little worlds better.

And a good way to start on that is to make a personal commitment never to lower yourself by demanding the respect of others. Even if someone accedes to your demand, you can be certain of only one thing: Whatever respect that person outwardly displays toward you will be insincere. Deep down inside, he will resent you.

The truth of the matter is that you have no right to someone’s respect. Respect must be earned. And to earn respect, you first have to respect yourself — something over which you have complete control. The nice thing about it is that from self-respect flows the respect of others — as a natural consequence.

Second, purify your heart by ridding yourself of negative thoughts — especially hate and envy. When your heart is pure, you can feel free to say anything that suits your fancy, knowing that you have no ill intentions. If someone misunderstands your intent, that’s their problem. Only you know what is in your heart.

Third, lighten up. If someone says something that offends you, remember what your mother taught you about sticks and stones. Then see if you can disarm the remark by viewing it from a humorous perspective and getting a chuckle out of it.

Fourth, if you find that you’re forever on guard about what you say when you’re around a particular person, it’s wise to get that person out of your life. Life is too short to have to be constantly monitoring your own words. You don’t need the stress.