http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pyW6w5B7Aw

THEY ADVERTISED IT! HOW YOU GOINNA RUN OUTTA CHICKIN'?!


Seriously, dude. My kids are going to starve now and it's all their fault for not having a trailer of reserve chicken out in the back. I am never coming here again.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pyW6w5B7Aw

As I'm not sure why this ended up in the pit, I thought I'd spice it up a bit:

Shit, Piss, Fuck, Cunt, Cocksucker, Mother Fucker, and Tits!

Really Homreker?


Well luckily I have prepared this instructional video to show you why it's here.

<3 fox

But Fox, if its on the local news it can't be racist...

err...


nevermind...


nothing-to-see-here...

Nobody MADE all those black folks line up for fried chicken and freak out when they were out....

I mean, sometimes statistics are a bitch.

But Fox, if its on the local news it can't be racist...

err...


nevermind...


nothing-to-see-here...

Woah! Did you just call the clips the local news chose to show a statistic?

Well, judging by the locations of Popeye's chicken in Memphis, I am willing to bet they are located in areas that are predominately african american.

I am also willing to bet they didn't select people based on ethnicity, but based on the strength of their reaction, I mean I could be wrong and all.

Statistics isn't the right word, maybe the law of averages would better.

(Ew this is long. Short version: see lyrics of Vicarious by Tool)

Don't get me wrong, I did see the humour in it. And i can accept that its very possible that representation was a fair report on the actual event. I just have a very hard time accepting things as absolute truth if I didn't see it myself. Especially when it comes to tv.

When I was young, I was pretty sure The Flintstones was filmed in front of an audience. I have probably gotten smarter since then... But so has tv. And they have a lot more money than I do.

I don't like most tv today because I see it's architecture. I know the contestant on the gameshow answered the question and was then told if he was right. I know the forty five seconds of tense audience shots were added in post. I feel bad for my relatives when they try to get me into the intense confrontation scene in the "reality" show and they are fooled into thinking it wasn't rehearsed a couple times to get the lighting and camera work just right.

I don't think the news is evil or anything. I just think it's a mistake to forget that it depends on it's sponsor just like any other entertainment. Or that they aren't driven to make their show more exciting in the pursuit of awards or ratings.

It's easy to laugh at the extremes Fox will go to in order to show the dangers of When Animals Attack. But it exists because people watch it. Hell, I watch it :)

It's only fair to think that I'm not the only one with an agenda.

I generally operate on the assumption that EVERYONE has an agenda.

However, I also dislike the fact that people see racism EVERYWHERE. Part of that comes from living in Memphis I am sure. This city is absolutely filled with people waiting to shout racism at the drop of a hat. I am from Chicago, so I usually say "you guys" instead of "y'all." I have, on more than one occasion, been accused of being racist because of that. Once was because I brought in chicken enough for my whole team to have lunch and said "Do you guys want some chicken?" I mean, I had a bucket of chicken in my hands and a bag of sides, would I have REALLY gone that far out of my way to make a racist comment.

I hate to say it, but stereotypes exist for a reason. Just because they don't paint a pretty picture all the time doesn't mean there isn't some truth to them. Gamers, races, cities, countries the list goes on and on. I am not going to go as far as saying there was no way it was racist, but I don't buy that that was the intended message or even the veiled agenda.

We should get together and debate stuff over drinks sometime:)

I don't think we're talking about the same thing anymore though. My original post was in response to why the thread was in the pit. I was just trying to point out that the thread headline joked on the stereotype.

And I really don't mean to say that there was some conspiracy to pick the best stereotypes. Only that I take it with a grain of salt. For all I know, those were the least outrageous interviews, and they cut out all the people crying and screaming and pointing at their poor children's starving bellies ;)

Actually the only reason I made the first post was because I wanted more people to look up The Whitest Kids U Know on YouTube. I just got carried away :P

I dunno, I am just tired.

I don't mind having discussions over drinks, but be prepared because the more I drink the wilder my hand gestures get. It can be dangerous.

I can't seem to get going this morning and my sarcasm meter is broken. I am just jaded to most claims of racism because of where I live. This city might actually be one of the rings of hell.

...I am from Chicago, so I usually say "you guys" instead of "y'all." I have, on more than one occasion, been accused of being racist because of that. Once was because I brought in chicken enough for my whole team to have lunch and said "Do you guys want some chicken?" I mean, I had a bucket of chicken in my hands and a bag of sides, would I have REALLY gone that far out of my way to make a racist comment.....

You just reminded me of my favorite moment from Tropic Thunder.

That's one of my favorites too. I love that movie.

Just like with stereotypes the news also has a reputation of being biased that is based on some shreds of fact. I too live in Memphis, for my entire life, and I've seen the way news edits things for ratings. I lived in the African American neighborhoods growing up and anytime there was a shooting the news would come out and go door to door looking for comments. Sure enough they would choose not to show my father or the well spoken black man that lived next door to me and focus in on the most strung out looking black person they could find.

So just as much as we can say stereotypes are there for a reason the same can be said for how the news outlets choose to edit things and where many people's distrust comes from. Racism will most likely never completely disappear in any country in the world but with news reports like this we are taking a huge step back. There was really no need for that news report at all. It was only made to cause the exact response they got, which was a race debate. No one cares that Popeye's ran out of chicken just about the reactions that were shown by the African American customers. Anyway, I don't like Popeye's chicken anyhow.

I am with you Shad, I didn't want to imply there wasn't real racism in this town, because this place is one of the most racially tense places I have ever been.

I am still not convinced that news story was aimed at the black folks looking for chicken angle, even if it ended that way. Maybe it is just because of the areas I grew up in up north, but I tend not to see/notice color as a defining feature for a situation so maybe I am just not good at seeing it. Honestly I didn't even notice everyone on there was black until someone said something about it. I did notice that they were all overweight though. interesting where our baggage leads us I suppose.

They also like to show the meth head hillbillies too, so I feel you about the cracked out neighbor. I was trying to judge this one based on places other than Memphis, with real news people. Our news people SUCK.

You know, I honestly didn't even notice that they only interviewed African Americans... until all y'all guys pointed it out. (Is "you guys" seriously is a racist comment??) I'm usually pretty oblivious about stuff like that and tend to be shocked when someone points out that someone was being racist because I didn't even realize races were involved. I just thought it was funny that people reacted soooo over the top about CHEAP CHICKEN.

"You guys" is not "You people" is often considered to be racist.

In the South, they are not as familiar with the "You guys" figure of speech.

And they ain't from Africa.

Fox went too far? Never happens.

To Sapphyre:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqwj--wGEgY

Ok I think Foxfyr made a valid point with his initial post in his foxy sarcastic way. And then you had to ruin it all and make him type out coherent thoughts. Sheesh we got standards here you know.

Let's be real here - Memphis + black people + chicken = ?

Replace that ? with the first thing that comes into your head and get back to me.

















?=puppies

The video took place in Rochester. not Memphis.


It it were Memphis I would say it is most likely because the city proper is 70% black.

(Wall of text incoming)

/Steps on Wii soap box

I guess my original post was because I, like Sapph, actually failed to see any racism here--I'm still not sure I do.

I grew up in the south, the Baptist center of Florida, and a place where fried chicken and greens from somewhere is on everyone's plate 2 nights a week, white, black, orange, yellow, whatever your ethnicity or race, it didn't matter.

The extremely ritzy yacht club down the street from my mom where you have to pay to be a member, pay extra for tee fees, and pay even more extra in monthly food and drink fees to stay a member, has Fried Chicken every Thursday night--and its the most popular night of the week, you have to make reservations a week in advance.

Fried chicken holds no--absolutely none, never has--race-based connotation to me. So, I guess this was lost on me.

If this happened in Jacksonville, FL the news would have been all over it--partly because its funny and the news crews there sort of have a sense of humor about things--but also because the public likes to hear stories about companies screwing up, we actually like to be outraged by things like this--it helps us forget the things that should really be making us angry in the world.

The difference in Jacksonville, is that you would be just as likely to see the news capture the guy in the BMW yelling at the window, 'cause that's funny (see he can afford a Bmer but he's angry about missing his cheap chicken).

In this news story, who knows, maybe someone at the station is a racist bastard, but I didn't notice it. I just thought it was funny how upset people got, while at the same time being in disbelief (as were the angry patrons) that Popeye's would make such a stupid mistake.

As for if we will ever, as a nation/world/whatever, get past racism... its hard to say, but it will likely take a pretty cataclysmic event before people start thinking of our race as "human." Its not likely to happen in our lifetime.

One of the biggest problems I've seen is that people sort of insist on combining the idea of "race" and "ethnicity." That's really the whole root of "African American," right? I'm proud of where I came from, so I would prefer to be referred to by my ethnicity than a color. So, does that mean I'm an "Anglo-Croat-German-American?" Ethnically speaking I guess it does... but I get "White." I mean how boring is that? I'd prefer to be "Pinkish/Tan" because at least that sort of describes my skin color a little better.

Interestingly I've met several "African-Americans" who hate the term and prefer to be called: "Black" or nothing at all. I have asked a couple of them if they thought the term "Brown" was more correct, they're response: "Black sounds cooler." I mean, really...

So, who is racist these days? I meet a lot of "African-American's" who are racist. I've run into a couple neo-nazis in restraunts in Atlanta (one was my waiter at a TGIFriday's), growing up in the south of course I'm familiar with a couple of KKK groups (I don't think I personally knew any members), and then you have some less educated people (and a few more educated people that are probably racist because they just don't get it.)

I'm sorry... I'll stop going on and on for now...

/steps off Wii soap box
(Oh, that was supposed to be for exercising? Oops...)