No links provided, but yeah, same thing different year. haha

way to enforce that stereotypical angry black man, kanye.

he needs to be clubbed like a baby seal.

This is the sad thing about hip hop dudes. They take shit like the VMAs seriously.

lol, black rage.

Even better than his rant was Swift's face.

I really can't stand a single thing about her music, so that was humorous.

Kanye desperately wants america to hate him.

Well, as some sort of validation for your music, yes, it's ludicrous.

But, from a career/business standpoint, it's a huge deal.

Peformances on the VMA's have been known to boosts sales by 40-50,000 units the following week of the performance.


As for Kanye, fuck that guy. He's an adult and knows better so that just makes him an asshole.

It all seems so contrived now. It's like MTV gives him a call or pulls him aside during these award shows and ask/pays him to do it. It happens at live every one of their award shows he attends. You'd think they'd make a genuine effort to stop or control his behavior rather than allow him to have free reign with the microphone.

Taylor really handled that well.

No offense, but isn't it a shame we haven't reached a point where a popular black figure can't do anything without it being used as an example of "his people" as a whole. I mean, if a white guy does something fucked up, we don't worry that he is giving all white people a bad reputation or reinforcing some commonly held misconception. We evaluate him as an individual. Yet, a black man does something in public and it is somehow seen as a indictment of all black men everywhere. Must suck to have to always worry about representing such a large and diverse group of people with your every move.

And yeah, Kanye's a dick. Still like his records better than a lot of other big name hip hop stars.

Exactly.... digging deeper into the core American racism: no one this morning is pointing to Beyonce's "stereotypical gracious black woman" act.

I think you see it in factions though. I mean, I get the point and don't disagree, but if you see a guy do something with a thick southern accent he's all of a sudden representing all the uneducated rednecks south of the mason dixon; if you see Pat Robertson on TV he all of a sudden represents all Christians. While I don't disagree that using Kanye as a reinforcement of stereotypes is unjust and inaccurate, I don't think we see that limited to African Americans. It seems like it's easier to be outraged by it when it involves African Americans, but I don't think any group of people are any less subject to unjust prejudicial scrutiny and it speaks to a larger problem than just racism in our culture I think.

Bullshit.

Many blacks use "we are strong", "we must fight", "we must rise above", grouping themselves ("his" people). They can be faulted for this, not just "them there white folk".

Also, when some white idiot does something disgusting, I can guarantee there are white people that think "that ignorant jackass."

shiv is not wrong in his post. Kanye was being the "stereotypical angry black man", and needs to be called out on it.

While you make many valid points about classism and the spectrum of prejudices, I think the argument is that racism does pervade the culture more... if Pat Robinson walks in, you may judge him as representative of Evangelicals (not Christians), but if an older white man in a suit and tie walks in... your reaction is open, provisional. If a black man walks in he is ... a black man first, provisional judgements come later. At least that is the argument.

The other distinguishing element is that "white people" are in positions of privilege and power... hence any "universal pre-judgement" is not equitable in impact by definition.

I just don't see his behavior having anything to do with him being black. He didn't even mention race in his interruption other than indirectly because Beyonce is black. I don't see how the association can really be made with any validity. Shiv's perception may be that it was race-related, but objectively speaking, I don't think there's any evidence to prove that.

Stereotypes are just the same for black people as for white people.
Black people are responsible for their own stereotypes.
Ergo, Kanye needs to be called out for fulfilling negative stereotypes.

If that's the extent of your argument, we'll agree to disagree.

Kanye is a clown.

I see a good parallel actually with the ignorant southerner kinda thing. But, I think the examples of Christians or other such groups where you must self-identify before you get lumped in are somewhat different. The common line with the racial stuff and the dumb southerner stuff would be that they are both a trick of birth. of course, it's a lot easier to try to loose a southern accent than it is to change your skin color.

The self-identification thing makes a difference when you are talking about individuals standing up specifically for a larger group and making the choice to make a statement for a broader group with which they identify vs. just acting as an individual.

It all has to do with whether you are making an individual choice to self-identify or whether the choice is being thrust upon you by society. For most minority groups, these choices are thrust upon them to a much larger degree.

Maybe these are parallel arguments, and one doesn't need to be not true to make the other true. But let me try this:

Obama when running for president at times had to take care not to be angry and be associated with the "angry black man."

Gore Vidal has never had to mitigate his speech in order not to be associated with the toothless Red Neck.

I'd agree that the black examples are more firmly entrenched and harder to rise above and perhaps most importantly in my opinion impossible to change, but an exception to the other rule does not necessarily disprove it to me. I know plenty of people who will pre-judge someone based on an accent and others who work to make sure they don't speak with an accent in order to avoid such judgments. Do I think such things are as pervasive as racism ? No. But, that does not mean they do not exist. A .38 ain't an AK, but it's still a gun.

Kanye is a gigantic douche. End of story.

Would have been a different result if Oasis won...

Corrected because no doubt someone will read it as that is what you said anyway.

WHen it comes down to it, it don't matter who he is or what color his skin is, he should be pummeled just for the dumbass sunglasses indoors shit.