<!--quoteo(post=60583:date=Aug 28 2009, 01:04 PM:name=Scarey)-->QUOTE (Scarey @ Aug 28 2009, 01:04 PM)
<{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=60572:date=Aug 28 2009, 12:45 PM:name=veryzer)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (veryzer @ Aug 28 2009, 12:45 PM)
<{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec--><!--quoteo(post=60532:date=Aug 28 2009, 09:39 AM:name=jstraw)--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (jstraw @ Aug 28 2009, 09:39 AM)
<{POST_SNAPBACK}><!--quotec-->Let me draw an analogy. I live in Topeka, Kansas. This means I have a certain familiarity with the Reverend Fred Phelps, the so-called "Westboro Baptist Church," their motives and their methods.
If you're not familiar with this kook, use the Google. He's a hateful nutjob who thrives on attention and he's discovered that by pushing people's buttons he can tap into an endless supply. He's a genius at this. He has one primary message...that America's tolerance of homosexuals is the reason for everything bad that happens...in the form of God's punishment...which we richly deserve and of which he approves.
So he runs around picketing public events...it used to be the funerals of famous gay people or to celebrate things like Matthew Shepard's murder. That got to be old news and when only the core activist community and those personally offended could be bothered to show up and be angry at him, he realized that gimmick was becoming played out. He stumbled onto a much better tactic. Picket the funerals of fallen soldiers...the logic goes like this: The country is being punished by god for it's tolerance of gay people. That's why your son or daughter died over there.
Talk about a hot button. It's brilliant. It was the specific cause for the formation of the Patriot Guard...now everywhere he goes, he's a photo-op again. He smiles, holding his hateful signs and big burly bikers with huge American flags (people that would never lift a finger to offer emotional support at the death of an AIDS victim) show up in force. I don't know why people would care what some nut says is the reason their loved one was paying a toll for our nation to God but hay, that's just me.
Bear with me, I'm getting to my analogy.
They picket anywhere they can get press. They picketed some nominally Jewish events and one of their signs reminds us that "The Jews Killed Christ" or some-such. Now in the sea of polemic they spew this is one little sign amongst many and frankly, it's off-message. It exists because that hot-button won't be ignored...it's just one more sign and there's always another grandkid to tote one more sign.
The reaction to this from the Anti-Defamation League is that the guy is a anti-semetic threat. They focus on this one provocative expression among many to decide that's what these people are all about...they're anti-semetic. They focus on that to the exclusion of all other information about the Phelpses.
It's crap.
So back to Milton...all this shit is swirling around him and his season in Chicago. Maybe ALL of the swirling shit is misguided and wrong...that's not the point. Somebody that wants to hurt Bradley yells "watermelon" or whatever. Maybe that person IS a racist and maybe he isn't. That's not the point either.
The point is that this is all it takes for anyone who wants to, including Milton to make this <i>all about </i>racism...for them to say what's going down is because Milton is black and the problem is racism.
It's horseshit.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
straw nailed it too!
face it, bradley thinks everyone who speaks out against him is racist. it's easy. he doesn't have to take responsibility for his actions that way. jeff kent? racist. umpires? racist. fans? racist. broadcasters? racist. the kkk? racist.
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This is what is really confusing me... what actions is he not taking responsibility for with the fans? His suckiness? He has already told the media and fans that he's played like shit and will work to improve... and he did! Since the all-star break, he has hit .277/.400/.437 in the second half this season. He absolutely owned up to it and improved himself.
Why would he play the race card just to avoid taking responsibility for his actions when he has been playing much better lately? That part of the equation just doesn't make sense to me.
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scarey, people are booing bradley. they've been booing him all year. they aren't booing him becuase he's black. they aren't booing him because he's surley. they aren't booing him because they didn't like the signing like they did with jones. they're booing him because for 4 months, he was terrible. that's what he doesn't seem to get. that's where the lack of responsibility for his actions come in.
if he would have said this:
reporter: milton, the fans are really letting you have it. how does that make you feel?
bradley: i don't like it but i understand it. i haven't played well, i'm making a lot of money, and expectations are high. i don't like being booed, but i know that if i start hitting and the teams starts winning, the boo's will go away.
instead we get:
reporter: milton, the fans are really letting you have it. how does that make you feel?
bradley: well there's a lot of hatred in the bleachers. waiter's pick on me at restaurants. i can't wait to get out of wrigley because i don't feel comfortable because of racists out there. and blah blah blah.
see where the whole "doesn't take responsibilty" comes form?
