Is Imus The Victim Of A Double Standard?

Whenever a media personality is canned for his/her remarks or views, the old arguments resurface. You know the routine. Haul out the usual suspects and unfurl the banners. In Imus' case the usual culprits are his free speech, his personal freedom, accusations of racism, political insensitivity, morality and our decadent culture.

Just like Imus has the privilege to speak his mind and select his language, other people have the privilege not to listen or criticize him for his remarks. The problem with the vast majority is that few, if any, people on earth really understand what freedom means. Far too many have this infantile notion and opinion that freedom means doing or saying anything one pleases. This is not freedom. This is arrogance, anarchy, chaos, ignorance, license and stupidity of the most vile, corrupt and dangerous kind.

Freedom carries with it awesome responsibilities, the likes of which few are even capable of understanding. That's precisely why no one on the planet is free. No modern government will ever allow true freedom to flourish because there are too many educated fools and far too many idiots to contend with.

GOD (YHVH) grants rights. What we mistakenly call freedoms and rights are only privileges granted by the society in which we find ourselves living. Some societies have more, some have less and some have whatever their dictatorial government allows. Whenever a society's granted privileges are abused, the violator should have his/her privileges revoked. This brings me to the reason for this article.

Everywhere we look and turn there are double standards and a double standard has Imus in its grips. Imus can now claim victim status. What happened to Imus never should have happened. If we are going to hold him to a standard, then Rappers, MTV, Satellite Radio, Cable, HBO and the other "Shock Jocks" should be held to the same standard. This also includes the companies that harbor and support these known abusers.

The most popular Rappers in the African American community are far more abusive of African American women than Don Imus ever was. However, hauling "Black Folk" on to the carpet for their societal and moral indiscretions is unthinkable. Hauling "Latinos" on to the carpet for violating our national sovereignty by entering our country illegally is also unthinkable. The reason: These issues are too politically sensitive for politicians and political parties to touch. Holding these communities to the same standards as every other ethnic group in America is synonymous to committing political suicide.

Imus should have been canned years ago. However, in Don's defense, he was an equal opportunity "Shock Jock". At least he distributed his poison equally. Through his callous eyes and to his acid ladened tongue, every group was fair game. No group escaped his scathing barbs. Even Howard Dean was charcoal broiled, toasted and roasted on his talk show. What triggered this backlash was the Rutgers basketball team was a beloved underdog that lost to the Goliath of NCAA women's basketball - Tennessee. America's sentiment is always with the little Davids in any battle against a Goliath.

Imus failed to understand the atmosphere that his remarks entered into. This was his first mistake. His second mistake was failing to realize the 2008 election is already in high gear. It's unfortunate, but he was a convenient icon for the "Politically Correct" far left wing of the Democratic Party to throw under the bus as a symbol of their belief in social values. Since Imus' wounds were self inflicted, there is no need to rally around him or feel guilty about his sudden demise.

The "Liberal Left" had to bite the bullet and let one of their own be the sacrificial lamb. If the far left is going to have any hope of winning the 2008 Presidential election and firmly entrenching themselves in government, they had to demonstrate some conservative value in a tangible way. Imus simply gave them the rope and the gallows to hang himself...and they took advantage of it. Every other abuser is off the table and off the hook for now.

Imus' remarks were far from racist. Insensitive perhaps, but not racist. Outlandish maybe, but not racist. So, how did this man who is not a known racist end up being the catalyst for a new dialog on racism? The media. Will such a dialog follow? Hardly. Why? There are bigger fish to fry and a new discussion about America's racial attitudes is not on the agenda.

The War in Iraqi, "Radical Islam" and the eventual socialization of America are far more important issues. However, I could be wrong. The far left is full of deception and deceit. Playing to the masses, lies and treachery have been their calling card for years. To further their cause and agenda, there is no telling what these people might do or when they might do it.