Who's Inviting Michael Ray To Passover Dinner?

The erstwhile super-talented New Jersey Net guard who pissed his career away by going all Tony Montana with the Yay-Yo has some interesting thoughts on the folks who will be leaving the door open for Elijah next week (which have resulted in his suspension as coach of a CBA team). In response to a question about his contract negotiations, Richardson said:

"I've got big-time lawyers. I've got big-time Jew lawyers."

When told by the reporters that the comment could be offensive to people because it plays to the stereotype that Jews are crafty and shrewd, he responded with, "Are you kidding me? They are. They've got the best security system in the world. Have you ever been to an airport in Tel Aviv? They're real crafty. Listen, they are hated all over the world, so they've got to be crafty."

"They got a lot of power in this world, you know what I mean? Which I think is great. I don't think there's nothing wrong with it. If you look in most professional sports, they're run by Jewish people. If you look at a lot of most successful corporations and stuff, more businesses, they're run by Jewish. It's not a knock, but they are some crafty people."

I know I might get creamed here, but is this really that offensive, or even offensive at all? One way of looking at it could be that Richardson believes that Jewish people have a ton of game, get things done and are the victims of player hating, couldn't it? Yeah, stereotyping is bad, but (putting that aside) it's not like he's calling Jews shiftless, lazy, thieves who occassionally speak so well. Offensive or no? What say you Grievers?

Comments

[DFS]

This reminds me of a college conversation regarding Asians and the "model minority" myth. The complaints were something along the lines of "people expect us all to be really smart and good at math and science' I was like "cry me a river...I'll take that stereotype any day".

Of course I understand even "positive" stereotypes serve to obscure the uniqueness of the individual, but im sayin...

[DFS]

this also reminds me of All In The Family when Archie would always threaten a lawsuit from his lawyers at Rabinowitz, Rabinowitz, & Rabinowitz "three savage Jews who will pick ya bones clean"

Wow, what's up with dudes with the first name Michael and last name Richards.. ?

Okay, not really a connection, but there is still a lot of hate and ignorance in this world.

By the way, how secure is an airport in Tel Aviv? Is security Ziploc tight or 16 year old virgin tight?

[Joe]

As I posted over at the Sports Frog, these comments were compounded by Micheal Ray calling a heckling fan a "fucking faggot" on the same day he gave this interview. The guy's crazy, and those two incidents combined will put an end to his coaching career for a while.

[bluehorseshoe]

Sounds like a slightly mangled compliment to me. Seems to be saying that coz of years of persecution and living next to hundreds of millions of of people who want to drive you into the sea, they had to be smarter and harder to survive. Sounds about true.

Tel Aviv - 16yr old virgin tight. You want security, fly El-Al.

[Assman]

It's racism, but its not hate. This is one of those examples where its easier to see the difference between the two.

So, the question is more - do you have a problem with racism, or do you have a problem with hate based on racism?

[M. Butler]

Basically if you're giving one race a good quality, you're really denegrating other races.

Blacks are great athletes
Jews are good at business
Chinese are math wizards
Scotch/Irishmen have giant dicks

[Joel]

Is “crafty” really a fucking insult? This nutjob thinks Jews have a alot of power and run this country, and “it is not a bad thing” and he "thinks its great.” Other than being guilty of dumb stereotyping, I fail to see any hate or malace in his comments.

[Jack Klompus]

I don't think it's offensive. Molehill becomes mountain. And I don't think anyone would ever accuse Michael Ray of speaking so well.

[Art Vandelay]

It's not up to me to say what would offend someone else but if I were in fact Jewish, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't bat an eyelash at that.

[Cozmo]

So, the question is more - do you have a problem with racism, or do you have a problem with hate based on racism?

As usual, well stated Assman. I doubt that Michael Ray hates Jews, but he certainly ascribes traits to them based on some pseudo-intellectual understanding of Jewish political history. I would be no different for me to say something like this:

"Well, black people have big hogans, and that's cool to have big hogans, but we all know why that is, since they lived in tribal socieities with alot of intertribal wars and mass rapings of the vanquished women, so clearly those with larger hogans had a greater opportunity to impregnate and carry on their DNA"

Is it offensive? Yeah I suppose, but significantly less offensive than stuff you hear people say about Jews on an almost daily basis, like using a proper noun as a verb, for example.

So, to me this is a non-issue more because Michael Ray sounds like an ignorant fool rather than a hateful ignorant fool.

[jackie]

"It's not up to me to say what would offend someone else but if I were in fact Jewish, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't bat an eyelash at that."

I am (kind of). I didn't. Other than stereotyiping -- which as I already pointed is dumb on its face -- where is the insult/offense?

And hey Cozmo, don't think I forgot about that tab from Wolfgang's. If you think you're gonna Jew me outta my funds you are sadly mistaken.

[Babu]

I make jokes like that all the time...but then again, I am a Jew...

which reminds me of a joke that I think DrivingFan told me that has relevance here...

A Catholic priest and a rabbi are walking down the street and see a 13 year old boy across the street. The priest leans over and says to the rabbi, "hey, do you want to go over there and fuck that little boy?" And the rabbi replies, "Out of what?"

[jackie]

"A Catholic priest and a rabbi are walking down the street and see a 13 year old boy across the street. The priest leans over and says to the rabbi, "hey, do you want to go over there and fuck that little boy?" And the rabbi replies, "Out of what?"

High comedy.

[Assman]

Michael Ray sounds like an ignorant fool rather than a hateful ignorant fool.

...and that about sums it all up. Racism is ignorance. Ignorance of human nature, world history, the will of the individual, etc. Occasionally, that ignorance is accompanied by hate, which sucks, but that doesn't make non-hateful racism anything else but racism.

So, if you don't mind people making generalized statements about others based on their appearances, then fine. No biggie. If so, then this bugs you.

For the record, when I read the story last night I shrugged my shoulders and thought it must be a slow media day.

[Cozmo]

Oh no he didn't!

[Steve H.]

Damn, Babu, I saw that Rabbi-Priest joke about three hours ago and was going to post that.

And to follow up on DFS, when the Rabinowitz firm sent Archie Bunker a Gentile, Archie was pissed, yelling "Get out of here and send me a Jew!"

[H.E. Pennypacker]

Racism is ignorance. Ignorance of human nature, world history, the will of the individual, etc.

This made me think about my grandparents, who have lived their entire lives in rural southern Ontario, which is overwhelmingly white and Protestant, with a few post-WWII Dutch Catholic immigrants thrown in for "flavour." Needless to say, they've lived a life which has been fairly well-sheltered from people unlike them.

Back in the '80s, the local minister went on exchange to the Philippines for a year, which brought a Filipino family to their tiny farming town; a very unique occurrence, for sure. But since the Lorenzos were nice people -- my grandparents still keep in contact with them -- all of a sudden, Filipinos are a great group of folks to them.

I also saw a documentary on TV a few weeks ago about an African-American guy who had been doing research on the KKK for a number of years, and had befriended quite a few of them. Perhaps not surprisingly, when those KKKers got to actually know one of the people they'd been hating for the past century or so, quite a few of them left the organization (and one even became a good enough friend to be later invited to the researcher's wedding).

The moral of the story is that it's important to get to know people from as many diverse backgrounds as possible, to break down misconceptions and stereotypes. I'm fortunate to live and work in Toronto; I get to meet tons of people from every conceivable corner of the planet, and it really has changed how I see the world.

[howard in nyc]

ok, question for those who think this type of "positive" stereotyping is ok (and clap for dfs on the denial of individuality post, and for butler on the denial of same positive attributes from other groups).

people who ascribe lists of positive attributes to certain groups, and speak those characteristics outloud; do you think they only ascribe positive characteristics to that group? do you think it more likely that mr. richardson thinks jews are wonderful in every respect and he was singing their praises, or perhaps he also holds on his list some less 'positive' characteristics (cheap, shady, will always fuck over a brother), that he holds in his mind, but has the good grace to not speak aloud to reporters?

i know of damn few people who make a list of (so and so) people are always (such and such), and all those attributes are positive. they just don't share the flip side in public.

stereotype thinking is stupid. anytime you think or say all (blank) people are (blank), your logic is failing.

[Art Vandelay]

howard, it sounds like your preaching to the choir here. Nobody said it wasn't stupid. Only that it wasn't hateful. As for the theory that the guy probably spews around a bunch of negative hateful stereotypes about Jews, that's pure speculation. I don't think you can judge him on that.

[M. Butler]

The bad thing about placing positive stereotypes on groups is that it does cause negative (and illegal behavior). If I think Jews are crafty, and I get two job applicants and one of the guys is Jewish and one of the guys is black, I might hire the jewish guy based on my belief that he is craftier--even if the resumes are the same. That stereotyping is "positive" but it creates a negative effect when hiring.

[Jack Klompus]

This story and post comments are a great illustration of the hyper-sensitive, Lifetime-Television-for-Women society we have been evolving into. So a CBA coach thinks Jews are shrewd? OH DEAR GOD, WHERE HAS THIS SOCIETY GONE! Seriously, who gives a fuck.

[Newman]

Agreed, Klompus. Another one of those things (#3,786, to be precise...)furthering the Pussification of America. I'm just glad nobody tried to turn this into a discussion on Anti-Semitism. Meanwhile, things of actual substance continue to happen.....Next?

[daveNYC]

This nutjob thinks Jews have a alot of power and run this country, and “it is not a bad thing” and he "thinks its great.” Other than being guilty of dumb stereotyping, I fail to see any hate or malace in his comments.

That's just great. Except it stops being great when a bunch of idiots believe that Jews run the country/world, and decide that they don't like the way that things are being run. Then it's 'up against the wall' time.

His statement was flat out retarded, and just for that he should get no support. The fact that it voices support for the crafty, controlling Jew meme, well, fuck him.