Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - Michael Richards racist, act, what was it really? and should he be sued for it?

pan6467 · 11-22-2006, 10:38 AM

For those who do not know, Michael Richards (aka Kramer on Seinfeld) went into a serious racial tirade after being heckled while on stage in an LA comedy club.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCF9D...elated&search=

Now what I see at first is a man losing it, but we don't know what started it, not that it matters.

I thought, well maybe this is an Andy Kaufman type setup. Because what got me was the end where he says "you see, there's still those words.... those words..." and throughout "they're going to arrest me for calling a black man a nigger"... "you see you see this shocks you.... you see what's buried beneath you all...."

Even in his Dave Letterman appology, he takes subtle jabs at "the rage" "I'll get to the force shield, why the rage is in any of us.... why the trash takes place.... and so on...."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5dkHMHVJjU

This just seemed like an Andy Kaufmanesque type setup to prove a point, to get somewhere..... (keep in mind it was Letterman that pushed the Kaufman routines)

But then today..... Gloria Allred that feministic lawyer, decides to discuss suing, the people who heckled him come out and talk about how hurt they are.... how they need "restitution"..... how a retired judge believes that Richards should pay..... how if Richards had been a kid and threw a rock through a window and broke it he would be expected to pay...... (WTF was with that analogy Gloria.... he didn't throw rocks). The heckler is now saying our speech needs to be limited.... not free....

Perhaps this is all to prove a point... perhaps not.....

My true feelings are this.... he reacted to heckling, right or not, act or not, trying to prove a point or not, racist and meant it or not..... doesn't fucking matter... he has the right to say those words in this country.

The public has the right to buy or not his product. Noone but the venue's owner has the right to censor what this man says.... the owner and the whole entertainment industry can boycott him and tell him they don't want him to be on their stage, in their movies or tv shows. They have that right.

We do not have the right to censor his speech.

Now what will be interesting to see is the bullshit arguments that we do have that right..... that we should limit speech, (but WHO determines then what shall be censored, what's offensive and to whom is it offending.... and what if it offends someone but the majority just ignore it?).

NO ONE HAS THE RIGHT TO CENSOR ANOTHER..... you can take away their venue and make them find a new one..... but you can not silence or fine or punish people because they offend, solely with words.

And before anyone comes up with the FCC BS.... he wasn't covered by them....

He didn't incite any riots, and he didn't threaten anyone......

11-22-2006, 10:38 AM	#1 (permalink)
pan6467 Lennonite Priest Location: Mansfield, Ohio USA	Michael Richards racist, act, what was it really? and should he be sued for it? For those who do not know, Michael Richards (aka Kramer on Seinfeld) went into a serious racial tirade after being heckled while on stage in an LA comedy club. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCF9D...elated&search= Now what I see at first is a man losing it, but we don't know what started it, not that it matters. I thought, well maybe this is an Andy Kaufman type setup. Because what got me was the end where he says "you see, there's still those words.... those words..." and throughout "they're going to arrest me for calling a black man a nigger"... "you see you see this shocks you.... you see what's buried beneath you all...." Even in his Dave Letterman appology, he takes subtle jabs at "the rage" "I'll get to the force shield, why the rage is in any of us.... why the trash takes place.... and so on...." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5dkHMHVJjU This just seemed like an Andy Kaufmanesque type setup to prove a point, to get somewhere..... (keep in mind it was Letterman that pushed the Kaufman routines) But then today..... Gloria Allred that feministic lawyer, decides to discuss suing, the people who heckled him come out and talk about how hurt they are.... how they need "restitution"..... how a retired judge believes that Richards should pay..... how if Richards had been a kid and threw a rock through a window and broke it he would be expected to pay...... (WTF was with that analogy Gloria.... he didn't throw rocks). The heckler is now saying our speech needs to be limited.... not free.... Perhaps this is all to prove a point... perhaps not..... My true feelings are this.... he reacted to heckling, right or not, act or not, trying to prove a point or not, racist and meant it or not..... doesn't fucking matter... he has the right to say those words in this country. The public has the right to buy or not his product. Noone but the venue's owner has the right to censor what this man says.... the owner and the whole entertainment industry can boycott him and tell him they don't want him to be on their stage, in their movies or tv shows. They have that right. We do not have the right to censor his speech. Now what will be interesting to see is the bullshit arguments that we do have that right..... that we should limit speech, (but WHO determines then what shall be censored, what's offensive and to whom is it offending.... and what if it offends someone but the majority just ignore it?). NO ONE HAS THE RIGHT TO CENSOR ANOTHER..... you can take away their venue and make them find a new one..... but you can not silence or fine or punish people because they offend, solely with words. And before anyone comes up with the FCC BS.... he wasn't covered by them.... He didn't incite any riots, and he didn't threaten anyone...... __________________ I just love people who use the excuse "I use/do this because I LOVE the feeling/joy/happiness it brings me" and expect you to be ok with that as you watch them destroy their life blindly following. My response is, "I like to put forks in an eletrical socket, just LOVE that feeling, can't ever get enough of it, so will you let me put this copper fork in that electric socket?"