By John W. Lillpop
Last July, Dallas County commissioners discussing traffic ticket collections were jolted when Commissioner Kenneth Mayfield, who is white, used the term "back hole" to describe the recurring problem of lost paperwork.
Mayfield's statement was immediately challenged by Commissioner John Wiley Price, who is black. Price belted out a loud "Excuse me!" and proceeded to upbraid Mayfield by saying that the problem of lost paperwork was the unwelcome byproduct of a "white hole."
That caused Judge Thomas Jones, who is black, to demand an apology from Mayfield for his racially insensitive analogy.***
This dust up provided a keen insight to the precarious state of race relations in America and the obvious need for change.
Which is why Barack Obama, although the least qualified for the presidency of all candidates in decades, may bring healing to America in the area of race relations.
Until Obama takes over in January, Americans will have to wing it, I suppose.
What to do, then, about the day after Thanksgiving? This Friday, famous for being the start of the Christmas shopping season,is known far and wide as "black Friday."
Is that a racist term?
What of black sheep, black clouds, black box, black humor, black Monday, black magic, and black helicopters?
Indian summers, Mexican stand-offs, and white washes?
All to be stricken from the vocabulary of those who practice PC speech for fear of being of being regarded as racist?
I say to heck with it all.
Let the whiners and weasels debate the issue all they want. Just don't get in my way when I have that $300 lap top in my sights on Black Friday, mate!
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http://www.narbosa.com/2008/07/in-dallas-black-hole-racist.html
