LA Clippers

[dankrutka]

Yeah, for owners like Sterling it's all about power,ego and limelight, not the financial returns.

Here's an excellent article by Malcolm Gladwell on why people own NBA teams (Hint: It's not for profits): ?Psychic Benefits? and the NBA Lockout «

[dankrutka]

I agree he's a sleezeball and a racist but I disagree with making someone sell their business because you don't like what they said. Doesn't that violate the 1st Amendment?

This has nothing to do with the Constitution. The 1st amendment protects against the federal government (and to a lesser degree against state governments because of post-Civil War selective incorporation). The government is not involved in this issue.

[Urbanized]

Props for a Malcolm Gladwell reference.

[Urbanized]

I agree he's a sleezeball and a racist but I disagree with making someone sell their business because you don't like what they said. Doesn't that violate the 1st Amendment?

It's not like a business you built yourself. It's a club that you are voted into, and in accepting a membership you agree to abide by its bylaws. Violate the rules, they vote you out of the club.

[Laramie]

Rather ironic that the man who told his girlfriend not to bring her black friends to the Clippers' games now finds himself in a position that he will not be able to attend any Clippers' games.

"Oklahoma City looks oh-so pretty... ...as I get my kicks on Route 66." --Nat King Cole.

[Urbanized]

And the team will probably be owned by one of her black friends.

[Snowman]

And the team will probably be owned by one of her black friends.

Magic already denied the rumors he was involved in trying to buy the team, though I could see a group of black wealthy individual buying the team out of spite, though I could also see no black wealthy individual wanting to give Sterling any money.

[Pete]

That's the irony...

Anyone who buys the team is going to put hundreds of millions in Sterling's pocket.

He only paid $12.7 million back in the early 80's and now it's estimated the team is worth north of $400 million.

[Snowman]

That's the irony...

Anyone who buys the team is going to put hundreds of millions in Sterling's pocket.

He only paid $12.7 million back in the early 80's and now it's estimated the team is worth north of $400 million.

Well half of it in his pocket anyway, it is a bit surprising they are not divorced already

[zookeeper]

Here we are still talking about what one 78 year old man said in a private conversation. Forget any good that was obviously good enough for him to soon be awarded with the (now taken away) Lifetime Achievement Award from the NAACP. Forget all that. No matter the rest of his past which the NAACP had to have known about.

What about these race hustlers like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton? What about Jay-Z (who is a racist to the extreme) and once owned part of the Brooklyn Nets? What do they say in private? Jay-Z was in Europe holding "No White's Allowed" VIP parties after a major film festival. And defended it! The hypocrisy of this whole thing - and we're here still talking about it! This is still news? Think about it: We've been obsessed, as a culture, for days on what ONE white 78 year old man said in the privacy of his home. Let's mic up the homes of today's brightest black stars, players, etc. God forbid what we would here. The hypocrisy is the biggest story of this whole charade.

Edit - One of the biggest WTF's of this whole thing are the black NBA players acting so shocked. Many of those same guys do more harm to the NBA in public, (imagine if their private lives were reported), than Sterling could do in 30 lifetimes. What Sterling said was wrong. But many of these thugs acting shocked should be just as reprehensible to the NBA. Oh. But they ARE the NBA! The whole thing is just disgusting - the height of hypocrisy!

[Garin]

Damn I'm starting to like you ^^^^

[Pete]

The race hustlers and rappers get criticized too, it's just nobody cares much about what they say or think. Talk to people in the black community about Jesse and Al and they are likely to have the same opinion as most white Americans.

Plus, as a white male it's almost impossible to be offended by racial comments or actions. There is no history of oppression and people of color don't often hold enough power to exclude whites from anything that really matters. I live in an area where whites are very much the minority yet I have never experienced anything that felt like discrimination or even negativity towards me because of my race. In fact, I can't think of it ever happening to me anywhere in my 53 years.

The biggest injustice to whites was reverse discrimination among colleges, and those policies and quotas were pretty much dropped after the first challenge.


White people in America and really the entire world are doing just fine and being excluded from a couple of parties isn't going to change that.

[zookeeper]

The race hustlers and rappers get criticized too, it's just nobody cares much about what they say or think. Talk to people in the black community about Jesse and Al and they are likely to have the same opinion as most white Americans.

Plus, as a white male it's almost impossible to be offended by racial comments or actions. There is no history of oppression and people of color don't often hold enough power to exclude whites from anything that really matters. I live in an area where whites are very much the minority yet I have never experienced anything that felt like discrimination or even negativity towards me because of my race. In fact, I can't think of it ever happening to me anywhere in my 53 years.

The biggest injustice to whites was reverse discrimination among colleges, and those policies and quotas were pretty much dropped after the first challenge.


White people in America and really the entire world are doing just fine and being excluded from a couple of parties isn't going to change that.

Pete, You're a very sharp guy, but talk about missing the point. It wasn't the parties, it was what they represented, which is acceptance of discrimination based on race.

[Pete]

But when you hold no real power or influence, discrimination is meaningless.

[BrettM2]

How about zookeeper and Garin stop trying to change the subject and deal with Donald Sterling. No one is excusing racism in any other venue. But we are dealing with Sterling and his reprehensible behavior. Continuing to change the topic is only showing that you either a) secretly support Sterling and his viewpoints and want to detract from his attention or b) you just don't understand that something else being wrong doesn't make this any less wrong.

[Garin]

It bothers me that anyone that is caught saying anything wrong thing in the heat of the moment or privacy of their own home can be ruined.....Anyone, look what they did to the Mozilla guy, it's nothing more than a which hunt.

[zookeeper]

How about zookeeper and Garin stop trying to change the subject and deal with Donald Sterling. No one is excusing racism in any other venue. But we are dealing with Sterling and his reprehensible behavior. Continuing to change the topic is only showing that you either a) secretly support Sterling and his viewpoints and want to detract from his attention or b) you just don't understand that something else being wrong doesn't make this any less wrong.

No, it's compare and contrast. When something like this explodes like it has in our culture, it is natural to compare and contrast one person's actions that are lambasted against those doing the lambasting. In this case, it shows the biggest story, at least to me, is the hypocrisy of it all. The selective outrage. I also guess there are a lot of people that agree who - because of the Altar of Political Correctness - aren't willing to go on record. But, trust me, I'm not the only one thinking like this. I can't speak for Garin, (we hardly ever agree on anything), but I can assure you that I do not support Sterling and what he said. I just think it's wrong to be selective in our outrage. NBA players acting so outraged is laughable. They are hardly giant figures of virtue.

It's not changing the subject when you ask why Jay-Z can, while owning the Brooklyn Nets, not be held to the same standard as we are now holding Donald Sterling? Jay-Z and his whole "Five percenters" racism, his "white's not allowed" parties, where was the outrage? Hang Sterling for his private thoughts at home, while Jay-Z can publicly be a racist and even be respected as an agent to --- hang on ---- Kevin Durant!? It is the same topic - simply compare and contrast and see the hypocrisy.

[Pete]

This isn't just anyone... This is a reprehensible human being who has summoned a lifetime of bad Karma to come take a big bite out of his arse.

If he wasn't so universally reviled, he could have weathered this situation with an apology and fine. Maybe just an apology.

Sterling is only new to most because they aren't from L.A. but believe me, particularly if this devolves into a big legal battle, much more will come out about him.

[Chadanth]

It bothers me that anyone that is caught saying anything wrong thing in the heat of the moment or privacy of their own home can be ruined.....Anyone, look what they did to the Mozilla guy, it's nothing more than a which hunt.

You're free to say and do what you want, but the market can punish you for being an ass. Do you want legal protection for that sort of racist behavior?

[Garin]

This isn't just anyone... This is a reprehensible human being that has summoned a lifetime of bad Karma to come take a big bite out of his arse.

If he wasn't so universally reviled, he could have weathered this situation with an apology and fine.

Sterling is only new to most because they aren't from L.A. but believe me, if this devolves into a big legal battle, much more will come out about him.

Was the NCAAP just looking the other way ,or did they know his history?

[zookeeper]

This isn't just anyone... This is a reprehensible human being that has summoned a lifetime of bad Karma to come take a big bite out of his arse.

If he wasn't so universally reviled, he could have weathered this situation with an apology and fine.

Sterling is only new to most because they aren't from L.A. but believe me, if this devolves into a big legal battle, much more will come out about him.

Pete, I respect that position. If what you said above is truly a lifetime of bad karma, why was he scheduled to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award from the NAACP in Los Angeles on the 15th of May? If anybody would know about Sterling's "lifetime of bad karma" it would be the NAACP, no? Yet, they were preparing an award for that lifetime! Does this not seem incongruous?

[Garin]

You're free to say and do what you want, but the market can punish you for being an ass. Do you want legal protection for that sort of racist behavior?

Did the market punish him or did TMZ? You know the company that paid the ho for the tapes

[Pete]

Pete, I respect that position. If what you said above is truly a lifetime of bad karma, why was he scheduled to receive a Lifetime Achievment Award from the NAACP in Los Angeles? If anybody would know about Sterling's "lifetime of bad karma" it would be the NAACP, no? Yet, they were preparing an award for that lifetime! Does this not seem incongruous?

No, because he merely gives these organizations blood money in exchange for these "honors".

Then, he takes out full-page ads in the L.A. Times with them thanking him. I am not exaggerating, he has a full-page ad in the L.A. Times with his own picture in it several times a WEEK!

In fact, the day this broke he had that exact thing in the paper about a donation to UCLA medical school. The school promptly returned the money and said that they had nothing to the do with the ad.

[zookeeper]

Knowing all that, I'm at a loss as to why the NAACP was offering him that kind of award. I guess it's up for sale? More hypocrisy. At any rate, I do not agree with Sterling's privately spoken thoughts. I also doubt we would approve of anyone's privately spoken thoughts at one time or another. The whole compare and contrast thing, it just looks like selective outrage (to me). I can understand the other side of this, but am bewildered why some insist on thinking this isn't the perfect time to discuss the imbalance of tolerance within the NBA itself.

[Pete]

I certainly agree that lots of people are hypocritical on this subject and are loving the chance to wag their finger in order to establish themselves as morally superior.