March 19, 2021

"White brothers and sisters: Pocket that But I’m Not Racist! card. I don’t want to hear about your Black girlfriend in college..."

"... or your Black postman to whom you give fruitcake every Christmas, or that Black comp and lit teacher who totally, like, rocked your world. It doesn’t matter if you are racist or not racist or antiracist; our society is racist." 

Writes Don Lemon, in his book "THIS IS THE FIRE/What I Say to My Friends About Racism," quoted in the NYT review of the book "Don Lemon’s New Book Hopes to Guide America Through a Conversation About Race." 

The review is by Wesley Lowery, who notes that you can tell Lemon wrote the book himself because he has an "easily recognizable voice" and "Much like his show, the book jumps around in both content and tone." Lowery, "a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who covers issues of race and justice," doesn't seem willing to say anything harsh about Lemon's book, but I don't think he has any respect for it. 

The review ends:

[The book is] both direct in tone and obvious in content — the type of unsparing historical statement from an “openly Black” news anchor likely to prompt some white viewers to clutch their pearls even as Black viewers look at one another and unemotionally remark, “Yeah, we already knew that.” 
As a factual matter, Lemon is right: We have not arrived at this moment, our “race problem” deeply unresolved, by mistake. What remains unclear is whether Lemon’s white readers, and viewers, will be willing to believe it.

Why does Lowery think he knows what how white people will think and feel if they read Don Lemon's book? Why wouldn't we look at one another and unemotionally remark, “Yeah, we already knew that”? Why does Lowery stereotype us as wearers of pearls? Why is he painting a picture of us shocked by things that are well-known? What does he think white people might not be "willing to believe"? 

This is casual smearing of a racial group. The assignment you took on was to review Don Lemon's book. Why won't you tell us what you actually think of it instead of turning to the potential readers, purporting to inhabit their minds, and insulting them?

166 comments:

Paul From Minneapolis said...

Why does he do that? Because that's what adherents of academic/intellectual left do, when it comes to white people.

Dave Begley said...

Agree with Don Lemon. Our society is racist. Only a racist society would hire such a shitty and idiotic news reader and pay him millions.

If Don Lemon was white, he'd be reading the news in Grand Forks, North Dakota or Jackson, Mississippi. Not even good enough for Omaha!

Shouting Thomas said...

The U.S. is probably the least racist society in human history.

So, yeah, racism is a non-issue, except for race hustlers looking to make a buck.

I stopped listening to or reading racism rants decades ago. It’s all bullshit.

mockturtle said...

Why would anyone of any ethnicity read a book by Don Lemon?

Charlie said...

"Don Lemon wrote a book???? Let me rush out to buy it right now!"-said no one.

stonethrower said...

Whatever Lemon says in his book, I’m pretty sure I don’t know it already. Let’s hope it stays that way.

Lucid-Ideas said...

Hey Don Lemon: Pocket that But I’m Not Racist! card. I don’t want to hear about your White husband who fucks you in the ass or the White people you accuse of racism everyday, or all the White people that you work with that, like, do most of your work for you. It doesn't matter that your a fucking racist or not; all that matters is that you and your network are.

Tank said...

Blackety blackety black black black. Shit, we haven’t talked about black shit before. No one has ever had that conversation. It’s never ending bullshit all the way down.

Todd said...

1) Shut up you ignorant racist A-hole.

2) I don't have "blank fiends" or "black ????". I have friends and I have people that do X that I interact with. If they happen to be black or oriental or Eskimo, who besides YOU gives two shits?

Anne-I-Am said...

What is "society?" Society consists of individual people--and as Lemon seems to admit, individuals may be racist or not racist. So then, how can "society" be seen as racist?

A black individual going through his day does not encounter "society." He encounters individuals, who treat him and communicate with him according to their individual personalities. Thus, he does not live and breathe and move through some miasma of racism.

As for the institutions of society, from affirmative action to calls for quotas in hiring, to diversity, equity & inclusion efforts everywhere, one can hardly describe these institutions as racist.

rcocean said...

Our society is racist against average white people. That's what this is all about. Its class warfare designed as "Oh, those poor blacks, we need to help them". That's why the liberal bourgeoisie are always blathering about who's racist.

Fernandinande said...

Ctrl+F + Asian = nothing. Black black blackity-black was always boring.

Nonapod said...

Greg Gutfield made a point yesterday that if America is so deeply racist why are there so many brown people literally risking there very lives with shady coyotes and cartels to get here every single day? Why would so many people from other countries that evidently want to come to a place that is broken and hateful? Why is it that when asked, so many people who have grown up in other countries consistantly say that on the whole America is far more accepting and tolerant of other races and cultures than wherever they grew up?

Retail Lawyer said...

I wouldn't be too happy if I had to read a Don Lemon book either.

Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...

If the black reaction is "Yeah - we already know that." and whites are all collectively guilty beyond repair or redemption forever, amen. - what is the point?

Is this lecture stale yet? let me know.

Sam L. said...

I trust nothing the NYT prints.

Michael K said...

"I am so old that I remember when most racists were white." T Sowell.

My wife pointed out to me the other day that ALL the models in her fashion magazines are now black.

Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...

The dog whistle I hear, knowing Lemon is a dedicated leftist - is SEGREGATION, separation and hate.

Fernandinande said...

As for the institutions of society, from affirmative action to calls for quotas in hiring, to diversity, equity & inclusion efforts everywhere, one can hardly describe these institutions as racist.

LOL. Those institutions exemplify racism and racist practices; what other word would you use for treating people differently based on nothing but their race?

Or is everything completely different if the people racially discriminated against are white and Asian? Then it magically becomes "anti-racism" or some such nonsense?

DavidUW said...

When they ran out of actual human racists, they have to blame the "system."

Because the "problem" can never be solved.

Then they'd be out of a racket.

Iman said...

Written like a junk grabber would write it.

narciso said...

Still chasing that jetliner through the black hole, don.

Both mission impossible and blindspot had interesting twists on that story.

Dust Bunny Queen said...

Actively trying to divide society by race and class. Pitting people against each other in order to retain political power......This will NOT end well.

rcocean said...

Is this the Don Lemon, that Trump called "The stupidest man on TV"? I have to honest, I haven't watched CNN in about 5 years, and have zero idea who he is. Their "We hate Trump" coverage turned me off in 2015, and I've never gone back. CNN is just MSNBC only dumber and less honest.

jaydub said...

" Why won't you tell us what you actually think of it instead of turning to the potential readers, purporting to inhabit their minds, and insulting them?

He doesn't want to get cancelled so he took the safest course: blame it on Whitey.

narciso said...

Not just on that point


https://thefederalist.com/2021/03/19/wapo-writer-makes-false-claim-about-ryan-anderson-refuses-to-correct-it/#.YFSwLqrZHAQ.twitter

rcocean said...

The country is already divided by race and class. The Rich globalists have been practicing "class warfare" for 30 years with their support for globalization, outsoucing, and massive illegal immigration. nattering about "Can't we all get along?" accomplishes nothing.

As for being divided by race. The blacks are looking after their interests. They consider themselves a separate group, apart from whites and others. That's why they vote 85% the same way in every election.

Class and racial conflict is already occurring. Closing your eyes won't stop it

Tim said...

We already knew Lemon was a huge racist.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

“Unresolved” is an opinion not fact. I don’t accept that at face value. Black people I know or am related to do not view America as a racist country and they are as eager to see Lemon shut up and go away as I am.

tommyesq said...

"Our society is racist" said the man who society held back so much that he was only able to appear on NBC's Today and NBC Nightly News, achieve prominence as the presenter of CNN Tonight, and receive an Edward R. Murrow Award and three regional Emmy Awards by the time he was 40. Life is unfair...

PB said...

Whoever wrote that book sounds like a racist.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

Racism is a mental illness mostly manifested by those who “see” racism the same way psychotics “hear” the things that bother them. Neither one affects the world or my place in it. One thing they never learn is that the more you talk about racism the more there “seems” to be.

mockturtle said...

Michael K. reports: My wife pointed out to me the other day that ALL the models in her fashion magazines are now black.

Saw an item yesterday showing a black transgender 'woman' in a Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition. Not enough now just to be black. Go the extra mile for extra credit.

Joe Smith said...

I'm beyond bored with anybody's claim of 'racism!' and 'white supremacy!'

Oh, why isn't Lemon in jail for sexual assault?

I'm on board with Crack's idea; one-way tickets to the African nation of your choice after renouncing citizenship in the least racist country on earth.

The crime rate in this country would drop off a cliff.

exhelodrvr1 said...

Keep shouting "racism! Racism! Racism!" and it has become a self-fulfilling prophecy. THe left sees it everywhere, whether or not (usually not) it is there.

tommyesq said...

Anne-I-Am said A black individual going through his day does not encounter "society." He encounters individuals, who treat him and communicate with him according to their individual personalities.

Don't forget, the black individual (like all individuals) encounters other individuals who treat him and communicate with him according to their individual personalities and according to his personality and the way he presents himself and interacts with the other individuals.

Act like an ass all the time and it is amazing how many disagreeable people you will encounter.

Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...

I think Don Lemon and the rest of the on-air talent at CNN(D) and MDNBC(D) are gross.

narciso said...

Lowery was arrested at the time of the ferguson 'peaceful protest' which burned half the city down

Another old lawyer said...

Did he address whites as "You people"?

Paco Wové said...

"Let's not have a conversation about how rich and privileged I am; rather, let's have a conversation about how racist those people are."

Fandor said...

I'm sour on Lemon

Sebastian said...

"our “race problem” deeply unresolved, by mistake"

Yes, it is unresolved: after half a century of equal rights and trillions in transfer payments, native-born blacks still fall behind (white immigrant blacks succeed). Now what?

As Glenn Loury says, more or less, can a system of equal standards survive if blacks don't measure up?

"Why does Lowery think he knows what how white people will think and feel if they read Don Lemon's book?"

Don't you know that blacks know whites better than they know themselves? For one thing, they know how racist we are, which is all you need to know.

"Why does Lowery stereotype us as wearers of pearls?"

Why oh, why.

"This is casual smearing of a racial group."

Well, yeah. Been goin' on for years now. So?

"Why won't you tell us what you actually think of it instead of turning to the potential readers, purporting to inhabit their minds, and insulting them?"

Wouldn't be prudent. Better to insult whites and maintain black solidarity than to risk excommunication from progland. It isn't like those whites will do anything about it anyway. Worst case scenario, they abstain in elections.

rhhardin said...

American blacks have an average IQ of 86. They don't, on the average, do as well as whites. They're told that's because the whites are holding you back, and since they're not doing it consciously, they're doing it unconsciously.

It's not that doing group averages, whether for IQ or for how well you're doing, is a bad idea for a social touchstone. It's that whites are evil.

When individually nobody characterizes anybody by IQ. It has to be introduced as an average problem that takes precedence.

wendybar said...

Go to hell Lemon. I could give two sh*ts what you think about whiteness, blackness or nothingness. YOU are nothing. Try harder.

Jeff Weimer said...

Picking the race scab has *always* been lucrative, but it's increased in attention (and income) value since Ferguson. Lots and lots of grift at all levels there.

MayBee said...

You hit a point that I have long not understood.

Why is it the current thing is to give black people voices about what racism is, but disregard white voices? Each one person only knows his piece of the pie. Don Lemon has his experience- he can't know what's in the hearts and minds of the white people he is telling to stay quiet. He can't speak for them or me or society at large. Same with Lowery. We can't talk about how racist society is if "society" doesn't get a voice in the conversation.

Anne-I-Am said...

tommyesq: Yes, of course. And a person with a chip on his shoulder will magically find people who reinforce the chip. We do often find what we are looking for, don't we?

I'm Not Sure said...

"Act like an ass all the time and it is amazing how many disagreeable people you will encounter.

They even make a poster for that...

The Only Consistent Feature of All of Your Dissatisfying Relationships is You



Nonapod said...

On the one hand it's interesting how far we've come. The term "racism" used to mean something a bit more specific and a bit less subjective. Identifying racism didn't require much explanation or qualification. Most people could intuit fairly well what was racists on what wasn't.

But these days it seems like the goalposts have been moved. These days it seems like determining what is truly racist or not often requires mind reading. And a lot of people seem to imagine themselves to be expert mind readers. They seem to be easily able to distiguish when someone is being racist from someone merely being an asshole. They evidently can percieve what's truly in a persons heart, their true hatreds, and their desires. And essentially it seems like if there's any possible racist interpretation of an event, it can only lead to one possible conclusion.

But when everything and everyone is determined to be racist, does "racism" still actually have any meaning? What is the end game here? What do people imagine is actually achievable under such definitions and assumptions?

Chris said...

Call me a racist to my face Don, and let's see how that goes. Fuck You.

wendybar said...

Good thing his FRIEND and Colleague, Chrissy Fredo Cuomo is "black on the inside". (so HE claims)

dbp said...

"Why won't you tell us what you actually think of it instead of turning to the potential readers, purporting to inhabit their minds, and insulting them?"

If he says what he thinks of the book, there is no good outcome: If he's honest and calls it a load of BS, he will be cancelled. If he calls it wonderful, everyone will write him off as a hack.

I'm Not Sure said...

"What I Say to My Friends About Racism"

And you still have white friends? Are you sure?

mockturtle said...

I read this morning that West Point is using CRT in their leadership curriculum. Our country is so screwed.

rehajm said...

Life isn't a handicap tournament. Medal play with a cut it is.

henge2243 said...

"And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?"

I am always amazed that POC (people of color but also an acronym for "piece of crap") do not have the capacity for recism.

Krumhorn said...

I’m missing the part where any of this is a “conversation”. That would explain the problems outlined by our hostess.

- Krumhorn

Fandor said...

A "white privilige"gentleman would never speak of his black girlfriend from college.
It would be too audacious.
But, would a "white privilige" lady reveal she had been blackballed in college?
Now, that is a question.
This is one for Laslo, who I am not!

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

A darker-than-average guy feels uncomfortable with what he perceives as my “white” culture.
He labels what discomforts him “racist” and...
Declares the remedy to be doing X so that I am, like he, uncomfortable.
This is how the Left “solves” problems.
Racism ain’t their only crime.

DarkHelmet said...

There is a very large market for White Guilt. Supply will always rise to meet demand. When the demand is very high the supply can get shoddy. Lemon is a case of low quality supplier who stays in business because demand is so high.

Fandor said...

Alternate title for Don Lemon's tome should be,

HOW I STIR THE POT UP

with a new Forward penned by Eric Holder.

Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...

Yo Don Lemon(D)

JD Vance has something to say to you:

"What's so disgusting about the charge of racism is that it takes something good about the American people—their compassion for their fellow citizens—and warps it in service of our corporate overlords. Who cares about American solidarity if your hotel chain share price goes up a few pennies, right?

The people who echo those talking points should be shamed and dismissed. It's not racist to refuse to do the bidding of America's corporate oligarchy, and it's not compassionate to create a crisis on both sides of our southern border."

Big Mike said...

People like Don Lemon and Maxine Waters certainly make the conclusions of The Bell Curve more plausible.

Jupiter said...

I'm fairly certain that Don Lemon is a negro, which means he doesn't have any white brothers or sisters.

JAORE said...

"Much like his show, the book jumps around in both content and tone."

Textbook definition of an undisciplined mind.

Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...

The corporate whore oligarchy: (a short list to name a few)

Google( D-leftwing whores)
CNN
AT&T
MSDNC
NBC
Facebook
etc...

Jaq said...

I don’t care what haters have to say, and Don Lemon is a hater.

Michael said...

Hey, NYT. Instead of having Wesley Lowrey review this book, why not Glenn Loury? Or maybe both? Maybe because Loury might not tell you what you want to hear.

Known Unknown said...

Lemon Man Bad

Nancy said...

"Comp and lit"? The guy is illiterate as well.

Larry L said...

Lemon and Lowery seem to enjoy condemning an entire race based on skin color. Perhaps it’s time to call them out for their bigotry.

Fandor said...

Another alternate title:

SQUIRT

by

Don Lemon

New Forward spurt by

Maxine Waters

tim maguire said...

Shouting Thomas said...The U.S. is probably the least racist society in human history.

Never in human history have people had less to complain about. Which, ironically, is a big part of why there is so much complaining.

Fandor said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Jack Klompus said...

I'd rather hear opinions from the last dump I took than those of an overrated, overpaid, cliche-spewing useless no-talent hack like Don Lemon.

Mike of Snoqualmie said...

My wife bought it and informed me that I will read it. I will just to see how righteously racist Don Lemon is.

mockturtle said...

Mike of Snoqualmie: If your wife told you to stick your head in the toilet and flush would you do it? Same thing.

Mike of Snoqualmie said...

Don LeMon wants to have a conversation about race and he'll be glad to tell you what you must say to him.

mockturtle said...

Known Unknown quips: Lemon Man Bad

Well done, sir or madam.

minnesota farm guy said...

Speaking of irony: a millionaire black guy bitching about racism.

Joe Smith said...

We have reached peak wealth in the United States.

People (even poor people) are so fat and comfortable that they have nothing else to complain about and too much time on their hands.

Things like earning a living, finding food and shelter, etc.

John henry said...

I'm wondering if there are any commenters here not a racist?

Other than Crack and myself, of course.

John Henry

Mike of Snoqualmie said...

Mockturtle:

In this case, I will read it. She's tried to push other books on me which I ignored, mainly the "Donald Trump is [fill in the blank]" books like that one by Anonymous. After I read it, I'm going to insist that she read Andy Ngo's Unmasked. She's a big consumer of CNN and MSNBC and the Lincoln Project shows.

PM said...

The Lemon Trifecta: unwatchable, unlistenable, unreadable.

SGT Ted said...

I don't read or listen to these people because they are insufferable assholes and racists, not because of their skin color.

RichardJohnson said...

"White brothers and sisters: Pocket that But I’m Not Racist! card. I don’t want to hear about your Black girlfriend in college..."

Before I got out of high school, I came to the conclusion that all of us, in varying degrees, classify people into in-groups and out-groups. Race is but one of the "us-not us" demarcations. So, if someone accuses me of some degree of prejudice/racism/bigotry/intolerance/otherizing, my reply is along the line of, "Yes. So what else is new?"

At the same time, I have made, I believe, a decent effort to transcend such classifications. A childhood friend of the Afro-American persuasion told me decades later that I was one of three in our elementary school class "who treated me like a human being." This was in New England, a region that considers itself without prejudice. Yeah, right.

I saw enough racial prejudice and anti-Semitism during my years in Latin America to conclude that the United States has no monopoly on them. Such as in Mexico, finding out that "India" (Indian woman) is also used for prostitute. Such as being invited into households in Bolivia and Argentina that featured portraits of Hitler in the living room. Such as an elderly black woman calling me a "white mother f* c*" for having the effrontery to wear Bermuda shorts in tropical Trinidad- a country where many men also wore shorts.


What chaps my lips about those of any color who play the racism card is that they consider themselves free of prejudice/racism/bigotry/intolerance/otherizing. But they aren't. If Don Lemon wants to accuse me of racism, my reply is, "Yes, you're correct. And you are free of racism yourself?" A further reply might be is that if this country is so racist, how do you account for your financial and professional success in the face of so much racism?

gahrie said...

Just for the record, the only people it is legal, and sometimes required, to discriminate against in the United States today are White men.

gahrie said...

And you are free of racism yourself?

Of course he is. Black people can't be racist.

BUMBLE BEE said...

I'm amazed that people obsess upon race. There's so much to think about. I guess it's about gettin paid, then, isn't it?

Fernandinande said...

"This is casual smearing of a racial group."

That's SOP for the nyt.

">Here, the nyt explains how white racists cause blacks to attack Asians by not mentioning the fact that the attackers are black.

Paco Wové said...

"I don’t want to hear about"

Always nice to "have a conversation" with someone who tells you right off the bat what you can't say.

johns said...

I am arriving at this conversation a little late, but I wanted to add that I was asked (maybe not required) to take implicit bias training online a few days ago. The presenter was a very accomplished person (male, AA) who had a very pleasant presentation, using a lot of non-racial examples to illustrate implicit bias. My take on the whole thing was, as Ann says, "why does he think I have not heard all this a hundred times before?" At the level he presented the material it was not controversial. But was he saying he understood what his audience was thinking and feeling? I am ending my comment here because I do not want to draw any grand conclusions.

mtrobertslaw said...

Lemmon is a true believer in Critical Race Theory. This "theory" holds that ever since white people have been around, they have harbored a racists gene that forces them to exploit and control people of color. So it is that Western civilization has been corrupted from the very beginning.
So what can be done? There is only one hope. The public schools must start with first grade white children and teach them that they have a "bad gene" inside of them that will make them do mean and hurtful things to people of color. And that they must work very very hard to control this bad gene. This conversation must continue up through high school. (Note: A number of states have already mandated this program be used in their school systems.)
But what if this "last hope" fails, or even backfires? Then the only option left is ...?

farmgirl said...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_PyTwXPre8
UVM counselor’s plea .....

https://youtu.be/gVoDiVs0XpE
Thomas Sowell on our divided country

I mentioned last night- on the wrong thread- again!!- about an Englishman named Trevor Phillips- he’s very interesting.
Food for thought.

n.n said...

Diversity dogma (i.e. color judgments), not limited to racism, which denies individual dignity, individual conscience, intrinsic value. People of Color (i.e. color blocs, identity defined by skin color). People of White. People of Fetus, too. Lose your quasi-religion (e.g. "ethics"). Evolve with a better fitness function.

farmgirl said...

Hey, LeMon:
Educate yourself-
https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2016/06/07/africa/africa-albino-hunted-bones-malawi/index.html

iowan2 said...

Don Lemon. Epitome of credentialed, not accomplished. The man's IQ is lower than his body temperature. We are not but one step away from programed holograms hosting cable shows.

Mary Beth said...

After I read it, I'm going to insist that she read Andy Ngo's Unmasked. She's a big consumer of CNN and MSNBC and the Lincoln Project shows.

You should get her to agree to read Ngo's book at the same time you read Lemon's.

I would not take kindly to anyone insisting that I read a book, especially if they know it's not one I would enjoy.

Whiskeybum said...

How do you rationalize:

Generic woke race activist: 'We need to have an open conversation about race... '

with

Don Lemon: "I don't want to hear about your... "

?

Mark said...

Why is it that every time he speaks, Don LeMon turns himself into a joke?

Guimo said...

Isn’t he a racist for capitalizing the “b” in the word “black?”

D.D. Driver said...

Why is Don Lemon such a sourpuss?

**ducks**

Skeptical Voter said...

Well little Donny Dipstick, I don't want to hear from you either. So we're even.

William said...

People here are jumping to conclusions.. I'm sure that there's an introspective chapter on how it came to pass that he chose a white guy to settle down with. It probably discusses how grateful he is to to the white people who took leadership and front line positions in the struggle for gay rights.....This is a man who has transcended all known prejudices and class distinctions. We are indeed fortunate to have such a man in our midst. I'm sure that this is the subtext of his book.

Michael K said...

Blogger mtrobertslaw said...
Lemmon is a true believer in Critical Race Theory.


I dunno. Do you think Al Sharpton really believes the stuff he peddles ?

Deep down these people have to know the stuff they sell is BS. They are getting rich selling it. People ranting on street corners in rags may believe this stuff.

Temujin said...

I already knew that. All of it.

I love the bit about "...our society is racist." Writes Don Lemon." Mr. Lemon is paid millions of dollars per year to host the last place show in it's period on cable news. He's given all manner of room to say whatever he wants to say about other people, calling them every name in the book, promoting riots, and perpetuating fraud news stories.

Yes, our society is brutal to Don Lemon. And if we have another run on toilet paper in the grocery, I'll be sure to look for a copy of his book.

Steven said...

Anyone who claims to have a race other than "human" is a science-denying reactionary.

Tinderbox said...

I don't need a lecture from an alcoholic, on racism or anything else.

I'm Not Sure said...

Boise State halts a diversity course for 1,300 students midsemester over a rumored video of a student being “humiliated” for being white. The university hasn't seen the video, but the course was already under scrutiny from state lawmakers.

President Marlene Tromp wrote that “we have been made aware of a series of concerns, culminating in allegations that a student or students have been humiliated and degraded in class on our campus for their beliefs and values.”

This is “never acceptable; it is not what Boise State stands for; and we will not tolerate this behavior,” Tromp said.

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2021/03/18/boise-state-suspends-diversity-course-1300-students

TrespassersW said...

Dave Begley said...
If Don Lemon was white, he'd be reading the news in Grand Forks, North Dakota or Jackson, Mississippi. Not even good enough for Omaha!

Hey, now! Don't be dissing North Dakota! Lemon is the guy who thinks he's announcing something profound by saying Jesus wasn't white. (See https://twitchy.com/sarahd-313035/2021/03/19/austere-religious-scholar-don-lemon-breaks-some-shocking-news-about-the-true-identity-of-jesus-video/) He also announced that--and I am not making this up--"God is not about hindering people or even judging people."(https://twitchy.com/sarahd-313035/2021/03/15/don-lemons-very-disappointed-with-the-catholic-church-over-same-sex-unions-because-after-all-god-is-not-about-judging-people-video/)

Lemon isn't smart enough to operate a slushy machine, much less read the news ANYWHERE.

mockturtle said...

Good for Boise State!

Rick said...

Left wingers believe society is racist because showing up on time, planning ahead, and thinking objectively create value. I've literally never heard Lemon object to this.

I'm not much interested in anyone whose "leadership" consists of "STFU and adopt my views".

PM said...

"...openly Black"?

Jim at said...

Once again, fine. I'm a racist.
What else you got?

mezzrow said...

This is why I read your thing here, Althouse. Nice.

Iman said...

Mockturtle wrote: Saw an item yesterday showing a black transgender 'woman' in a Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition. Not enough now just to be black. Go the extra mile for extra credit.

Dat cuts like a knife!

Quaestor said...

Merit is racist.

Mathematics is racist.

Logic is racist.

Justice is racist.

Aspire to racism.

RichardJohnson said...

Whiskeybum, good point about the comparison between the woke crowd's telling us we "need to have an open conversation about race," and Don Lemon's "I don't want to hear about your Black girlfriend in college.." While these statements appear to contradict each other, my conclusion and probably your conclusion also is that the woke crowd never wanted "to have an open conversation about race." Shut up, deplorable.

Clyde said...

Lemon is not my brother, and I don't want to be his friend. With that kind of attitude, he has to be a real pain to be around. Life is too short to be around people like that.

Jaq said...

Why won't you tell us what you actually think of it instead of turning to the potential readers, purporting to inhabit their minds, and insulting them?

That’s a rhetorical question, right?

n.n said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
n.n said...

But I'm progressive! But are you viable? Still hunted, judged, protested, and summarily cancelled. Karmic irony.

Tim said...

To my black brothers and sisters. Pocket that everyone is racist who disagrees with me horseshit. I don't want to hear about your fantasies and blind hatreds of that which is different.

Leland said...

I don't socialize with Don Lemon.

Robert Cook said...

(Lemon) also announced that--and I am not making this up--'God is not about hindering people or even judging people.'"

Well...if there were a god, that entity would not judge humans. Do you judge--morally or otherwise--the behavior of insects? Of fish in the sea? Of all the non-human orders of creatures that abound on the earth?

If there were a god, that entity would be nothing like we imagine--and all earthly religious beliefs are simply the creations of human imagination, reflecting our own fears, wishes, and emotions. It would be an incredibly higher order of creature, vastly more alien than and more removed from us than we are from the animals who share our planet. The notion of such an entity (or entities) viewing the behavior of living creatures on this or that or all the many inhabited planets with "judgemental" scrutiny is childishly narcissistic beyond belief.

It's all projection, baby!

Ambrose said...

Can we stop talking about that Black CNN host we watch?

mockturtle said...

Nothing like an atheist to explain God and His relationship to His creation. Nice try, Cookie, but I'm afraid you will find out eventually.

Amadeus 48 said...

"Why won't you tell us what you actually think of it instead of turning to the potential readers, purporting to inhabit their minds, and insulting them?"

Well, what do you think? The inadequate reviewing the incompetent? The timid reviewing the vacuous?

Amadeus 48 said...

You can judge review this without knowing that anyone involved is a POC.

Quaestor said...

Robert Cook writes: The notion of such an entity (or entities) viewing the behavior of living creatures on this or that or all the many inhabited planets with "judgemental" scrutiny is childishly narcissistic beyond belief.

Is it not curious that the most vehement atheists love to put on their pope hats?

Don said...

Forget Don, this book is a lemon.

Night Owl said...

How do people not get tired of this race obsession? This country is caught up in a mass hysteria that makes me seriously consider retiring abroad. I can't believe any other country is as race obsessed as we are; even the French think we're nuts.

Robert Cook said...

Qaestor projects.

I'm neither vehement nor putting on a "pope hat." I'm speaking dispassionately and rationally. I have no qualms with those who hold religious beliefs; such beliefs can provide meaning, purpose, and comfort. However, it is silly to assume that if there were such an entity, it would be comprehensible to us or would behave as we do, (vain, judgemental, vengeful, and punitive).

Josephbleau said...

Using Queegian geometric logic they have boxed me in by their postulates. I am axiomatically a racist while others can never be defined that way.

Ken B said...

Casual smearing is the point. You establish and force everyone to acknowledge that right by the exercise of it. It’s the same mechanism as with abusive spouses. The point is to get you to agree they are entitled to treat you that way.

I'm Not Sure said...

"I can't believe any other country is as race obsessed as we are"

Well, part of the country, anyway. There are actually lots of people who can go days, if not weeks, at a time without thinking about race. You can easily recognize them- they're the ones who don't walk around looking like they just shoved a turd up their nose.

mockturtle said...

I'm Not Sure observes: There are actually lots of people who can go days, if not weeks, at a time without thinking about race. You can easily recognize them- they're the ones who don't walk around looking like they just shoved a turd up their nose.

LOL! So true. No one I know obsesses about race and my family is very multiracial.

Dude1394 said...

Because he and the author are bigots. Period.

Narr said...

I never had a B/black girlfriend; why, I only ever dated W/white girls, and not vast numbers of those.

None of my best friends are B/black, and I have no reason to expect that to change.

Don Lemon is an inconsequential joke whose success can only be explained by racial and sex-pref quotas.

Narr
I grant no quota

ccscientist said...

It is pretty rich like Lemon or Obama who are richer than any white person I know decrying racism in the US. I keep asking for examples of this systemic racism but no one has any. If you want to know why young black men have trouble getting a job, consider how many of them are overtly hostile and dangerous and that young black women do NOT have the same problems getting a job. Perhaps culture is the cause? Nahhhh, all cultures are equal!

ALP said...

Lost me at "fruitcake".

farmgirl said...

https://thepostmillennial.com/watch-black-woman-slams-ohio-school-board-for-critical-race-theory-indoctrination-of-students

From Instapundit

Sprezzatura said...

There should be a “no tags” tag for posts w/o tags.

IMHO.

Narr said...

Suggested tags. I'll start.

Pearls.

Narr
Wise of me

Lurker21 said...

It can be hard to tell positive reviews from negative ones. Reviewers who hated the book will often offer something positive as a sop to the author, and those who loved the book may not want to appear too enthusiastic. I'm guessing the reviewer didn't like the book, but he wasn't going to be too hard on Lemon. Plenty of stupid and unnecessary books get published every year, but if you're a writer you don't want get the reputation for being a hard-to-please reviewer, since other writers will take their frustrations out on you.

Lemmon is a true believer in Critical Race Theory.

He may not even know what that is. I suspect that he or his ghostwriter just grabs ideas that seem to be in line with what he's feeling at the moment.

McGehee :: FJB said...

Why won't you tell us what you actually think of it instead of turning to the potential readers

Because ad hominem is all they have.

Lem Vibe Bandit said...

Instalinked

Marcus Bressler said...

Silly Negro.

THEOLDMAN

I don't pay attention to anyone such as Lemon and his CNN ilk.

wildswan said...

Progress Report on the National Conversation on Race: you can't tell the color any more.

"I don't want to hear any more."
"I don't want to hear any more."

Unity.

TrespassersW said...

Robert Cook said...
Well...if there were a god, that entity would not judge humans. Do you judge--morally or otherwise--the behavior of insects? Of fish in the sea? Of all the non-human orders of creatures that abound on the earth?

If there were a god, that entity would be nothing like we imagine--and all earthly religious beliefs are simply the creations of human imagination, reflecting our own fears, wishes, and emotions. It would be an incredibly higher order of creature, vastly more alien than and more removed from us than we are from the animals who share our planet. The notion of such an entity (or entities) viewing the behavior of living creatures on this or that or all the many inhabited planets with "judgemental" scrutiny is childishly narcissistic beyond belief.

It's all projection, baby!


Speaking of projection, you're projecting your limitations onto God, Cookie.

LA_Bob said...

"Is this the Don Lemon, that Trump called 'The stupidest man on TV'?

I knew that Trump guy was good for something!

"People like Don Lemon and Maxine Waters certainly make the conclusions of The Bell Curve more plausible."

And howdy!

Jamie said...

As to atheism and whether a God would necessarily be uninterested in us puny humans: come on, Cookie. That's not a "dispassionate" position. It's one possibility, if by "God" you mean "being with consciousness and power(s) unimaginable by human standards."

But of course that definition omits the most salient point about the Judeo-Christian-Islamic God: that that God is purported to have created humanity for that God's own pleasure. If you made something to please yourself, might you, perhaps, be interested in what happens to that thing? Ever planted a garden? Put up a bird feeder, even? Do you care about the weeds or the squirrels that interfere with the thing you made for your own pleasure? Do you water the garden? Fill the feeder?

And this doesn't even get into the most fundamental point (as opposed to the most salient one) about the Judeo-Christian-Islsmic God: that this God has always existed and will always exist (slippery concept, yes), outside of time and space, able to enter that continuum where- and whenever that God chooses.

When you're ready to address the first, practical point, then maybe take a stab at the second, metaphysical one.

The Godfather said...

"It doesn’t matter if you are racist or not racist or antiracist; our society is racist."

No, it's not. Imperfect as is, the 21st Century US is the least racist multi-racial society that has ever existed. Don: prove me wrong, or shut up.

Pettifogger said...

I hazard that most people who buy the book will be white Elites who will flip vaguely through it so as to claim to have read for cred among their peers.

Jamie said...

The comment way up thread deserves repeating: those who see racism everywhere (while at the same time not being able to point to any specific racist individual) can be understood most readily as analogous to those who suffer from schizophrenia. They're responding to the voices in their heads, not to reality.

"Their truth" is more than just a trendy phrase.

Real American said...

"Black brothers and sisters: Pocket that Race card."

Our society has racists in it, many of them black, but society isn't racist.

Sam L. said...

Lemon IS a LEMON.

Drtrey said...

Hey Don, let's meet face to face where you can call me a racist cupcake.

Trey

Forbes said...

It's the New York Times. With a review of a book by CNN's Don Lemon. LOL. Why bother?

Robert Cook said...

"But of course that definition omits the most salient point about the Judeo-Christian-Islamic God: that that God is purported to have created humanity for that God's own pleasure."

Yes, a childish and egocentric notion.

"And this doesn't even get into the most fundamental point (as opposed to the most salient one) about the Judeo-Christian-Islsmic God: that this God has always existed and will always exist (slippery concept, yes), outside of time and space, able to enter that continuum where- and whenever that God chooses."

And why would such a vast, eternal, and ineffable entity concern itself with and judge the behavior of each, individual human in our incredibly short-lived existences (as compared with the Big Kahoona)? Again, a childish and egocentric notion. That would be like us "punishing" fruit flies for abrogating whatever we considered to be proper fruit fly behavior.

To back to my point: if there were such an entity, it would be beyond our understanding or comprehension, and any plans or intentions (or "laws") we perceive it it to have vis a vis us can only be a projection of our imaginations, the stories we tell ourselves to make sense of that which is impossible to comprehend (and for which there is no evidence).

Robert Cook said...

"Ever planted a garden? Put up a bird feeder, even? Do you care about the weeds or the squirrels that interfere with the thing you made for your own pleasure? Do you water the garden? Fill the feeder?"

If I created everything, then the squirrels that interfered with the garden I made would simply be acting according to their nature as I made them. It would be stupid beyond belief for me to "punish" the squirrels for acting according to their nature (as I made them), and more stupid of me to think I could somehow expect the squirrels to behave otherwise.

I will not declare there are no spheres of existence or entities who reside there that are far beyond our perception, as I cannot know that, but if there are such realms and entities, we cannot begin to know or understand the barest thing about them. We have to admit all we can do is imagine them. That is my point.

Joanne Jacobs said...

Just as Don Lemon doesn't want to hear about my black friends, I don't want to hear his opinions about his white brothers and sisters.

There can't be many whites who want to have a conversation about race, when the cost of saying the wrong thing is so high.

mtrobertslaw said...

Cook has problem. If he believes in free will, then it is quite easy to develop an argument that justifies judging. On the other hand, if there is no free will and it is merely a superstition, then every action Cook takes and everything anybody else does for that matter, cannot be judged in the sense that Cook was free to do otherwise. Chemistry and electricity cause Cook to do what he did and believe whatever it is he happens to believe is true.

Anonymous said...

Mock - 'Go the extra mile for extra credit'. Heh.

What is a Culture? What is a Society? Government rules cannot create it. People gathered together create that. Unspoken. Unwritten. Grandpa and Grandma gonna grab you by the scruff of your neck and gonna school you.

We don't have that now. We have the most dedicated and relentless voices, who have nothing better to do, getting politicians to make laws.


Anonymous said...

Robert Cook - ...if there were such an entity, it would be beyond our understanding or comprehension."

It's like the Global Climate. Beyond our understanding.

I do have a comment about bird feeders though. I put up a bird feeder to feed the birds.
They came in flocks in the morning. One evening, after dark, I turned on the outside light to see if birds came around then. They did. The squirrels were positioned on the branch above figuring out how to shimmy down the cord that held an easy meal. Turkeys were under the feeder, pecking at the seed that the birds kicked off the feeder to get to what they wanted. And then there was the deer. Neck stretched out to reach the bird feeder.

It was a bird feeder. It was beyond my understanding that turkeys and deer would gather round. I suspected the squirrels would show up.

Nancy Reyes said...

so he is talking to his suburban affluent types, not the working class slobs, who are often black/Asian/Hispanic and/or live in neighborhoods with many ethnicities.
A lot of the "woke" stuff seems to be a conversation by uber rich elites with each other, trying to justify why they are superior to the janitors and cops who keep them safe and clean.