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Politics : Bill Clinton Scandal - SANITY CHECK -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Neocon who wrote (57427)	7/24/1999 10:10:00 PM
From: DMaA	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 67261

Thought we weren't supposed to judge foreign cultures. America in the 30-60's is as foreign a culture as any deep Amazonian tribe. I mean, come on, just look at their head gear.

To: Neocon who wrote (57427)	7/24/1999 11:57:00 PM
From: Johannes Pilch	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 67261

You should not hesitate. The practice began around 1843 moving from the south and showing up in a little tavern in New York City from which place it became very popular, spurring the creation of imitations everywhere. Those who began it and many who perpetuated it, did so expressly to ridicule for the pleasure of audiences everywhere, the poor state and forced ignorance of others. Perhaps this was merely a cultural trapping for some folk, but so was slavery. Judging by the Golden Rule, it was comprehensively barbaric. I enjoy ethnic humour. We should all be able to poke fun at ourselves and at others, and we should do it warmly and openly as if we were all fellow countrymen, which is what we are. Why did so many blacks die in Vietnam? Because when the commander yelled “Everybody get down!!!,” the blacks all stood up and started boogying! This is a dang funny joke. It merely pokes fun of the stereotype of blacks as a people of rhythm. Of course I know blacks who can't boogie to save their dang lives. Stereotypes are nothing upon which one should depend to judge another. But many of them are just good fun, and we ought to enjoy them. *Tangent* I have had the privilege of witnessing blacks and whites in a church together (I do not mean here an integrated church, but a church meeting where a special event brought two otherwise fairly homogenous groups together. These folk all thought similarly regarding morals, work, welfare, abortion, God, racism, and they all knew it). A hymn started and what did the dang whites do? They started clapping to the thing on beats 1 and 3!!! (no kidding!) I looked around the church to see the blacks looking at one another in subtle bewilderment (what they doin'????). Other blacks just smiled knowingly (oh man, you know white folk needs a little help). Then the blacks started singing with the whites and soon the thing opened up very nicely. Then just like a dang train you could hear rising from the floor a thick low whomping that grew until it was way the heck up there. The dang blacks were stomping hard on all four beats! There it was right in your dang face “WHOMP! WHOMP! WHOMP! WHOMP!” while they hammered handclaps on beats 2 and 4! (Do this at your computer. It sounds dang good just by its own dang self). I just shook my head in amazement. Had never heard nothing like that before. I hopped right in there with them, hammering the heck outta 2 and 4 with my hands and stomping the dickens outta 1,2,3 and 4. You know what I found? My head naturally had to bob. There was no dang way I could stomp 1,2,3 and 4 and clap 2 & 4 and keep the rest of me still. May as well tell the sun not to shine. Slowly, the whites got the pocket and started hammering and stomping with the blacks, and soon the whole dang church started coming down! Folk could not stop singing. We actually did the dang hymn again! God was worshiped in that church on that dang day. And do you know even now when a hymn is sung in that church and where folks decide to clap, they always clap on 2 and 4 like they should?*** ANYWAY, many stereotypes have come of malicious or barbaric origin, and we ought not make fun of them. I find no dang humour in jokes that prey upon the weaknesses or pain of others. Where I have found myself in the company of folk who enjoyed such jokes, I have with little mercy dismissed myself or those dang folk. And I did it so that they could by no dang means enjoy their friggin jokes too. I have no dang patience with friggin' barbarians.