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[QUOTE=GozertheGozarian;3802389]Jeremy Renner says things almost as bad, and not as jokes, much more recently. There's a serious lack of consistency on Disney's part.[/QUOTE]
Some years ago in the UK there was hell to pay on Big Brother when the late Jade Goody was seen racially insulting another 'housemate'. Yet Jermaine Jackson called her mother 'white trash' and not only was there not a word of protest but he was later guest of honour at an anti racist rally. Double standards everywhere.
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[QUOTE=Alan2099;3802471]Everybody was doing a good job of ignoring it up until just now.[/QUOTE]
Honestly, I would disagree with the assertion that "Everybody" was doing that.
GLAAD still has the apology up, and I took enough note to remember that they did.
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That said, it's worth noting that Batista wasted zero time in going to bat for the guy. That's worth a lot.
Not worth enough to balance out that the guy said he "doesn't blame" his past self, but worth a lot.
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[QUOTE=motherofpearl1;3802499]Some years ago in the UK there was hell to pay on Big Brother when the late Jade Goody was seen racially insulting another 'housemate'. Yet Jermaine Jackson called her mother 'white trash' and not only was there not a word of protest but he was later guest of honour at an anti racist rally. Double standards everywhere.[/QUOTE]
Making racist comments towards white people and ignoring those comments have become the standard in society. Double standard indeed.
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I don't really see this as a loss. The first movie is fantastic, the second was tired. better to have a new director anyway, I'm sure Gunn will work again.
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Let he, who is without sin, make the next movie.
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[QUOTE=Colossus1980;3802550]Making racist comments towards white people and ignoring those comments have become the standard in society. Double standard indeed.[/QUOTE]
Or the sensitivity could be spawned from society's acknowledgement of the social implications that arose from 200 years of the Atlantic Slave Trade and subsequent 300 years of other forms of institutionalized racism and segregation. And the realization that there hasn't ever been true institutionalization of racism against white people by minorities in the Western World and most true racism against white people generally speaking is a response to everything I listed above. In other words, your point is a false equivalency.
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[QUOTE=Vic Vega;3802269]Well this got a whole lot stupider. Jesus.[/QUOTE]
This is all kinds of messed up.
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[QUOTE=C_Miller;3802588]Or the sensitivity could be spawned from society's acknowledgement of the social implications that arose from 200 years of the Atlantic Slave Trade and subsequent 300 years of other forms of institutionalized racism and segregation. And the realization that there hasn't ever been true institutionalization of racism against white people by minorities in the Western World and most true racism against white people generally speaking is a response to everything I listed above. In other words, your point is a false equivalency.[/QUOTE]
Quoted for truth.
Comparing "racism" to whites to what black and other coloured people have faced and are still facing today (to the extent that police are called on black people for literally doing nothing wrong and people are shouting that Hispanic Americans should get out of the country) is nonsense.
Absolute bullshit. It's a false equivalency and frankly it's not something really worth debating considering America's horrifying and brutal track record of racism.
One can be racist towards white people but direct parallels between racism against coloured people and white people can't be drawn in the US.
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Disney look stupid here in my opinion.
Back when Gunn was hired, there was uproar around his homophobic and sexist work and YET they still hired him. Gunn himself apologised and he made the movies.
Disney hired the guy that did PG Porn and Troma movies. They should have known this before hiring him.
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[QUOTE=C_Miller;3802588]Or the sensitivity could be spawned from society's acknowledgement of the social implications that arose from 200 years of the Atlantic Slave Trade and subsequent 300 years of other forms of institutionalized racism and segregation. And the realization that there hasn't ever been true institutionalization of racism against white people by minorities in the Western World and most true racism against white people generally speaking is a response to everything I listed above. In other words, your point is a false equivalency.[/QUOTE]
Reasons, though they should be considered, aren't excuses. Personally I don't believe in the sins of the fathers. There's unlikely to be an institutionalization of racism against any majority by a minority unless they're the greater part of of some ruling class. Otherwise the institutionalization couldn't occur to begin with.
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[QUOTE=Indian Ink;3802597]Reasons, though they should be considered, aren't excuses. Personally I don't believe in the sins of the fathers. There's unlikely to be an institutionalization of racism against any majority by a minority unless they're the greater part of of some ruling class. Otherwise the institutionalization couldn't occur to begin with.[/QUOTE]
That's pretty short sighted. As a white American with family ties in the South, I am fully aware that part of the reason I am where I am was in some part supported by unpaid labor. But either way, it's not just sins of the father. We've had many opportunities to squash out institutional racism and we've come along way, but there is a lot still out there. Racism against white people is still a false equivalency.
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I imagine from now on, all directors and actors are having their history discreetly investigated by the studios. Hush up what can be. Quietly retire those which can't be. And shortly, if not already, have their top actors/director sign morality clauses so that they can recover from wages, if nothing else, money lost because of their ill deeds. Studio heads must be having trouble sleeping at night, the way the social/media/moral landscapes changed for them.
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[QUOTE=Username taken;3802590]Quoted for truth.
Comparing "racism" to whites to what black and other coloured people have faced and are still facing today (to the extent that police are called on black people for literally doing nothing wrong and people are shouting that Hispanic Americans should get out of the country) is nonsense.
Absolute bullshit. It's a false equivalency and frankly it's not something really worth debating considering America's horrifying and brutal track record of racism.
One can be racist towards white people but direct parallels between racism against coloured people and white people can't be drawn in the US.[/QUOTE]
Maybe not in the US but there have been racist and homophobic attacks carried out by people of colour against white people in the UK. I am white. I'm also autistic, asexual and have a gay brother. In short, I have experience of bigotry and prejudice. The answer to bigotry is not becoming a bigot.
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But that's not what this is about. I've been trying to formulate my thoughts on this situation for a while and latched on to something else that I had an issue with.
I'm not happy about this. And frankly, there is no way that this situation is any good for anyone. It needs to be reiterated that James Gunn is being fired for tweets that he made a decade ago that he apologized for (IMO sincerely) six years ago before the first film came out. For all of you who are on the side of Disney. Just think, it sets a precedent that any job can fire you for something you posted about in the past that you regret (which for all of us on the internet, I'm sure there's a lot). Doesn't matter if you're upfront and apologize. They can still fire you if the culture barometer shifts. Look, content-wise, I find the posts extremely troubling. I tend to abhor edgelord material and find people who are offensive just to be offensive super annoying, but on more than one occasion, he has distanced himself from posts he's made in the past. That should be good enough. It's not like committed any crimes.
Let's call this what it really is. It's Disney bowing down to a right wing hit job on a Trump critic. I hate that this is political, but it seems like everything is these days. If you think for a second that we'd be here right now if he wasn't vocal politically, I have a bridge to sell you. And, it would be the same thing if he fell on the opposite side of the spectrum. While, I'd be upset regardless, I think the political angle just makes this feel even more icky. Especially since the person involved was the main person behind Pizza conspiracy that almost ended in a deadly shooting a year or so ago.
Truth be told, I am biased though. I loved the Guardians films. They're my favorite Marvel movies by far and this was the one movie that I've been looking forward to coming out and while I expect Marvel, the well oiled machine to produce a third Guardians movie with craft and care, I will deeply miss Gunn's voice, which was dripping throughout the two films. And to get back to being political, the thing that really makes me sad is that the Trump Administration and his overzealous supporters has taken a hatchet job to my comfort and happiness. I admit I'm privileged and I don't have to actively deal with most of the policies coming out of the White House. This was one of the first times where the Right has napalmed one of my escapes. That's been giving me more malaise than if it had been literally anyone else.