Posted by BlueSeats:

Posted by sebstar:
Well its good to see that you think chrome spikes and sawed off shotguns are equivalent to Air Jordan’s, oversized jeans, and polo shirts. Not only is it an exaggerated and comical comparison, but a hypothetical thesis where white and black people as a whole are viewed as interchangeable is generally flawed to begin with. The White culture has the power and resources to punish blacks in virtually all facets of life, not the other way around. If this had been a world controlled by the black male for hundreds of years, well...

Dude, it wasn't meant to be a direct comparison. I could have used hillbilly wear, hippy wear, or any number of alternative styles. But as hard as I try to conjure an example that defies race you just wont let me.

The point is institutions have used dress codes as part of their image control since the history of man, an this includes within the same race.

Why has everyone dodged the example of Isiah instituting his stricter dress code on the Knicks before the league?

One guy who was significantly affected by the dress code was Tim Duncan. Whenever he was injured the guy was dressed in a flannel shirt like it was Sunday and he needed to rake his leaves. He was dressed "whiter" than me, but it was not the look the league wanted. How is that about race?

I'm not trying to be right about this guys, I have no idea what's in the minds of Stern and others, but lets be able to discuss the subject without be so dismissive and charged about the whole thing.

You threw out a strong opinion and it boomeranged. Calm down. I’m not accusing you of being a racist. Your thesis was one where you outlined clear anti-social behavior. I don’t view hip hop as being such.

Hip hop wear is generally aesthetically appealing. That’s why your “chromed spikes” comparison missed me. If anything an apt comparison would be with the Italian mobster culture, which is generally celebrated.

In general I think the NBA is a pretty well behaved league. There should certainly be more opportunities for fights given the players close proximity to each other and the lack of cumbersome gear that would prevent fisticuffs. I think the NBA’s “bad image” is more a reflection of the accusers than anything else.

One element of racism is the fact that whenever there is a negative incident one or a few black men become representative of the whole. Iverson says he doesn’t want to practice = NBA players have a problem with practicing…ext. There is rarely room for individualism.

The Ron Artest inspired brawl was a unique situation that was instigated by a fan in the audience. To me it didn’t signal “a league out of control”… With Stern the fact that he so clearly exploited hip hop culture, then castigated it the minute he smelled trouble doesn’t sit well with me. Some of the language he has used and the fact the he was so eager to throw the hip hop culture under the bus creates some suspicion.

I’ll bite on the Isiah remark, first of all, its not uncommon for blacks in a position or power to try and overcompensate by coming down on their people the hardest. That said, I liken his dress code mandate to that of George Steinbrenner. I think it speaks to who they are as people. Its not as if they reversed stream loudly and abruptly. It would have been nice for Stern to stick up for his employees rather than play to racist notions about them and try to appease those who are close-minded.