To the person reading this: I am Abdullah Dunbar, an officer of the Liberian National Board of Education, and I am pleased to get across to you for a very urgent and profitable business proposal. Although I don't know you, neither have I seen you before, my confidence was reposed on you for a confidential business venture because you are a reader of the estimable internet forum with the name of DegreeInfo.com. In the course of the general operation of my agency, I have been able to set aside the sum of US$26, which has escaped the scrutiny of the government auditors, due to the conditions of war that prevail in my country. The funds currently sit, in the form of 260 U.S. dimes that have been packed into an Aunt Jemima pancake syrup jar and placed in a secret warehouse adjoining a private airport near the border. Since Federal Express requires payment in advance, I must have assistance in shipping this jar out of the country. If you are prepared to assist me in this important project, you will be rewarded with 30% of the treasure. Further, one of our finest Liberian universities will award you a Ph.D. in the field of your choice. May the light of the deity of your choice shine gloriously upon you.
What if one is a Satanist who worships the Prnce of Darkness as his or her god? Thanks for sharing Dr. Bear. This is pretty funny!
30% of 260 dimes = 78 dimes or $7.80. I really need ten dollars, so, Dr. Bear, can you persuade Abdullah Dunbar, an officer of the Liberian National Board of Education, to throw in another 22 dimes and I'm game!
Racist implications I guess I had expected better from Dr. Bear than racist commentary (Aunt Jemima syrup?) when criticizing and even making fun of SRU and its Liberian connections. If this is what RA gets us, I am starting to understand where these unaccredited folks are coming from. Perhaps the next comment will be delivered with a graphic of Dr. Bear in blackface ala minstrel era....
Eh? Carl was (last we heard) considering Touro University International to complete his MBA. And he has been quite negative on SRU. E.g., he wrote: Watch where you point that flame-thrower.
I haven't changed my mind about SRU I'm still negative on SRU. I just don't like it when our leading scholars (i.e., Dr. Bear) resort to the gutter for their commentary, and a racist gutter at that. He should know better since he represents what most of us believe in. We don't need to resort to racist implications to make our points about SRU. It lowers all of us to the levels of the ones we disdain. And I'll point the flamethrower at anyone who prefers to dredge up racism in this discussion, thank you very much - even Dr. Bear.
What's racist? What's really offensive is the scumbags who have raped Liberia, and the unspeakables who applaud SRU, thus profiteering off a nation's misery. What's racist? What's nauseating are people who will boast of fake Liberian credentials, which just adds one more problem for graduates of real Liberian colleges. What's racist? I'm triracial--how would I know? If John Bear is racist, Jimmy Clifton is my brother.
Re: Racist implications As a member in good standing in the NAACP let me say I have read many articles by Dr. Bear. I have never, ever read any comments he made that remotely indicated he's racist or has those leanings. I imagine Dr. Bear's books have helped many minorities, who as we all know, have been sorely taken advantage of by many, make good decisions about their future educational endeavors. I have emailed Dr. Bear on a number of ocassions and he was always kind and respectful. He had no idea what race I was as I am sure he doesn't whenever most email him for advice. Sometimes we are all a little too sensitive.
I certainly apologize if I offended anyone. The role of Aunt Jemima is perhaps best expressed by the legendary African-American public relations genius Moss Kendrix* who wrote, in "The Advertiser's Holy Trinity: Aunt Jemima, Rastus, and Uncle Ben," "When Americans think of products advertised by African-Americans, the first three that often come to mind are Aunt Jemima, Rastus (the Cream of Wheat Chef), and Uncle Ben. These faces have become American icons, representing quality and home-cooking flavor in food production." Mr. Kendrix did express concern about some unfortunate images -- perhaps the worst, in terms of caricature and popularity being "Darkie Toothpaste" sold by Colgate in Asia.** __________ * http://www.prmuseum.com/kendrix/thinks.html **
"Darkie Toothpaste" was not devised by Colgate or any other American company. Darkie's "name and logo were still intact in 1985 when Colgate bought the brand from the Hong Kong's Hawley & Hazel Chemical Co. [...] Colgate's arch-rival Procter & Gamble [...] hired a public relations firm to surreptitiously slip information to activists and newspapers about Colgate's disreputable Asian brand. The strategy worked. There was a storm of uproar: Stories and editorials in major newspapers, threats of boycotts, and even Eddie Murphy expressing his outrage on David Letterman. Colgate was unfairly attacked for a brand it had just purchased; however, the attacks became more and more justified as the toothpaste giant dragged its feet on changing the brand fearing a loss of business. Finally, nearly four years later [in 1989], it announced that it was changing the name to Darlie and making the man on the package an abstraction of indeterminate race. The name change placated Western critics, who pointed out that the toothpaste actually sold better after the name change. What they didn't know, and apparently still don't, is that only the English was changed. The Cantonese name ('Haak Yahn Nga Gou') still stayed the same, and the Chinese-language ads reassured users that, despite a cosmetic change to placate those inscrutable Westerners, 'Black Man Toothpaste is still Black Man Toothpaste.'" -- http://www.degreeinfo.com/forums/newreply.php?s=&action=newreply&threadid=9834 I saw billboards for Darkie toothpaste in Hong Kong in the summer of 1989, but I didn't know until just now that it had been purchased by Colgate.
Sensitivity... OK - maybe I was just being a bit too "sensitive" when I said what I said about Dr. Bear's comments. I was just disappointed that he used the Aunt Jemima reference in the same context as his satire about Abdullah Dunbar and Liberia that's all. By no means does this mean I'm defending the rape of Liberia by its own people, or the many other atrocities that have occured in Africa over the past years at the hands of Africans against their own race. On the other hand, I stand firm that academics in THIS country (the USA) of the majority race (i.e., white) have a special calling to be EXTRA sensitive when tossing around sarcasm about African people in general given our past history of slavery, affirmative action, civil rights, and the continuing efforts of African Americans in the USA to be recognized as people in their own right. Dr. Bear, you're still alright in my book, I just wish you wouldn't have stooped (in my opinion) into the gutter. And Uncle Janko, take a chill pill! Sheez. I agree, OK?
When I said "Watch where you point that flame-thrower", I actually had in mind Dave's comment about Carl, not Carl's comments. But I think it's good advice for everyone.
