Blogcritics: Comments on 'Ghettopoly' reveals Asian immigrant's bigotry

Comment by Jim Carruthers

Mon, 27 Oct 2003 15:48:48 EST

Of course AC/DC said it best when they said:

I'll give you black sensations up and down your spine If you're into evil you're a friend of mine See my white light flashing as I split the night 'cause if good's on the left, then I'm stickin' to the right

But for me, myself I like the bay-tay-oh

Comment by Jim Carruthers

Mon, 27 Oct 2003 15:47:29 EST

Of course AC/DC said it best when they said:

I'll give you black sensations up and down your spine If you're into evil you're a friend of mine See my white light flashing as I split the night 'cause if good's on the left, then I'm stickin' to the right

But for me, myself I like the bay-tay-oh

Comment by Jim Carruthers

Mon, 27 Oct 2003 13:25:38 EST

I would like to pause and quote Milk and Cheese: "Gin Makes A Man Mean". That said, let's booze up and riot. Plus the Xian Science Monitor has a piece about marketing hip hop culture. Surprizingly it's all the fault of MTV apparently.

Comment by Natalie Davis

Mon, 27 Oct 2003 12:38:53 EST

Well, again, that makes me different from "most people." Which makes me happy. Doesn't end my bewilderment, though.

Comment by debbie

Mon, 27 Oct 2003 11:39:33 EST

Visualsimplicity, I know what you meant. There are differences within each culture, that is what is why "cultural diversity" is a great thing. You get to experience something outside of "your norm". But people tend to gather in groups with like interests or backgrounds. It doesn't have to do with skin color as much as it does with "cultural background". It is intersting that when immigrants move to our country that they tend to move into their own "ethnic communities". Not because they are racist but because they might have friends and relatives living there already. But also because it is comforting to live in a community that has the same values and background that you have. It makes it less ominous to move to a new country and start over. I don't know, maybe we should be celebrating the things that we have in common instead of the differences that we have. Maybe that would help enlighten some people.

Comment by visualsimplicity

Mon, 27 Oct 2003 04:57:46 EST

When I say "similar interest" I don't mean "having the color be the interest." Generally, within certain cultures you are raised a certain way and those certain aspects of each culture allow similar people to come together. For example, from my personal experiences, the way an Asian parent treats their child is some what different from the way, say, a white parent would treat their child. These little differences allow one Asian child to relate more closely to another and much the same for other ethnicity. Regardless, I am not saying that different ethnicities don't intermingle well. I'm sure most Americans can claim they have a rather large differring ethnic network of friends, but their closeknit group of friends most likely are of the same ethnicity.

Comment by BB

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 19:18:06 EST

We pause for station identification. Good grief. Welcome to the dysfunctional family affectionally known as Blogcritics.org. What have I gotten myself into? I think Eric got it right: "Common blood provides a comfort level, and that comfort is not to be denied, but it is also the most atavistic of comforts, that engages nothing more progressive or evolved than our reptile brains." Now if I could only figure out what it means.

Comment by BB

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 19:04:22 EST

Good grief. Welcome to the dysfunctional family affectionally known as Blogcritics.org. What have I gotten myself into? Eric got it right: "Common blood provides a comfort level, and that comfort is not to be denied, but it is also the most atavistic of comforts, that engages nothing more progressive or evolved than our reptile brains." Now if I could only figure out what it actually means.

Comment by Natalie Davis

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 18:43:27 EST

Apologies if this goes through a second time, but I posted and saw the comment go through to the sidebar at right, but it did not appear on this page. Perhaps the MT commenting system is as befuddled by some people's need to segregate as I am. Anyhoo, the comment was: "Common blood"? Last I checked, all blood was the same -- red. I don't doubt that a lot of people group themselves thusly. I just don't understand it, is all, and it is doubtful that I ever will.

Comment by Natalie Davis

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 18:40:11 EST

"Common blood"? Last I checked, all blood was the same -- red. I don't doubt that a lot of people group themselves thusly. I just don't understand it, is all, and it is doubtful that I ever will.

Comment by TDavid

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 17:54:08 EST

Oops my bad, it was Colonel Mustard! I never was good at the game Clue. I probably would suck at Ghettopoly too lol.

Comment by TDavid

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 17:52:42 EST

I heard that Professor Mustard in the study with the candle stick did it -- and some would say he was a racist too. Something about those whiskers ...

Comment by Jim Carruthers

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 17:50:33 EST

Ally Sheedy's dandruff cries for you all. Obviously the chix can't hold their tokes.

Comment by Mac Diva

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 17:46:38 EST

The comparison in regard to motivation is quite apt. Buy yourself a clue, TDavid.

Comment by TDavid

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 17:22:05 EST

Mac Diva - your comparison of this game to lynchings is totally absurd. Nobody is physically being injured here. Your words "blathering on endlessly" are right, you just have the point of view wrong ;) Rattle on your rhetoric, you'll get no more play from me today.

Comment by Eric Olsen

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 17:14:50 EST

Common blood provides a comfort level, and that comfort is not to be denied, but it is also the most atavistic of comforts, that engages nothing more progressive or evolved than our reptile brains.

Comment by Natalie Davis

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 17:07:53 EST

As a humanist, I find the game disgusting. Therefore, I won't buy it and I won't play it. I have nothing against people speaking out about the hideousness of this game. They have that right and perhaps they will convince enlightened humans to avoid it, which could have the pleasing effect of pushing the nasty thing off of the market rapidly. But at the end of the day, it is just a game, and nothing worth bursting a blood vessel over. A lot of vile things exist in this nation and in this world, and many of them are far worse than a stupid game that caters to a horrid trait that taints some of humankind: a few examples would be violence, inequality under civil law, poverty, and corruption in government and business. Time is better spent focusing on those things. As awful as Ghettopoly is, it is just a stupid game. But I must say that all these "lighten up" messages are thoroughly devoid of sensitivity and humanity. You guys are getting muchos prayers tonight. (For the record, I am not a fan of Eddie Murphy's pigmentation humor; my friends who define themselves as Asian hate the game -- an ex of mine, in fact, wants to kick the creator's tuchas; and cliques based on color? Why would melanin level have anything to do with "similar interests" beyond having the color be the interest? Frightening stuff. Oh well, we knew what a sick world this is; this just provides more evidence of it.)

Comment by Mac Diva

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 15:30:14 EST

Just plain wrong, TDavid. The motivation behind a game such as Ghettopoly is the same as the motivation behind a cross-burning -- to dehumanize a group of people. Just entertainment, you say? That is what people said about lynchings. In fact, they were festivals for white people. Folks would gather from miles around, sometimes for days before the grand finale. Entire families would come. There might be music and dancing. The eating was good. Everyone would gather around to watch the torture, hanging and often, burning of the guest of dishonor. People would pay for relics, such as a finger or ear. All in the spirit of just fun, of course. Instead of blathering on endlessly about a topic you obviously know nothing about, I suggest you do some research into African-American history. The public library is a good place to start.

Comment by Jim Carruthers

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 14:10:59 EST

Oh, I love blind items! Of course on the internet nobody knows you are a dog, or a cross-dressing trucker from Oklahoma. So is it true you have a crush on whats-his-face? Inquiring minds want to know.

I expect whats-his-face to say stupid things, so it is easy to ignore him, Eric. I have never read any remarks by the foul-mouthed idiot that made any sense. The guy is an imbecile. Barger is a genius compared to him.

What is missing from all of this is the issue of trademark. That's what Hasbro is suing for. If you don't defend your trademark, you lose it. They don't care about anything else. In other news, Polish Jews have filed an injunction to prevent the schwartz's from using the word "ghetto", and the Geto Boys' Bushwick Bill left a message saying he thought MD was hot.

Comment by TDavid

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 11:42:14 EST

Mac Diva, you never answered my question about Eddie Murphy (#8), which I suppose, was an answer in itself. The point being that if one goes to see a comedian, then the content is pretty much open season! Some comedians will come out into the audience (Buddy Hackett, for example) and intentionally make fun of people in the audience. My perspective is that if I buy a GAME the same "rules" apply. People were also offended by the game Grand Theft Auto. In that you can kill people in terrible ways. There have been lawsuits over that GAME too. Somewhere along the line, someday, the majority of reasonable thinking people need to stand up -- and that's the majority of people of all races, not just white people -- and tell these whiners to stop being so serious. People are losing their jobs over telling jokes, playing games and trying to enjoy life with a little more humor. Studies have proven that happy people live longer than stressed, depressed, angry, etc people. So let's all just look at this for what it really is: a stupid game. Is it really some political statement or way for this guy to get back at the black people? Nobody seriously believes this, do they? Mac Diva, you can't take this game that far, can you? Is it mean-spirited to play a game like Ghettopoly? I don't think so. I think it is just some folks trying to have fun and poke a little humor at obviously overblown stereotypes. If one grows up in a ghetto and has trouble getting out, I can see how he/she might be a little bitter about the experience, but someday he/she is going to have to learn to deal with it and move on or it is going to take years of one's life. We all have bad things that happen to us in life and humor is a great, healthy outlet. If you can't laugh at the face in the mirror, then the problem -- the real problem -- is staring back at you.

Comment by Andy

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 10:19:08 EST

When I lived in the city, I would love how the races intermingled. I remember one summer day, all of a sudden this huge rain storm hit out of nowhere. My roommate and I were on our porch playing guitars, and I swear the whole effin block ran to our porch for shelter. Then it got really funny. 2 drunk hispanics took our guitars and started playing Mexican folk songs...half drunk. We all "tried" to sing a long and had a good time. I reckon there were us whities there, black folk, asians, hispanics.....maybe that was God saying, "Get the hell over it and have a good time!"

Comment by visualsimplicity

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 03:44:43 EST

Hey there we go. Eric nailed it. Asian Americans are being unfairly singled out and I'm voicing my opinion about it. Anyway... "They rightly perceive poor intergroup relations among minorities as a problem." How often do you see a white person, a black person, an asian person, and whatever ethnicity all hanging out in a group together? The most likely scenario is that you'll see a group of all white people, a group of all black people, or a group of all asian people. It's not just a problem with Asian Americans. I am not a racist but my "clique" consists of pretty much Asian people. I'm pretty sure it's the likely scenario for everyone else. I don't believe intergroup relationships are a matter of racism, it's more a matter of similar interests.

Comment by Mac Diva

Sun, 26 Oct 2003 02:25:32 EST

I expect whats-his-face to say stupid things, so it is easy to ignore him, Eric. I have never read any remarks by the foul-mouthed idiot that made any sense. The guy is an imbecile. Barger is a genius compared to him. VS, I disagree -- as do the major Asian-American organizations. They rightly perceive poor intergroup relations among minorities as a problem. If you want to write a blog item exploring the issue feel free to do so. My interest in the case is, of course, partly legal. I am curious to see whether the court will grant Hasbro injunctive relief. The way this knock-off of Monopoly differs from others is that it could cause considerable economic damage to Hasbro by harming its reputation. Persons interested in this area of the law -- which is not a First Amendment issue because the government is not involved -- should also read the citation to Silver Rights above. It is about another aspect of application of economic pressure to impact the conduct of a business. A neo-Confederate businessmen with a long segregationist history is trying to force grocery stores to sell his barbecue sauce after they discontinued doing so because of potential reputational damage. These are companion cases in a way.

Comment by Eric Olsen

Sat, 25 Oct 2003 23:12:57 EDT

From my experience, it is first generation immigrants of whatever ethnicity that tend to be the most prejudiced for the reasons I mentioned. Vis, if you think Asian-Americans have been unfairly singled out, you have every right to say that as well.

Comment by visualsimplicity

Sat, 25 Oct 2003 22:51:56 EDT

Yes, she has a right, but I just think MD is perpetuating a stereotype of Asian Americans, also, by saying that a significant amount are racist just by whatever exposure she has to them, and that by my account is hypocrisy.