# Regarding: Homer, a racist or not ? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 5, 1999, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983 "1999-11-05T01:01:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Homer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/df788c/32.png) [@Homer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homer)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 1999, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/41 "1999-11-08T03:52:00Z")
If some black guy wants to make the drive down here, hell, go ahead. There’s none of them living within twenty miles! I’m just kidding, people. But there really isn’t hardly anyone who’s NOT white around here. Oh, and Byz, you assume my stereo is one of those pathetic machinations with the bass amped at 100hz, leaving it boomy and ill defined. Not at all. My air conditioning is broken, so my windows are rolled down 24/7 in nice weather. What they were hearing is my crystal-clear music leaking from my windows. Not that God-awful boomy bass. Oh, and UncleBeer, I know it was someone who’d seen and heard me because I drive a dark blue 1987 Escort GT with oxidizing paint and a front end cover. Not a nice looking car, I assure you. Not a car you’d walk past and say “Hey, Jimmie, shine the light this way. I bet this ol’ boy’s got himself a system!” –Tim * * * We are the children of the Eighties. We are not the first “lost generation” nor today’s lost generation; in fact, we think we know just where we stand - or are discovering it as we speak. ---
**Author:** ![Homer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/df788c/32.png) [@Homer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homer)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 1999, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/42 "1999-11-08T03:59:00Z")
Lastly (I hope), Bubba, I think YOU need therapy, not me. You have some real anger issues, and trouble dealing with alternate viewpoints. Did you beat up people in elementary school for not wearing the right shirts? All you’ve had to say about this is “He’s bad. Ban the bastard!” If you want me to respect you or value your opinions about me or anything else, ya gotta gimme more to work with than that. Don’t be such a reactionist. Also, you may have some raciphobia. Like homophobia, only different. You fear racism because you yourself are racist. You try to bury it and deny it by crucifying anyone who exhibits the symptoms, but all you’re doing is denying yourself. You’re the Jerry Falwell of racism! –Tim * * * We are the children of the Eighties. We are not the first “lost generation” nor today’s lost generation; in fact, we think we know just where we stand - or are discovering it as we speak. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f8ce5/32.png) [@The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Peyote_Coyote)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 1999, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/43 "1999-11-08T04:03:00Z")
Homer,I think reactionary is the word you want. * * * Armed, dangerous and off my medication. ---
**Author:** ![Girl\_Next\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@Girl\_Next\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Girl_Next_Door)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 1999, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/44 "1999-11-08T05:17:00Z")
Ha, the Jerry Falwell of racism, that’s rich. Raciphobia. Fear of racists? Hell, sign me up. It’s not the guys in the white sheets who scare me, though. It’s lily white frat boys who live in the corn belt and wouldn’t know multicultrualism if it bit 'em in the ass. Homer, you are too much. And so are the rest of you who are trying to play nice with this ignorant little turd. * * * Leslie Irish Evans [http://leslie.scrappy.net](http://leslie.scrappy.net) ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 1999, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/45 "1999-11-08T12:29:00Z")
Sorry, Homer. It still doesn’t wash. You **assume** it was someone from that specific apartment complex. You don’t **know** anything and won’t unless you catch them red-handed. * * * **Dopeler effect:** The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they come at you rapidly. ---
**Author:** ![VegForLife](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/9de0a6/32.png) [@VegForLife](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VegForLife)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 1999, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/46 "1999-11-09T06:39:00Z")
> [@](#): > > I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt, and hope he owned up to these statements as mistakes and clear everything up. A noble path, Pat. But don’t you think that he’s failed the “owned up to these statements as mistakes” part of the test? We’ve seen a half-assed apology, in which he copped only to the semblance of racism, without ever indicating that he believed his remarks to _be_ racist, regardless of his actual feelings. This was followed by some more invective, and, finally, lots of background to help us understand where he’s coming from. He signs his posts “Tim,” but I wouldn’t be surprised if his name is actually Andy Sipowicz. And while I think the character that Dennis Franz plays is basically a “good” person, I have no problem calling him a racist. From Rousseau: > [@](#): > > The point is, having prejudiced feelings about one group does not qualify someone as a “racist.” This may be correct from a technical, “dictionary” standpoint, since racism concerns the inherent superiority of **one** race. However, in the real-world, I think the implication of the inferiority of one race is almost indistinguishable from the implication of the superiority of one race on the hate-o-meter. Rich ---
**Author:** ![Coldfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@Coldfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coldfire)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 1999, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/47 "1999-11-08T23:45:00Z")
Well spoken Rich. No point in getting in to language semantics debates here: if it walks like a duck… Homer, the verdict seems quite clear from this thread. One important sentiment that strikes me though, is that most people more or less state that they’re quite forgiving and evn understand a slightly racist outburst of rage - if you would AT LEAST acknowledge the fact that the statements in question were indeed racist, even if they weren’t MEANT to be so at the time. Of course, such an acknowledgement would place your credibility in an entirely different light. But I’m sure I don’t need to explain that to you - you seem like quite a smart lad otherwise. ## Guess the ball’s in your court. Coldfire * * * “You know how complex women are” - Neil Peart, Rush (1993) ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 1999, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/48 "1999-11-09T01:39:00Z")
Darn right, Homer is a racist. I mean, have you read _The Iliad_?! He represented each and every Trojan as a snivelling coward who went around stealing women at night. Oh, wait, you didn’t mean _that_ Homer… ---
**Author:** ![Homer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/df788c/32.png) [@Homer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homer)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 1999, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/49 "1999-11-10T06:50:00Z")
Yeah, what I said was racist. There. Are you guys happy? I’m not being a smart ass. I’m admitting it. It was fucking racist, and I’m not denying it. I never was. I was denying that _I_ was a racist. But yeah, the comments definately were. They were written to be inflammatory. But not quite as inflammatory as they were. They were taken wrong. They weren’t meant to be interpreted as they were. They were written to make you feel the same kind of disgust (for the person, people, for the person!) and rage as I felt. And people, I’m not trying to cover my ass. I’m really not. To be perfectly honest, this is a message board, for fuck’s sake. You can think I’m racist if you want, or you can think I’m not. It has no bearing on my life. “Girl Next Door”, you can slander me all you want. I know who I am, what I believe, and where I’ve been, and the damn facts are, you don’t. You cannot judge me, because you don’t know me. You are not me. You’ve not experienced what I have, and you’ve not lived my damn life. I just don’t care. I never have. Call me a lily white boy. You think I’m insulted by your mentioning my skin color? HELL NO! I’m fucking proud of my color. Why shouldn’t I be?! I’m from the corn belt? FUCK YEAH! We own pigs, cows, chickens, and sheep for Christ’s sake. Most of my friends hunt! With bows!! So what? You think I don’t know cultural diversity? Sorry. I don’t live in New York. I don’t live in LA. I’m sorry I’m not as good or perfect as you INHERENTLY are, as good as your city, or place of birth makes you. Who gives a fuck where you live? That doesn’t make you better than me. The fact that you ride the bus with an Arab named Shammel every day doesn’t matter. My brother’s been dating a thai girl for four years. She escaped sexual slavery in thailand to come live here. Who cares? Shit, people. We’re all flesh and blood. You can fake, you can act, but you’re no better than me, just as I’m no better than you. You people can all think of me as you want. I find it irritating when people make claims about myself that aren’t true, that’s all. And that’s all it ever was. I’m not accountable to anyone here for anything. Neither is anyone else here (except maybe Satan to heatherlee, but that’s a different story). To anyone who’s said they like me, thank you. To anyone who’s said they think I’m intelligent, thank you. But to whoever has slandered me, spoken ill of me, called me a racist, or somehow implied that they were in some small way a better person than I simply because I spoke how I felt at the time, and didn’t try to sugar coat it or hide my feelings, stick a candle up your ass. You’re just sad. –Andy Sipowicz * * * We are the children of the Eighties. We are not the first “lost generation” nor today’s lost generation; in fact, we think we know just where we stand - or are discovering it as we speak. ---
**Author:** ![Homer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/df788c/32.png) [@Homer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homer)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 1999, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/50 "1999-11-10T06:52:00Z")
Oh, and Homer’s character was Odysseus, and he was Greek, not Trojan. Trojans were turkish, I believe. –Tim ---
**Author:** ![pldennison](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc29f/32.png) [@pldennison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pldennison)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 1999, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/51 "1999-11-10T13:22:00Z")
> [@](#): > > But yeah, the comments definately were. They were written to be inflammatory. But not quite as inflammatory as they were. They were taken wrong. They weren’t meant to be interpreted as they were. They were written to make you feel the same kind of disgust (for the person, people, for the person!) and rage as I felt. If they were meant to apply “to the person,” why would you hate all Mexicans from that housing project whether they stole your stereo or not? Oh, BTW, your devout Christianity is showing in that last post of yours. ---
**Author:** ![Coldfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@Coldfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coldfire)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 1999, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/52 "1999-11-10T13:56:00Z")
… and Homer, you might want to look up when Turkey as a country and people first came into existence. It’s a bit later that the Trojan war, I’m afraid. Which leads is to the conclusion that you named yourself after a cartoon character 😉 Otherwise, the matter is over and done with. You’ve stated your remarks were indeed racist, and were never meant to come across so violently as they did. I believe you. I also believe, though you never really said this, that you will think twice about venting your anger in that manner. On this message board, and I hope in real life, too. ## Thanks for recognizing the facts, Homer. If it makes any difference, that DOES make you a better man than you seemed before. Coldfire * * * “You know how complex women are” - Neil Peart, Rush (1993) ---
**Author:** ![VegForLife](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/9de0a6/32.png) [@VegForLife](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VegForLife)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 1999, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/53 "1999-11-10T17:26:00Z")
> [@](#): > > They were written to be inflammatory. But not quite as inflammatory as they were. They were taken wrong. Once again blaming the reader. You may have convinced Coldfire of something, but I remain unconvinced. But whatever. You ostensibly don’t care about my opinion (though your “It has no bearing on my life” and “stick a candle up your ass” are the tiniest bit contradictory), and I don’t much care about yours. Rich ---
**Author:** ![Rousseau](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Rousseau](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rousseau)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 1999, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/54 "1999-11-11T02:01:00Z")
I would like to formally retract my last post. ## Homer most certainly is racist. The IQ of a group is equal to the IQ of the dumbest member divided by the number of people in the group. ---
**Author:** ![Homer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/df788c/32.png) [@Homer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homer)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 1999, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/55 "1999-11-11T05:37:00Z")
Thank you, Rousseau, I appreciate it. Anyway, I was referring to the region, Troy is in what is now Turkey, so I would _assume_ that the inhabitants were what we now call Turks. Although, many peoples have been displaced and have migrated over time, so I may be wrong. I dunno. And yes, I was named after a cartoon character. Although, so far this semester, I’ve read the Odyssey twice and written four papers on it (three being about my assertations that book 24 was not written by Homer, that the Iliad and Odyssey were supposed to be a trilogy, etc, etc. If anyone wishes me to share in detail, do ask.) –Tim Grand Dragon, Missouri Chapter ---
**Author:** ![Spiritus\_Mundi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c68b51/32.png) [@Spiritus\_Mundi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiritus_Mundi)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 1999, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/56 "1999-11-11T06:42:00Z")
> [@](#): > > I would like to formally retract my last post. > Homer most certainly is racist. > [@](#): > > Thank you, Rousseau, I appreciate it. And proud of it? Or should we start a “Y Kant Homer read” thread. Oh, and while I’m here. Saying, “Homer’s character was Oddyseus” is kind of like saying “Tolkien’s character was Bilbo Baggins.” * * * - The best lack all conviction The worst are full of passionate intensity. \* ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 1999, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/57 "1999-11-12T23:33:00Z")
Especially since, in _The Iliad_, Odysseus was a rather minor character. _The Iliad_ was mostly about Achilles, Hector, Agamemnon, and that self-deprecating Helen. ---
**Author:** ![Lawrence](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/2bfe46/32.png) [@Lawrence](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lawrence)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 1999, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/58 "1999-11-14T03:50:00Z")
Man, Homer is trolling you guys big-time. I bet Homer isn’t his only sig, either. ---
**Author:** ![Therealbubba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/db5fbb/32.png) [@Therealbubba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Therealbubba)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 1999, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/59 "1999-11-14T14:12:00Z")
> [@](#): > > We have one basic rule: Don’t be a jerk. > Considering the real-time nature of this bulletin board and the volume of messages received, it is impossible for us to verify the information posted. We do not vouch for or warrant the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any message, and are not responsible for the contents of any message. Users should be particularly wary of medical, legal or other professional advice posted on the message boards and recognize that it is no substitute for in-person consultation with a competent professional. The messages express the views of the author of the message, not necessarily the views of the Chicago Reader, Inc., or any entity associated with it. > > Any user who feels that a posted message is objectionable should contact us immediately by E-mail. We have the ability to remove objectionable messages and will make every effort to do so, within a reasonable time, if we determine that removal is necessary. This is a manual process, however, so please realize that we may not be able to remove or edit particular messages immediately. > > You agree, through your use of this service, that you will not use this BB to post any material which is knowingly false and/or defamatory, inaccurate, abusive, vulgar, hateful, harassing, obscene, profane, threatening, invasive of a person’s privacy, or otherwise violative of any law. You agree not to post any copyrighted material unless the copyright is owned by you or by this BB. You agree to abide by the wishes of the board moderators in interpreting and enforcing these rules. Refusal to cooperate with board moderators or to abide by these rules is grounds for revocation of your posting privileges. > > Religious proselytizing (“witnessing”) and religious discussions generally (other than strictly factual inquiries) should be confined to the Great Debates forum. Proselytizing in other forums will be deleted. In the Great Debates forum, proselytizing should be limited to threads started for that purpose or to which a discussion of religion and related matters has some relevance. Proselytizing inserted into inappropriate threads will be deleted. > > We reserve the right to delete any message for any or no reason whatsoever. You remain solely responsible for the content of your messages, and you agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Chicago Reader, Inc. (the operator of this BB), Madrona Park, Inc. (the makers of the bulletin board software), and their agents with respect to any claim based upon transmission of your message(s). > > The Chicago Reader, Inc., also reserves the right to reveal your identity (or whatever information we know about you) in the event of a complaint or legal action arising from any message posted by you. > > Advertisements, chain letters, pyramid schemes, and solicitations are not permitted on this BB and will be deleted. We will notify the Internet service provider of any party posting objectionable messages. > > By posting on this board you grant the Chicago Reader, Inc., a nonexclusive irrevocable right to reuse your posting in any manner it sees fit without notice or compensation to you. > > One last thing. This message board allows us to selectively ban individual users, and to delete all postings by a particular screen name in a single operation. 'Nuff said. Those are the rules. C3 got banned. Homer didn’t. Selective enforcement to the max. Therealbubba ---
**Author:** ![Doobieous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/da6949/32.png) [@Doobieous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doobieous)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 1999, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983/60 "1999-11-16T01:09:00Z")
It’s a very dangerous thing to say things out of rage, especially in places where what you say can be scrutinized. Maybe now homer, you will think twice before posting something out of rage? For everyone else, calm down and think for a while before you say something, you may save yourself a lot of grief. Watch what you say when you are in a rage, it may just come back to bite you in the ass as did this post to the OP. Anyway, as for me, I couldn’t hold a grudge like that to anyone. I would of course be angry at the moment, but it would pass. Probably part of the reason I’ve never been in a fight. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/regarding-homer-a-racist-or-not/2983.md?page=4)