I'd like to say, first, how pleased I am that someone wrote a hub on this hate crimes bill, and that what he said was so contrary to my beliefs and to most people in a supposedly civilized culture. It gives me, as a 52-year-old Black man, the opportunity to voice my opposition to far too many of today's young African-Americans.

First off, I would like to mention the writer of the hub by nick name. He calls himself "coolbreezing." This is a "man of color" who seems to think that whites should feel just as entitled as "people of color" to refer to or even address a Black as a nigger. In regards to the latter, they are, at least, of the belief that, being of the same race, makes it palatable, maybe even funny, that it gives it a certain irony. But in regards to the former, what would be accomplished by condoning racial slurs, and yes if we are talking about freedom of expression, we should be looking at that question. If not we will just have the kind of society that "coolbreezing" doesn't mind being a part of, a multicultural one where individuals are not averse to belting out racial slurs to fellow citizens, I would guess at a stop light, the drop of a hat.

I'd also like to congratulate this "coolbreezing" for being one of those rarest of "brothers" who has achieved such a thick skin that he can look at things with such a keen and objective viewpoint, a viewpoint superior to that of, oh say, the women's basketball team we all recall, that another thick skinned person, a shock jock referred to on national television as "nappy headed hos." I bet a nice, thick skinned "brother" like you got a real kick out of that one. Didn't you?

Before I continue, coolbreezing, the word, as an insult, does not apply to whites, regardless of how much you choose to believe all Americans have in common. If you think it applies to them, why don't we do this, put a group of whites in an auditorium with, oh, say, just off the top of my head, a Sen Boehner on stage calling them all, just in passing, a great, big bunch of niggers, and see what kind of a response you'd get. Now replace them with a group of Blacks. See what kind of a response you'd get, then, coolbreezing. Oh, if only all of us Blacks were all like you, what a better world it would be.

Well, actually, no. It wouldn't make the world a better place. It brings to mind the jurnior high school bully who starts calling the skinny kid a stupid whimp and whatever else came to mind, then when the kid doesn't respond with so much as another insult, on comes the head slaps. And they hurt.

Do you get what I mean? Maybe you were lucky enough to be the bully, or had better defensive skills, but a person has a right to defend his dignity. The historical implications of the word, aside, we live, in the present, in a society where dignity has to be protected. This, more than anything else, makes you an equal. If, even a bum on the streets prefers to be called something other than a bum on the street, would you call him that anyway. It's so elementary, coolbreezing.

But, than, maybe considering the influence of the pop culture on young people and people of color today, it shouldn't be so surprising. Your remarks scream Chris Rock, NWA, Quentin Tarentino movies. Well, that's Hollywood, coolbreezing. Hollywood has no interest in enlightenment, in advancing society or anything other than making money with as simple a formula as possible. If we've developed a people who will fall for that formula every time, then the progress of our people as a community will remain stagnant and Hollywood will have it's steady stream of consumers of poison. Hollywood will have done their job. Just like the job they've done on you.

But there's something in your words that I find even more shocking and more offensive, and I don't think it's something so few can relate to, but ideas like this should not be the result of an integrated society. And yes, I think that we, as Blacks, should always and forever consider what price we are willing to pay for acceptance. It shouldn't be considered old hat, just because a few "people of color," like you concider yourselves "to contemporary" "to sophisticated" to be offended by age old epithet. First off, you aren't so new and refreashing. There have always been those who could let it run off their backs. But even they weren't blind to the implications of it. Even they knew that it was one indication that the fight will more than likely never be over. Why; because of human frailties. Is it possible that people of color, like you, are so afraid of those human frailties that you choose to believe that they don't exist? If you believe they don't exist, then you can believe, also, that the fight is over, that the election of a President Obama means that we, us old fashion blacks, (or maybe coolbreeze would prefer that people call me an old fashion coon) were wrong all along. We just didn't understand the world like Barack.

Now, there were several points coolbreezing made that struck me as odd in his hub. But the oddest thing is that he would focus on how freedom of speech related to the question of whether whites should feel free to call Blacks niggers. After all, those debating the bill were most concerned that it would "pave the way for religious persecution." The articles I read on it didn't make a mention of the word nigger. So why such a weird take on the issue from you, coolbreezing?

Judging from a comment on the blog that coolbreeze was so on the money, something I could go on and on about, it seems obvious why. It goes back to a deluded notion offered us in our on going need for acceptance. It goes to the phrase the politicians and politicos love using to describe America, as this "great melting pot." And I ask you, as a Black man, why is it that the rest of American society, having examined the phrase, "melting pot," understand the less than desirable implications of the word? Why, when in even the text books, "the melting pot" phrase is seen as a term meant to discourage cultural identity, we people of color, Blacks, African-Americans, Negroes, what have you, refuse to see America for the tossed salad that it truly is? In other words, what I'm getting at is that coolbreezing is so bent on applause, on approval, not unlike far too many of us, especially in the public arena, that he immediately latched onto a word commonly accepted among gangsta rap enthusiasts, or fans of certain Black comics and just like these twisted social freak decided to rally around it, to celebrate it, call it freedom of expression. But then aren't we easily encouraged by the media's Wayans Brothers, gangsta rap stars, that other money grubbing Uncle Tom comic who dresses up like a pimp on stage. I can't think of his name, right now. Not a huge fan of him, either.

Anyway, coolbreeze, I'm now going over your work, and I see that you really didn't put much thought into it. But, now, the question is, how much thought do you put into your conversation? I'd just love to be a fly on the wall hearing a conversation between you and, well, I would imagine, a some white woman with a really kick-ass body, you know like on Prince videos or something. I know she'd just be looking at you in awe of your open mindedness, being a brother who doesn't mind white folk calling us all these racial slurs. How progressive you'd sound.

But it's the kind of progress we can do without. Please, stay out of politics. I beg you.

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