Black and White: Why are men stupid?

I stayed in a newspaper free zone for the majority of the weekend, so Monday I was pretty surprised to hear about the Don Imus uproar. Sure it was a stupid and unkind thing to say, I am not sure what is funny about calling articulate women "nappy headed hos", but is it really that surprising that a radio shock jock said something stupid? Plenty of people have made very unfortunate and inappropriate comments before, among them old, white men like Rush Limbaugh and Trent Lott.

People have every right to call for Don Imus' resignation, but I cannot help but wonder if those spearheading these calls have their own agenda to further. Rev. Al Sharpton has made plenty of hurtful comments in the past, not to mention that during the drama of Tawana Brawley, he actually managed to tar and feather a man, for which to this day, he still claims no responsibility. And then there is Jesse Jackson, who has had his own missteps, particularly with regards to slurring Jews.

Now their own transgressions might not even matter if they applied standards more uniformly. Don Imus deserves to be chastised for his racist remarks, but do rappers deserve to be chastised for their misogynist remarks? Or what about ministers, many of them African-American, who consistently preach rather hateful messages directed towards the gays and lesbians?

Personally I think, this might be a good time for everyone from media personalities and musicians to politicians and the general public to exercise a little introspection.