referring to another not-so-long-ago incident where something very similar came up, and I was (WAS) attacked. But that's ok if you weren't here or don't remember.

I am woman, I am strong, and guess what? I voted for Adam Lambert multiple times to win American Idol because I felt he was the most talented and qualified! See, some people really do NOT know anything about me.

LAST EDITED ON 05-19-10 AT 08:12 AM (EST)

Does the "but I have a ___________ friend/relative/contestant I like" really mean a person doesn't have any biases in that direction at all? It never really seems to be an effective argument, but it is a commonly used one.

I will say we are in a mixed environment here. All of us are likely interacting in this diverse community with people we may not have in our social circle.

Certain turns of phrase that many of us may be used to using can be offensive to people you may not be used to interacting with. When it seems to happen more than once, it does tend to give off a certain impression.

That being said if you interact on line long enough you will eventually offend someone. IMO that means two choices (and this is a case where people have a choice, and I'll post the ends of the spectrum).

1. Assume all the _____________ are just oversensitive whiny babies and choose to not change anything about yourself, after all you might just be better than them, anyway.

2. Decide that you will look at how you type and if that comes off in a way you didn't intend and try to make it up to those that were hurt by your words (even if that wasn't the point you were trying to make).

Anyway, I don't assume the cowboys never met someone like the brothers (and visa versa) whatever criteria anyone wants to use to say they are sooooo different.

To show my bias, I think it is a testosterone thing and both teams have a competitive streak in them. I expect there will be a few incidents along the way. It is the nature of the hormones and what happens when something pretty big is at stake. Heck I've seen guys do worse over who gets the last rib at a BBQ.

ITA, Snidget! Good points, and as far as I'M concerned, case closed...

I'm a bit confused at the turn of this thread (it could be the vodka cranberries though ;) ) but as an African American woman, bigotry doesn't surprise me. And the old "some of my best friends are _______" doesn't mean squat. People make exceptions, at least on the surface, for people that they deem safe; or safe until they mess up and land back in the crap pile with the rest of their group.
I don't know why TAR is edited the way that it is but I wouldn't be shocked if a southern/mid western rural man was homophobic. I wouldn't like it but I wouldn't be shocked. On the other hand, I've known unlikely people to be very tolerant and accepting of diverse groups.
Having said that, I found a lot of the teams on this cycle to be somewhat unlikeable for various reasons. At the end of it, the show is about ratings and we should remember that.
Even though I didn't really like Dan & Jordan for a lot of the race, at the end I was happy for them because they were fans just like me and it affirmed that any of us could win TAR too.

bigotry doesn't surprise me

I also thought it was interesting that so many people were surprised. While it would not be fair for anybody to expect the cowboys to have problems with gay people, I do not understand being surprised that they do.

And the old "some of my best friends are _______" doesn't mean squat.

It's the oldest fallback in the book, a trick bigots and ingorant people use to make themselves feel better about themselves. It really doesn't mean squat. If anything, they are worse than regular bigots - at least regular, standard-issue bigots are honest. Honest a-holes, but honest nonetheless.

That said, some of my best friends are stupid people.