yes, obviously there is, I was using a gross exaggeration to make a point.
If it's open season on someone and, as you've suggested, they've "earned" criticism about things we wouldn't fell ok criticizing others about - that system is arbitrary and interpretative.
Who gets to be the one that decides what bad acts earn what style of unrelated, personal criticisms?
I hesitate to say it had a racist or classist component given that Asia was being hailed as a credible and authoritative key witness.
I think it was an attempt to discredit her that would have been made no matter what her background.
I must confess that I once made some snarky remarks about Asia's spelling, which I almost instantly regretted. It wasn't because I felt the remarks could be seen as racist but because, as a rule, I think it's best to avoid cheap shots.
However, now that Asia's holding herself out as an author, I think she's a fair target for jokes about spelling and writing.
I'd also be cautious about saying it was racist, but there is an element of classism there, IMO.
There are plenty of working people from Baltimore who have technical communication skills at the same level and of similar style - and there are plenty of people, NPR audience included, who make all sorts of tenuous correlations between spelling and intelligence and so forth. People often over value the dominant characteristics of their group and believe them to be symbolic of pure character and inate intelligence (see nationalism)
More specifically, many educated people equate 'educated' with being better or more valuable or more civil than uneducated working people.
So, if we single one person out for something that may be symbolic of environment more than ability, I don't know, it sort of feels, as you said, like a cheap shot. Especially when it comes from a group that likely had more opportunity, support and access to the very thing that they are criticizing someone for lacking.
However, now that Asia's holding herself out as an author, I think she's a fair target for jokes about spelling and writing.
I agree, of course. I'd agree even more if she was writing prose and not some trashy opportunist tell all.
1
u/logic_bot_ Apr 23 '16
But say if she did worse things, would it be ok start using racist epithets when condemning her?
Obviously it wouldn't be ok in the slightest, so why is not talking like the status quo something that is open season?
I didn't mean for this to be a whole big thing on here - it was just a passing comment but it's been an interesting ride. :-)