People are definitely influenced by their past experiences.........

Often, even if nothing untoward occurred to them, they are a product of their generation or their parents' own prejudice toward other races......

WE had neighbors (now deceased) who were like the man you describe.
Otherwise, they would do anything for any neighbor and had hearts of gold. They had been born and bred in Vermont which used to be the whitest state in the nation.....our town was mostly Irish and English and then the French Canadians........

They were obviously prejudiced because they hadn't been exposed to much other than an insulated very small town..........where people worked and rarely left the town......until we people from N.J. and L.I. N.Y. started moving up to Vermont.....in the early'70s (after the hippy invasion of the back to the land movement......the flower children and earth people).

Once, when we had come back from two weeks in Florida (younger, in our 30s) my husband had been doing some yard work and was sitting to rest at the back picnic table.........our above mentioned neighbor, with the heart of gold, called me on the phone to tell me "Oh.......oh.....you better look out your back window........there is a big black man sitting on your picnic table). It was my Polish husband with a dark "tan" from Florida.
That's when we used to sunbathe.......ha ha.

I knew he didn't mean any harm.........it was just his generation.

Our N.J. cousin had been "beat up by black kids while a teenager in high school" and up until his own daughter's wedding several years ago, had a terrible prejudice because of his experience as a kid............then, he had to tell off his own mother and mother in law who hadn't been warned that the bridal party (all friends of the Swedish German groom) were going to be the ushers and bridesmaids.......the guys from his basketball team in North Carolina.........) The two grandmas were not mannerly shall we say when they saw everyone walking down the aisle......but loudly vocal.

So, it isn't just Paula Deen.........it's generational. They are dead now.

Our cousin had a change of heart when , after a long time coming, he realized they were really good friends to the couple.....and nice folks.

His wife changed her biased ways after getting a job in a community college where the majority are recent immigrants.......from all over.
Again, state of New Jersey. Had been raised in insulated, isolated Polish Catholic school through high school and neighborhood.

The key phrase in your 'argument' was proved innocent. Those boys were innocent and said so before, during and after the investigation. These were Paula's own admissions not some possible charge against her. If you're in the spotlight and reap the rewards of same then you are subject to higher scrutiny and pay a deeper price than us average folk.

Thank you so much. Most folks opinions of my posts have about the same significance as a fart in a tornado; however, I have always appreciated your views and posts. :beer3:

Just googled the transcript of her deposition and read the entire thing. I needed to do this in order to form an unbiased opinion. Paula has no idea that what she said is so wrong on many levels. These feelings are so entrenched in her that she does not see that there is a major problem/flaw in her thinking.

I agree with you; however, please consider where she came from and where she is today. I feel confident she regrets some choices in her past yet, is sincere in her intent to improve. I can witness how hard it is to go against upbringing and your family comfort zone. I would embrace her journey before that of someone who would say they never had a racist thought.

But her brother's "plantation" wedding is not so far into the past. She defines the waiters that she saw in the other restaurant as "fine, middle-aged gentlemen" which, to me, indicates that they are fine because they"know their place." How could she possibly know anything about them by just seeing them in their place of employment? And she excuses her use of the "N" word many years ago by saying that she had been held up in the bank. A thug is a thug is a thug no matter what their skin color, yet she felt the need to define them in that manner.
I am not a young person any longer and certainly knew my parents feelings very quickly when it came to the races. Yet I was able to reject their feelings on this matter when, one Sunday, a black family joined our church and everyone was up in arms about it. The attitude just never seemed very "christian" to me even as as a youngster.
And, no, I don't tell racial or sexist jokes about anyone as it is too easy to turn the tables and have things become ugly very fast.

She called her black busboys "My little monkey's" and said she likes to keep the "light skinned negroes in the front with the customers and the darker ones in the back" according to the NAACP lawsuit.

Wow...no wonder she's toast!

And you believe everything the naacp says?

Well gee ... Why would the woman apologize? Do you believe every apology people make? There is plenty of smoke and fire here.

AND...she says she thought it was OK to tell racists jokes because most jokes are about blacks, Jews or rednecks. Later she added Mexicans and someone else (?). Piece of work....can't blame that on her southern heritage and upbringing.

I agree. She's 66, maybe she should just retire and consider moving to the villages!

and open a restaurant !!! yea

Actually, no, I don't

That allows dogs on the patio. :pepper2::evil6::popcorn:

There is a little bit of bad in the best of us and a little bit of good in the worst of us.


There are degrees of bad and good.

There is wrong and REALLY wrong. There used to be mortal and venial sin when we micks were younger, I mean Catholics.

Old habits die hard.

None of us KNOW her, she may be just not terribly umm sophisticated or she may be mean as a snake.

Hopefully, we are all changing and growing and learning over time. Hopefully.

Maybe I can learn something from this mess.