Sean P. Diddy Combs speaks out against John McCain over his choice of Sarah Palin.
If anyone can make sense of this video to me or explain to me what he's saying in simple english I'd be very grateful.
God help us if everyone votes for Obama based on only what this extremely wise and brilliant man has to say. It is scary that so many people will end up listening to this man and Oprah.
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I'll confess to not understanding your confusion -- Mr. Combs (as the NYT would insist I write) may not be among our most eloquent analysts of contemporary politics, and his camera work could use some help, perhaps, but his complaint has been fairly common on television, radio, an online over the past few days.
But you raise an interesting question: how do people make decisions about whom to vote for? which are the most influential voices in that decision? and, stepping back for a normative question, who should they depend upon for information or for what we political scientists call "cues"?
You, clearly, seem to think that neither Combs nor Winfrey is an opinion that should have weight. Why is that? And who should, then, be influential?
Upon reflection, I want to push back on this even a bit more forcefully, and ask Daniel or others to reflect on how he/they would make distinctions about what are/should be "legitimate" political voices. . .
Combs and, especially, Winfrey are enormously successful business people, for example. Now, that doesn't mean that they know anything about politics, of course, but it doesn't mean that they don't know anything, either.
We all depend upon cues that help us make sense of the world. Some of them are family, friends, teachers, or religious leaders; others are notables whom we admire or respect, and who we think might share a worldview. Which of them should we trust? And won't they be different for different people? Combs doesn't seem to speak to Daniel, but surely that shouldn't mean that he can't be an effective voice to and for others. This is, in truth, a hard question, but it's worth chewing over.
There's some subtext here (and it is probably not intended), and I think it's worth making it actual text: I won't suggest that our class is entirely homogenous, but it's more homogenous than most any other college classroom in NYC: all of you are male, and most of you share traits along class, religious, and racial dimensions. Or, to put it more plainly, there's not a single black man (or woman) in the class, yet for the first time in US history a black man is a serious contender for the presidency. We should be *conscious* of that fact, and periodically ask ourselves how that affects our thinking, if it does so at all, of course. . . . .
First off I just wish i understood what "buggin' out" means, which Combs uses many times in the video. I do understand that "experts" aren't always the best people to turn to for their opinion, however I don't believe that people such as Combs (who didn't graduate from college and barely speaks in complete sentences) and Oprah should get automatic recognition from anyone just because they are celebrities. To take that one step further, African Americans shouldn't just listen to the two of them simply because they themselves are African American. Furthermore, although i do recognize that we do not have a diverse group in our class, that doesn't mean that we share any of the same views. My personal belief is that we should all try to accumulate as much knowledge from a wide variety of sources in order to form our own opinions, because it is the opportunity to freely form our opportunities and express them that makes this country so amazing.
Daniel, would you suggest that because Bill Gates didn't graduate from college that his opinion should be undervalued? Sean Combs has an impressive resume (http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2002/black.history/stories/22.combs/index.html), even though he dropped out of college midway through. (Btw: He dropped out for the same reason Gates dropped out - his career was taking off.)
Also, re: Combs' manners of speaking, I suggest you read the David Foster Wallace article, Tense Present (http://instruct.westvalley.edu/lafave/DFW_present_tense.html). I think you might discover and learn a lot from it.
As far as the term 'buggin' out,' you can find a variety of definitions here: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=buggin+out. In general, Urbandictionary is a great resource for finding the meaning of colloquialisms and slang that you yourself might not know.
For comparison, though, imagine if someone watched a Rosh Yeshiva speak and use a particular piece of Yeshivish and Yeshivish cadences in his tone. One would think he was uneducated and speaking in poor English. But you, Daniel, would just say that he's using a different dialect. I'd like to suggest that you have biases about black culture and black dialects that you might not even be aware of.
(Slight edits made.)
First off I don't think you (Mordy) want to challenge me on my knowledge of black culture seeing as some of my closest friends are from the "hood," I've been to neighborhoods and projects like Bedford Stuyvesant and I would say I know more about hip-hop music then you probably know about anything, and I doubt you have the friends I do or know what I know. On that know I don't need an Urban Dictionary to tell me what things mean (I do know what "buggin' out" literally means), however I don't see why Mr. Combs has to use the language he does in his political commentary. Third, I don't think that Mr. Combs is unqualified to make political commentary or influence others because he didn't go to college, but rather because I don't think he has the knowledge to make an "educated" decision on his own beliefs. Furthermore, based on what I have heard him say and read about his beliefs he is simply supporting Mr. Obama because he is African American (which I believe Oprah is doing as well), and this one fact about Mr. Obama's background does not automatically make him qualified to be the next President. Fourth, I'm glad you edited out some of your post because you know as well as I do that our university is the WORST place to learn about diversity and culture. Lastly, there's a reason I chose to learn from the rabbis that I do and that is because they are well educated and well rounded in their knowledge and hopefully wouldn't be the kind of people who would try to use their position of power to convince people to believe a specific way, especially about issues such as voting.
I'm not going to deal with your entire post at this moment (though you should know that you sound very defensive - and trying to justify your opinions based on your knowledge of hip-hop, especially when arguing with a professional music critic, is probably a bad idea).
But I'd like to point out your comment earlier: "First off I just wish i understood what "buggin' out" means, which Combs uses many times in the video." After reading your last post, I now know you meant this disingenuously. You weren't actually asking what "buggin' out" means. You were clearly trying to make a different point. That different point, in the future, is the one you should make. As a reader, I can only respond to what you write.
Well Mordy you seem to know everything (maybe next time we see each other you can tell me maybe the names of 5 hip-hop artists and one sound they each sing), I would only like to point out to you that sarcasm is a tool used often in the media.
Additionally, maybe you are trying very hard to get an A, but you can also respond to comments on your posts and maybe even say something substantial that isn't attacking of others like all of your comments seem to be (that was just a friendly piece of advice).
I'll give you my five favorite hip-hop songs this year alone (according to my iTunes most played list):
Erykah Badu - The Healer/Hip-Hop
Jean Grae - The Time Is Now
Lil' Wayne - Mr. Carter
Nas - N.I.G.G.E.R. (Slave + Master)
and tho it's from last year, the entire Hyphy Hitz album, especially Stewie.
Additionally, maybe you are trying very hard to get an A, but you can also respond to comments on your posts and maybe even say something substantial that isn't attacking of others like all of your comments seem to be (that was just a friendly piece of advice).
I don't know what this means. Are you saying that I haven't written anything substantial in my blog? Are you saying that I haven't responded to comments on my post? I think every comment you've left on a post of mine I've responded to. Am I wrong?
Mordy-
Definitely some solid choices but a little to new school for my taste. Nevertheless, I am not simply attacking you, although you seem to be getting very defensive, however I must say that you seem to be very attacking not only to me but others as well. I'm not saying that there's anything wrong with that, just making an observation and your defensive stance about my comment seems a little like it is coming from an insecure and guilty conscience.
Okay, take a breath, please. This is a hard conversation to have, and I'm glad to see you having it. You should feel free to disagree, but let's work even harder to ensure that it doesn't become snarky, personal, or intemperate. That's not always easy, especially online when tone can be so hard to convey accuaretly, and when it can be so easy to misunderstand someone's meaning. Feel free to continue this conversation, but be more conscious of being respectful and even gracious. That's for everyone, btw.
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