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  1. Newman is offline
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    Joined: Jun 2007 Location: Dallas Texas Posts: 1,162
    06-18-2008, 10:38 AM #1

    Racism at it's best

    Racism is a thing of the past, or is it? When looking at the Sirius/XM Merger, it appears that racism is front and center, but in reverse. According to an article in the Washington Post, the Congressional Black Caucus is criticizing the recommendation of Chairman Kevin Martin and the concessions outlined by Sirius and XM. Representative Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.) said yesterday that he was "extremely upset" and would speak to his colleagues about taking action to stop the merger unless the percentage was increased, perhaps legislative action.
    Rep. G.K. Butterfield (D-N.C.) also called the concessions "completely unacceptable" and said that they would be meeting personally with Nate Davis (CEO of XM) and other top executives to see if they could come to some sort of an agreement. Butterfield said, "If they cannot meet us on any reasonable terms, we are going to be very adamant about not approving the merger. It's not in the public interest. They are not concerned about the cost to the consumer."
    Back in May, I penned a letter to the FCC and to Congressman Rush, which you can view in the forums by clicking HERE. In that letter, I listed a number of minority channels that XM and Sirius currently offer, with my list totaling 51 separate channels. After the fact, it was pointed out that I had missed quite a few channels that were dedicated not only to minorities, but also dedicated to women and gay/lesbian segments of the population. XM and Sirius have now come out and promised an additional 6 channels per service for a total of 12 new channels, dedicated to minority content. The footnote in the FCC Filing outlining the concessions clarifies it even further:
    Quote Originally Posted by Sirius/XM Filing
    A Qualified Entity includes any entity that is majority-owned by persons who are African American, not of Hispanic origin; Asian or Pacific Islanders; American Indians or Alaskan Natives; or Hispanics.
    So let me get this straight: Sirius, XM, the FCC, and these Congressional Representatives are specifically being racist to White people? I myself cannot apply to run a channel under this set aside simply because I am white. That is reverse racism, and I am offended. I am not a racist. I have friends that are black, brown, white, Asian, Filipino, and albino. I am semi-bilingual in Spanish because I live in the southern most part of Texas LITERALLY 10 minute drive to the Mexican border. I do NOT have a problem with other races. What I do have a problem with is when people of race demand special attention because of their race. Rev. Martin Luther King in his famous "I have a dream" speech says
    Quote Originally Posted by Martin Luther King
    I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
    I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal.
    So are we judging by the content of character or simply by the color of one's skin? Does anybody find it rather amusing that Representative Butterfield is going to talk to Nate Davis about his concerns, as opposed to Mel Karmazin, who is going to be the CEO of the combined company? Oh, Nate Davis is an African American. That's right. I forgot to look at the skin.
    If anybody takes offense over this post, including the Representatives I have mentioned in this post, I offer you the exact same chance to post a reply below as I offer everyone else. Unlike some, I do not discriminate.

  2. crfceo is offline
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    Joined: Apr 2008 Posts: 205
    06-19-2008, 08:32 AM #2
    Very well stated, and I am in complete agreement.

    My question is how this anything close to legal, and how could it possibly be enforced? I cannot imagine even the lowest courts upholding such a rule.

    On a side note, Nate and Mel met with Butterfield, who seems to be on board with the current proposal now. I base that on this statement reported by bloomberg:

    "It's the most that can be agreed upon,'' Butterfield, a North Carolina Democrat who took part in the meeting, said in an interview. ``Now the question becomes, what is the process for awarding these channels to minority-owned companies?''

  3. cmule314 is offline
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    Joined: Apr 2008 Location: NYC Posts: 10
    06-19-2008, 02:29 PM #3
    Absolutely right on..............

    As a person who lives in NYC with many races and the state with the most nationalities........reverse discrimination in regard to this merger is showing us all how it still exists so strongly.

    Be patient I believe cooler heads will prevail and the AO at Goldman that downgraded XM and Sirius is probably another racist.

  4. jdailey4206966 is offline
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    Joined: Sep 2008 Location: Estill Springs, Tennessee Posts: 6
    09-13-2008, 02:26 PM #4
    Quote Originally Posted by Newman View Post
    Racism is a thing of the past, or is it? When looking at the Sirius/XM Merger, it appears that racism is front and center, but in reverse. According to an article in the Washington Post, the Congressional Black Caucus is criticizing the recommendation of Chairman Kevin Martin and the concessions outlined by Sirius and XM. Representative Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.) said yesterday that he was "extremely upset" and would speak to his colleagues about taking action to stop the merger unless the percentage was increased, perhaps legislative action.
    Rep. G.K. Butterfield (D-N.C.) also called the concessions "completely unacceptable" and said that they would be meeting personally with Nate Davis (CEO of XM) and other top executives to see if they could come to some sort of an agreement. Butterfield said, "If they cannot meet us on any reasonable terms, we are going to be very adamant about not approving the merger. It's not in the public interest. They are not concerned about the cost to the consumer."
    Back in May, I penned a letter to the FCC and to Congressman Rush, which you can view in the forums by clicking HERE. In that letter, I listed a number of minority channels that XM and Sirius currently offer, with my list totaling 51 separate channels. After the fact, it was pointed out that I had missed quite a few channels that were dedicated not only to minorities, but also dedicated to women and gay/lesbian segments of the population. XM and Sirius have now come out and promised an additional 6 channels per service for a total of 12 new channels, dedicated to minority content. The footnote in the FCC Filing outlining the concessions clarifies it even further:

    So let me get this straight: Sirius, XM, the FCC, and these Congressional Representatives are specifically being racist to White people? I myself cannot apply to run a channel under this set aside simply because I am white. That is reverse racism, and I am offended. I am not a racist. I have friends that are black, brown, white, Asian, Filipino, and albino. I am semi-bilingual in Spanish because I live in the southern most part of Texas LITERALLY 10 minute drive to the Mexican border. I do NOT have a problem with other races. What I do have a problem with is when people of race demand special attention because of their race. Rev. Martin Luther King in his famous "I have a dream" speech says

    So are we judging by the content of character or simply by the color of one's skin? Does anybody find it rather amusing that Representative Butterfield is going to talk to Nate Davis about his concerns, as opposed to Mel Karmazin, who is going to be the CEO of the combined company? Oh, Nate Davis is an African American. That's right. I forgot to look at the skin.
    If anybody takes offense over this post, including the Representatives I have mentioned in this post, I offer you the exact same chance to post a reply below as I offer everyone else. Unlike some, I do not discriminate.


    I agree with this....in case everyone forgot this is 2008, not 1808, skin color is no matter!! Can we not do anything in this country without involving race? Not as long as Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson are in this world we will never have total racial equality.

    I am for change and moving on!! Move the skin we all bleed red, and not only that we are AMERICANS!!!!!