“No Offense But…” is the beginning of Disrespect.

Usually, when someone starts a conversation with “No offense but…” he/she is not going to say anything positive. 

Definitely, that person is just about to be offensive. At that point, if they are not immediately discouraged or stopped, an avenue for them to be disrespectful will be created unwittingly. And when that happens, unnecessary problems will arise between them and the other person.

Personally, I have resolved to never wait for such an ignorant person to continue with their conversation. This way, I give a prompt impression that I refuse to be a victim of whatever ignorant thing is about to come out of their mouths. I have however witnessed several scenarios where unwary victims got prejudiced, stereotyped and insulted through spoken words that are started with “No offense but…”

Therefore, when next someone around you starts a conversation with that ominous statement, “No offense but…” tell them immediately to stop right there! Alternatively, change the subject or, run, if all else fails.

SONY Pictures and its Peculiar Mess.

What a peculiar type of mess this is for SONY Pictures! In the aftermath of the leakage of her very crude and ignorant remarks about President Obama and some black movie stars, Sony Pictures co-chairman, Amy Pascal has begun a "healing process" by reaching out to some black leaders.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the woman said she “want to accept responsibility for these stupid, callous remarks."

In the leaked email exchanges between her and a producer (Scott Rudin) the duo mocked movies that featured black actors and joked about the president's possible interest in them. Examples of such movies the two "messed up" in their e-mails were DJango and 12 Miles.

What a time for a scandal like this to come up! Hackers or no hackers, this woman did demonstrate a lack of character and discretion. Someone at her level of corporate ladder should have known better than to “run her mouth” so recklessly. Sometimes, I wonder how some of these so-called corporate top shots got to their leadership positions. And now Amy Pascal thinks all she needs to sweep the stinks under the carpet is merely by reaching out to Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson?

The Song That Got Me in Trouble.

[embed]http://youtu.be/P47ZQtIHTqc[/embed]

This video reminds me of an incident in 1986. I was the Disc Jockey at a friend’s bachelor’s eve party. Everything was going smoothly more so, with many of the guests dancing so beautifully.

At one particular moment when the groom was ushered onto the dancing floor, some women rushed forward to dance with and encircle him to the song, “Ain't No Stopping Us Now” by McFadden & Whitehead.

At this stage, one woman left the circle to approach the groom for a one-on-one dance. She was the groom’s immediate ex-girlfriend. Earlier, the groom and some of us were really surprised that the woman could summon the courage to attend the party, especially since their break-up was very bitter.

As the D.J., I had already arranged some albums on the dual turn-table for my convenience. So, as the current track was rounding up, I released the next album on a different turn-table and the track was, “I Don’t Love You Anymore…” by Teddy Pendergrass. Subsequently, I was engrossed in arranging more albums on the previous turn-table. But according to the groom and other friends, while the crowd went crazy on hearing the song by Teddy Pendergrass, the groom’s ex-girlfriend was seen fuming at me because of the contents of the track blaring over the speakers.

All I knew was that the woman suddenly appeared in the Disc Jockey’s cubicle, her eyes filled with fury. In spite of her attitude, I asked “Hey…how are you doing?”

“Oh, you want to know how I am doing?” she asked with a sneer.

I nodded without a word.

And boom…she threw a glass of beer in my face!

“Now, you know how I am feeling?” she screamed in tears. “I know you don’t like me…and you played that stupid music just to ridicule me…”

 

 

 

Minding Your Language.

We often hear some people say, “I don’t take myself too seriously…”

This is in a bid to appear liberal or casual about their self-perception. This is absolutely fine for those who really know what they are talking about.

The only exception however lies with those who, in a bid to use platitudes for the sake of it, will state rather ignorantly thus; “I don’t take myself seriously…”

Now, there is a big difference between the two statements whenever the word, “too” is omitted between “myself” and “seriously”.

What the speakers of the second statement don’t realize they are saying is that, as individuals, they are not to be taken seriously on any issues. And if they don’t take themselves seriously, why will anyone take them seriously?