Tuesday, January 10, 2006
Mr. Answer Does a Little Translation Service for the Crowd
If the definition of mistake is “a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention” (and it is), then I suppose that this statement from Scott Christopher Cates is true.
“I just want to say I’m sorry to the family for everything that happened. I hope everybody forgives me. I made a mistake. I’m sorry.”
Undeniably, Cates showed bad judgment and an ignorance that is almost painful. Still, mistake doesn’t seem quite enough for what Cates and his four friends did to a young man named Isaiah Clyburn.
My interpretation of Mr. Cate’s statement?
Oops. Sorry. My fist slipped and I beat the crap out of an innocent black guy that was just walking down the road. My mistake. And when the kid ran away from me and my four similarly mistake-inclined friends, trying to escape to a nearby friend’s house, somehow my fist slipped some more.
My bad. Sorry about that.
When you target a guy for a beating simply because he’s black, you’re committing an intentional act of brutality because you’re a racist pig. Make no mistake about it; these five teens didn’t make any simple errors. They didn’t just forget their keys at the office or forget to make dinner reservations for that special night.
The good part is that these kids are going to jail. The bad thing is that this is the kind of ignorant idiocy that keeps us all from realizing Dr. King’s color-blind society.
For what it’s worth, Mr. Clyburn shows far more grace than I could muster in his place.
Their victim, Isaiah Clyburn, 17, said through his lawyer that he forgave them.
“He holds no hatred in his heart for what they did,” attorney Trey Gowdy said.
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Comments & Trackbacks
On one hand, I think it fortunate that things like this don’t happen as frequently as they have in the past. Then again, do they? And if they aren’t as concrete and physical, have they moved solidly into a more subjective place?
How very disturbing and sad that these young men 1)Did this, 2)Had absolutely no regard for the dignity of human life, and 3)Thought that they could simply say “Sorry. Hope everyone forgives me.” Then again, if it was enough for his victim, Isaiah, then I guess that is all that matters.
Well, not that he means it this way, but I hold no hatred in my heart for black widow spiders. I just kill ‘em on sight.
And a gang of thugs who had attacked me for no good reason, I wouldn’t hate them either.
Wow. Isaiah Clyburn = class. I keep asking myself, if I were in his position could I do the same? I don’t know if I could. I hope I never find out. What a remarkable young man.
Not only would I not “hold no hatred in my heart”, I don’t find it particularly admirable that Mr. Clyburn “hold[s] no hatred in [his] heart”. There are things worthy of hatred, and hating them is both rational and praiseworthy.
Now, if Mr. Clyburn is just saying that to twist the knife a bit, well, I admire his instincts even if not his tactics.