"It is oppressive to argue that a specific remark or action is technically benign and that the reative sensitivity itself is racist, rather than acknowledging the collective quilt of a pervasive social regime that give concrete meaning to that very sensitivity. It is the syndrome of blaming the victim rather than the crime."
I was very pleased to see Mr. Henry C.K. Liu's latest pissing and moaning, since it proves definitively that he is incapable of or uninterested in distinguishing between racial slurs and comments directed at his own statements or statements of those he idolizes. This waving the bloody shirt of racism is an injustice to genuine claims and an obstacle to serious discussion. It bespeaks ignorance and reeks of self-righteousness.
Reminds me of the old National Lampoon cover, which headlined, "Buy this magazine, or we'll shoot this dog." A comically transparent attempt at moral blackmail: take my incoherent ravings seriously or you're a racist. I am a little surprized to see CB echoing this; I expected better from him. (I'm also afraid his sense of humor is captive to his ideological prejudices.) This is an old trick on the left which may yet have some currency on campuses, but doesn't cut any ice with me.
I would not be disinterested in moral preachments from those I would regard as exceptional moral examples to the rest of us, but Mr. Liu doesn't qualify. He's too busy trying to buttress his own dubious assertions by reference to the suffering of others, his own people in particular. He complains bitterly of someone making fun of his name, then turns around and does the same thing.
The only racism in the posts is the inference from others that Mao's babbling is some kind of landmark in Chinese literature, or in any way exemplary of Chinese intellectual faculties.
mbs