We Don’t Need Another Hero
May 12th, 2008 by Shae
Reader’s Digest’s Hero of the Year this year is Moezeldin Elmostafa, a taxi cab driver who provided an alibi for one of three Duke University Lacrosse players accused of raping an exotic dancer.
When I read that, I thought, now that’s a little odd. Reader’s Digest and its readers couldn’t think of anyone better to bestow this honor upon than an alibi in a rape case? Weren’t there some natural disasters this past year? Did no one perform a rescue or offer humanitarian aid at those events? Did no one feed the hungry? Or arrest a child abuser? Or fight for women’s rights in third world countries?
So I did a bit of research.
What’s not in dispute in this story, apparently, is that a bunch of lacrosse players had a drunken party in which they’d hired two black strippers to perform. And that “one of the lacrosse players asked them if they had any sex toys.” And that when the answer was no, he picked up a broomstick and said “Don’t worry, we’ll just use this on you.” And that a loud argument broke out, in which “a neighbor… told police he overheard a player yelling in [one dancer’s] direction ‘Thank your grandfather for my cotton shirt.’”
So as you can see, there was little more important going on in the world this past year than to absolve the Duke lacrosse team of sexual assault charges relating to this event.
That’s why Elmostafa carried out the incredibly heroic act of showing up in court and stating, under oath, “Yes, he was in my cab.” What a hero!
To be fair, there may have been no rape as such. The accuser didn’t keep her story straight, she was taking prescription drugs and alcohol, and her coworker didn’t remember things as she did. But I don’t really dispute the rape or lack thereof. I’m just a little surprised that the staff and readers of Reader’s Digest are even bigger assholes than I pegged them for when I made this a few years ago.
Why did they choose the taxicab driver for their hero of the year? Because he was a lowly black immigrant who nonetheless saw fit to exonerate three fine rich white boys from the lies and slander of a cheap black whore. Who could be a better hero for a group of elderly racists like Reader’s Digest’s readers?
Something’s Wrong with the Math
April 30th, 2008 by Shae