Cosby.

[mpp5002]

Anyone read "Come On People" yet by the infamous Bill Cosby (and Alvin Poussaint)? Thoughts?

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Bill Cosby and Alvin F. Poussaint, M.D. have a powerful message for families and communities as they lay out their visions for strengthening America, or for that matter the world. They address the crises of people who are stuck because of feelings of low self-esteem, abandonment, anger, fearfulness, sadness, and feelings of being used, undefended and unprotected. These issues often impede their ability to move forward. The authors aim to help empower people make the daunting transition from victims to victors. Come on, People is always engaging and is loaded with heart-piercing stories of the problems facing many communities.

www.billcosby.com

[MadVlad]

Does he include the parts where he cheats on his wife and comes onto anything in a skirt? I find that empowering. How about when he calls up other comics and berates them because their act isn't "clean"? I find Bill Cosby to be an enormous hypocrit. It's nice they he tries to instill hope, but it's a false hope since he doesn't follow his own advice for a second.

[cinco]

^ i find it extremly fascinating that many people hold such unhuman standards to others when judging their positives. i hear it all the time... al gore, bill cosby, jimmy carter, etc. etc.

over the years i have heard and disagreed with plenty that cosby has had say, but i don't automatically dismiss him b/c of those things. for godssake - we are human, we constantly learn, adapt, alter and hopefully evolve. why should an afro-american comedian turned social activist, be held to some pure standard of human??

could it possibly be that the man has experienced and learned from his many aspects (god forbid - his mistakes) in life and only wants to pass them along? maybe he feels that some people can learn something from his triumphs and short comings.

if your going through life avoiding hypocrites - then you must be an avid fiction reader.

[MadVlad]

He's not a run-of-the-mill hypocrit, he's a public-figure hypocrit, there is a difference.

[Gusterfell]

He's not a run-of-the-mill hypocrit, he's a public-figure hypocrit, there is a difference.

[Cadeho]

I wouldn't find him being a hypocrite really. His act is clean and he can throw stones. He has not done what makes black culture today hideous. I have never seen him wear his pants to the ankle, never heard an offensive word from his mouth, hadn't seem him turn a blind eye to the drug dealing and the large murder rate and incarceration rate among blacks that that lifestyle brings. The man has always focused on being positive and he wants to clean up the mess that's been created. Blacks used to be way more united, motivated, respectful, and positive than they are today. He stands against all the things that many blacks are turning blind eyes to and accepting as normal civil behavior and lifestyles. Now it's not the Man who's at fault, although the legacy still exists, but the self-defeatism, the affinity to doing wrong and being evil, the lack of parental responsibility, the misfocused priorities, the perpetuation of negative stereotypes, and all general unpleasantness greated with open arms by the black community needs to end. I swear, had Dr. King had never been assassinated, blacks would be far better off than what's witnessed now. Starting with the riots after his assassination, hope, pride, and a lot of what was dreamed was lost. I applaud Dr. Cosby and Dr. Poussaint for their efforts when the riptide is going the other direction.

[nowensone]

It is a simple formula for me as regards leaders and their message - does a person violate the very thing that they preach? Sure, everyone is a hypocrite about something, but are they hypocrites to the very thing to which they decry in others?

Cosby does certainly skirt the line - he often speaks about black familyhood, such as two parents in the household, a sense of family and how to raise it's youth, but womanizing definitely flies in the face of that message. Sure, humans are animals, with animal desires, and given to such activity, which is normal, but that is not the point, and more importantly, not his message, so I think it is fair to question Cosby

[MadVlad]

I disagree, he doesn't practice what he preaches, he preys on young women that aren't his wife using guile, and quite possibly drugs. I guess this is his powerful message for families and communities as they lay out their visions for strengthening America, cheating and date rape.

[davidals]

^ i find it extremly fascinating that many people hold such unhuman standards to others when judging their positives. i hear it all the time... al gore, bill cosby, jimmy carter, etc. etc.

over the years i have heard and disagreed with plenty that cosby has had say, but i don't automatically dismiss him b/c of those things. for godssake - we are human, we constantly learn, adapt, alter and hopefully evolve. why should an afro-american comedian turned social activist, be held to some pure standard of human??

could it possibly be that the man has experienced and learned from his many aspects (god forbid - his mistakes) in life and only wants to pass them along? maybe he feels that some people can learn something from his triumphs and short comings.

if your going through life avoiding hypocrites - then you must be an avid fiction reader.