Letter To The Editor In The D-rc

November 6, 2007

Honestly, the letter didn't sound racist at all. He might not have all of the facts, but you have to take in account where he get's his information. The media. You can't blame someone that doesn't know Dodge or either of these young men for thinking negatively about the Universtiy. That's the only information he is exposed to.
We might not like what other people have to say, but was he being racist with his comments? No.
The same goes for people who speak negatively about this young men. Most of us don't know them at all. We can just assume that they are horrible people because they either quit or were kicked off the team for discipline problems. Let's stop judging people until the truth comes out.
Not that it matters one bit, but I support Dodge, everyone who knows him knows what type of person he is. Great Coach, Dad, Family Man, with impecable values.
To me this issue is about perception and who are we to tell someone how they see a situation, even if we see the same situation in a totaly different light (or dark)?

Ramone, I know your stance on this matter and am surprised that you would side with this person, whether intentional or not, continues to stir the pot. The only part of the posts that may have been out of line was to call the person a racist.

He began with a non-issue with Green's referral to the 'hood'. Let's say it was at least part of the reason. As someone pointed out the Urban Dictionary has 47 entries for the hood and all but a very few have a negative to an extremely negative connoitation. Synonyms such as ghetto, gangstas, thugs, and low-class area abound and these were primarily written by those that came there. It has been associated with crime, drugs and gangs for years now through hip hop and rap music. I don't think that it has any place on the football field.

Sports has been the main avenue for smoothing integration. In sports there really aren't black, white or brown players....there are just athletes. Color doesn't matter; ability does.

To me, football is the ultimate team game. That's why I like it. There are stars to be sure but those stars are dependent on others for success.

The portion that I objected to most strongly was the innuendo that UNT, or at least their administration, might be unfair, racist, and inequitable. The university has been integrated for fifty years peacefully, with only a few minor incidents marring that relationship. Without naming a specific incident, he led us to believe that such problems exist nonetheless.

PlummMeanGreen · November 6, 2007

Ramone, I know your stance on this matter and am surprised that you would side with this person, whether intentional or not, continues to stir the pot. The only part of the posts that may have been out of line was to call the person a racist.
He began with a non-issue with Green's referral to the 'hood'. Let's say it was at least part of the reason. As someone pointed out the Urban Dictionary has 47 entries for the hood and all but a very few have a negative to an extremely negative connoitation. Synonyms such as ghetto, gangstas, thugs, and low-class area abound and these were primarily written by those that came there. It has been associated with crime, drugs and gangs for years now through hip hop and rap music. I don't think that it has any place on the football field.
Sports has been the main avenue for smoothing integration. In sports there really aren't black, white or brown players....there are just athletes. Color doesn't matter; ability does.
To me, football is the ultimate team game. That's why I like it. There are stars to be sure but those stars are dependent on others for success.
The portion that I objected to most strongly was the innuendo that UNT, or at least their administration, might be unfair, racist, and inequitable. The university has been integrated for fifty years peacefully, with only a few minor incidents marring that relationship. Without naming a specific incident, he led us to believe that such problems exist nonetheless.

I don't think we know all of the other discipline aspects to all this because most coaches (very wisely and maybe now, even legally) don't air them for public consumption, but as far as the "hood" aspects of all this....

...wasn't it more the supposed "mother'f'er" part that was allegedly used with "hood" that might be the main problem to this whole thing?

Unlike past regimes, I don't think the present HFC is all that hip with non-stop cursing as part of his coaching staff's vocabulary. I'd bet Coach Dodge is hardly a prude, but it seems that all the "family oriented" wordage from the past will not be a staple with our present group in the Football Department over at the Mean Green Village.

Edited November 6, 2007 by PlummMeanGreen

Go_UTA · November 6, 2007

Just to reiterate, I'm not implying Mr. Cox is racist at all. Just that he's extremely uninformed if he's simply going by what was printed in the papers, DRC, NT Daily and FWST.

Boy, that's a truism.

I've said for long time: if all a person knows is what he reads in the newspapers, he is very uninformed.

Most especially about something of this nature.

RamoneArchie · November 6, 2007

Ramone, I know your stance on this matter and am surprised that you would side with this person, whether intentional or not, continues to stir the pot. The only part of the posts that may have been out of line was to call the person a racist.
He began with a non-issue with Green's referral to the 'hood'. Let's say it was at least part of the reason. As someone pointed out the Urban Dictionary has 47 entries for the hood and all but a very few have a negative to an extremely negative connoitation. Synonyms such as ghetto, gangstas, thugs, and low-class area abound and these were primarily written by those that came there. It has been associated with crime, drugs and gangs for years now through hip hop and rap music. I don't think that it has any place on the football field.
Sports has been the main avenue for smoothing integration. In sports there really aren't black, white or brown players....there are just athletes. Color doesn't matter; ability does.
To me, football is the ultimate team game. That's why I like it. There are stars to be sure but those stars are dependent on others for success.
The portion that I objected to most strongly was the innuendo that UNT, or at least their administration, might be unfair, racist, and inequitable. The university has been integrated for fifty years peacefully, with only a few minor incidents marring that relationship. Without naming a specific incident, he led us to believe that such problems exist nonetheless.

I didn't realize I was siding with him. If it at all sounded that way then my words were misinterpreted. I'm definately not trying to stir the pot. I'm just saying his comments didn't sound racist to me. I didn't see the news story but as things come out it's clear to anyone with any sense that Dodge is a fair man. Okay, hopefully this board will get a little more positive now that we are closing in on game day. This seems to have brought the team closer together, of course that's just my perception.

SUMG · November 6, 2007

This seems to have brought the team closer together, of course that's just my perception.

Well your perception might just be right, RA. According to Coach Dodge....last week our team had some of its' best practices all year. I expect to see a really fired up Mean Green team this Saturday.

SilverEagle · November 6, 2007

Here's the problem that I have with all this. Unless someone is heard by more than one person using racist language (the N word being the most common) and/or sends a letter to the editor, and/or publishes a paper about how one race is inferior to another, the issue of them being "racist" is almost totally driven by "perception".

A child who has been molested most of her life is going to "perceive" that all adult males are either potential molesters, or are in fact, all child molesters. This is her "perception" from what has been her life experience thus far.

But just because she says that she's uncomfortable around an adult male, doesn't make him a child molester.