This is an amazing interview with the school board official who attacked gays on his Facebook account.
What do you think?
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
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Obviously, he made some defamatory and hurtful comments during his rant on his Facebook page. Not being a psychologist, I cannot say if this is truly how he feels towards homosexuals, or if it was a combination of something else. (Consider when Michael Richards "Kramer" made some vulgar remarks during a comedy set a few years ago, under the influence of alcohol).
ReplyDeleteSometimes people say things that are hurtful, and they get caught up in the moment, and thats not how they truly are...Sometimes, people say things that embody exactly who they are...
In any event, McCance's comments were hateful--yet responding to hate with hate is never a successful option. I applaud the man who reached out to McCance and is working with him to make him more informed. I denounce the people who have threatened McCance, and have made him so fearful that he had to send his family out of state.
Anderson Cooper was justified in reporting the story, and the school board did what it legally could do for an elected official as far as disciplining him...McCance also, perhaps, did the right thing by quitting his job...
Yet the coverage of this story also illustrates the effect the news can have on society. Cooper reported an egregious offense, the perpetrator was disciplined, both by himself and his bosses, yet for some people who viewed the story this simply was not enough. For a few hateful and hurtful words, in some people's minds he should pay for the rest of his life, and not only be subjected to verbal abuse but threatened with potential physical abuse as well...
As a society, we should condemn racist, hateful, and hurtful comments, but we should not tolerate violence as an acceptable means in response to hateful words...In addition, we should also allow for repentance of people who have made mistakes.
McCance, to my knowledge, was a first time offender...Let him learn from his mistake without the fear of physical violence towards him OR his family...
What really struck me about this interview, was the disposition of the Mr. and Mrs. Truong. I cannot even imagine the pain and hurt that they are going through, and I was amazed at how well they handled their interview. Even though Mr. Truong implied that he had hurtful comments to say about McCance, he was able to hold himself together and say that he would pray for him. They also asked that people do not harass McCance or his family. This showed great class on their part because they have been through so much, yet they are still able to show kindness to those who have done them wrong (McCance). I hope many others who were hurt by his statements are able to not show hate for him, but rather take the Truong's approach and simply pray for him.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with what Mrs. Truong said about McCance and his apology. I feel as though he is only sorry that he got caught up with national attention. I am not sure if someone could say those horrible things and then turn around and say it was all out of ignorance. McCance is a grown man who makes a living by working around children everyday and it is hard for me to believe that his statements were made through ignorance. And if they truly were made out of ignorance, he is definitely not the type of person who should be working in our educational system. It kind of makes me sick that he would say those things.
I tend to agree with what Derek said about the situation. I don't excuse Mr. McCance in the slightest for the comments that he made on facebook, and I definitely agree that he should be put into his place because of what he did. I personally believe that he is sincere in his apology and that we should let him learn from his mistakes and then move on in life without have the situation burden him for the rest of his life. It is not right for society to threaten him or his family in retaliation to what he posted on facebook. That is basically doing exactly the same damage that he did when making those posts.
ReplyDeleteI felt like Dave (the husband) in the second clip was extremely self righteous. He could hardly get a sentence out of his mouth without making a "holier than thou" comment, telling Mr. McCance that they are all praying for him, and that they hope his kids can forgive. I acknowledge that Mr. McCance's comments were definitely not christian-like, but I felt that Dave's comments were so self righteous that I couldn't even take him serious anymore. All in all I think that it is quite sad that Mr. McCance made those comments but I also think that it is quite sad that society always has to blow up these issues to be bigger than they really need to be.
It is astounding to me that a grown man would say comments like these. Not only that, but that he would even post them on facebook. I can't believe he would say these hateful comments or even make a suggestion that all gays should die. Also, he is a member of his school board and so he should have been aware that he represents his career. His comments come from hatred and he obviously means them or else he would not have posted them publicly on facebook. I definitely think that he feels sorry or is saying that he is sorry because this has come out to the public. He is obviously embarrassed about the situation. What he has said has made him look closed minded and ignorant. It is very unfortunate that his family is going through their struggles and that they have had to move away from Arkansas. As an adult, he should have realized the consequences that his comments would make for not only him but as well as his family. When he made the comment "We are all here to make this world a better place..." Does he really mean that? Or is he just saying that because he is on television. I feel like this is all an act that he is putting up just for the cameras. I hope that he learns something from this and becomes aware of suicidal issues.
ReplyDelete