Will someone please tell me why some people are so easily offended, or am I in danger of being fired for even posing the question?

Last April, just prior to the 40th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking baseball’s color barrier, then-Los Angeles Dodger general manager Al Campanis spoke his mind about blacks not having the proper neccessities to be in management positions. Blacks protested and Campanis was fired two days later.

Earlier this month, Jimmy “Why-is-his-nickname-always-in-quotes?” Snyder was interviewed in a Washington D.C. restaurant as part of a televised special on blacks’ progress since Martin Luther King’s death and was asked why he thought blacks are athletically superior. His Greekness gave his opinion—the way in which he made a living—about interracial breeding and how blacks work harder at being successful athletes. Blacks protested and Snyder was canned within 24 hours.

Actually, I’m glad “The Greek” was fired. It was hard to resist the temptation to call CBS and complain after hearing his comments. How dare he call whites lazy.

Now let’s look at this situation rationally.

There are differences between whites and blacks. Some are obvious, such as blacks having darker skin than whites. Some have been proven scientifically. We are baffled by the others and, being the curious creatures we are, we want to find something to explain things like why blacks seem to excel in basketball and track while whites dominate hockey and tennis.

Jimmy “The Greek” tried to give a possible explanation. However wrong he might have been, he still has the right to say it. Moreover, people should be exposed to all points of view. The networks are currently looking into running specials to examine such topics.

Campanis is now credited for bringing the lack of blacks in baseball’s front offices (among other sports) before the public, and something seems to be being done about it as we speak.

But all the two men received was a pink slip from their employers and forgiveness from the Rev. Jesse Jackson. Whatever happened to the First Amendment and the concept of free expression?

At the current rate, yours truly could be unemployed by noon.

It’s a fact blacks have been discriminated against in this country since they were brought here as slaves. And that should be stopped. But they have to work hard in order to help themselves. They have to be willing to start at the bottom and not expect to receive handouts because of their skin color. All blacks should take a lesson from the basketball players in the inner-city who practice continuously to be the best. This can be applied to all fields, not only athletics.

Affirmative Action has helped get more minorities, including women, into the workplace. This is great when it means companies seek qualified minority applicants, but not when it means the most qualified person gets bypassed because a quota needs to be met. That’s Negative Action.

Since it’s Super Bowl week, congratulations should go out to Washington Redskin quarterback Doug Williams. Not for being the first black quarterback to lead his team to a Super Bowl, but because he is the 27th quarterback overall to do it.

See you Thursday.