Ja Rule looks for whipping boys

Another email from James P, demonstrating that "Ja Rule is American for Jim Davidson".

We'll let him tell you why:

Responding to the forthcoming Congressional hearing which will look into whether the media stereotypes and degrades black women, Ja Rule isn't happy. His reckoning? If they're going to look into whether rap lyrics are corrupting the nation's youth, they should also look at what teh gheys are doing. Apparently it's just as bad...

"If (lyrics are responsible), then we need to go step to Paramount, and fucking MGM, and all of these other motherfuckers that's making all of these movies and we need to go step to MTV and Viacom, and lets talk about all these fucking shows that they have on MTV that is promoting homosexuality, that my kids can't watch this shit. Dating shows that's showing two guys or two girls in mid-afternoon. Let's talk about shit like that! If that's not fucking up America, I don't know what is."

Whilst I agree with him in principle - MTV should not be screening dating shows mid-afternoon (because they're a MUSIC CHANNEL and the last time I saw any music on MTV was in 1998) - I must admit he loses me a bit with his reasoning. If I'm reading it correctly, he's saying we shouldn't be investigating one possible source of minor-corruption because, erm, he can think of another one.

Another thing; I always thought that the whole appeal of popstars was that they provided an alternative to our stuffy parents, giving us spokespeople who were kicking out against the mainstream, shaking up the system. Ja Rule, on the other hand, seems to be spouting the exact same homophobic piffle that ver kids could read if they picked up their Dad's Daily Mail. (I've never understood this 'promoting homosexuality' thing; Are our children at risk of suddenly turning gay if they meet a convincing-enough salesman? Could the staunchest heterosexual be turned if Barry Scott demonstrated the benefits of homosexuality, possibly with some sort of Penny Test?)

Now, Rule might think he's demonstrated that rap isn't that bad - but, boy, he's so angry, and hate-filled, and full of paranoid fear... it's hardly a good advert, is it?