There's story up now on MSN about the Kansas lege re-considering that $25 daily limit on TANF benefits. Holy shit, the comments!

She is athletic, smart, talented, and beautiful. She could have been a fashion model, but luckily for the world of tennis she went a different route.

Serena Williams is beautiful.

Neither is otherwise like the other, and both are higher forms of life than the scum who post that shit.

And yes, she is beautiful to boot.

I think she and her sister are absolutely fabulous

If people want to read this crap, they can find it.

It does not belong here.

She is a champion, a fighter, and she is about to break every record out there for women's tennis.

Please leave this in whatever nasty place you found it.

I always wonder when DUers find nasty racist or tea party or anti gay or whatever crap - why you gotta bring it here?

(first time in my time here to use the puke emoji)

golden slam (all majors & gold in the Olympics in one calendar year). But I'd never count out Serena. I get annoyed with her attitude sometimes (like the altercation with the ref) but she is an absolutely amazing athlete.

it's got to be why Roger is still playing as well. All the best to Serena!

Now thousands more people can read it and the trolls get what they want: attention. Do you think Serena wants to see these assholes and their comments in the news? Imagine what it feels like for her to make history and then see the top news stories discussing her appearance with the word "monkey" used.

"A twitter user said" is not news. Report those tweets and move on.

And I don't say that to detract from the story - Serena Williams is a hero of mine!

But I hate how Markos Moulitsas, who has personal Third Way leanings, made his fame and fortune exploiting progressives on Daily Kos. Could we get a Serena celebration story with different link than Vox, please?

Last edited Mon Jun 8, 2015, 12:09 AM - Edit history (1)

It chronicles the history of how she has been covered in the media, including by reporters in mainstream news sources, over the years.

It's actually a pretty detailed piece which I think Serena would appreciate.

I couldn't care less what she looks like (although I think she's got serious style). It's her tennis that impresses me, and in particular her focus and determination. Those are admirable qualities to me. She's an awesome champion, one of the all-time greats of the game.

I have to admit I've pretty much given up watching women's tennis for a while now, though. That horrible shrieking they all seem to do (can we not call it "grunting?" It's not...) make watching the sport just intolerable to me. It's unsporting, too, IMO. The officials flip their shit if someone in the crowd is talking too loud during points, but allow the players to caterwaul like banshees on meth every time they hit the ball (precisely the point at which their opponent needs to concentrate hardest)? Ridiculous.

The men have started doing it, too...but I'll admit I'm willing to tolerate it if I get to look at Rafael Nadal.

No shrieking. None.

If she, or Maria, don't have to shriek at practice...they don't have to shriek during a match. They should be penalized.

Grunting is not the same as shrieking. And I think some of the newer technology on the court picks up some of those sounds that really do just naturally come out, when Stan hits a 97 mph backhand down the line.

... is never ending. Social media provides them a megaphone. Always, ALWAYS, give them a smack-down in response!

but I don't think it's representative of the vast majority of posts about Serena's victory on social media- which I expect are admiring and congratulatory. Regurgitating this kind of story serves no useful purpose that I can see. It hands the haters one more megaphone without imparting any new information to the rest of us.

Or just the headline and excerpt?

Were it not for them being able to make their stupid comments public, they'd be reduced to slurping their Big Lots expired Wheaties while reading of Williams' accomplishments and choking on their jealousy - this before they go off to flex their talents of baggin' groceries or cleaning toilets.

otherwise known as the Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory.

Williams!

And I don't even like sports.

One of, if not the, greatest of all time. They're small compared to her, and they know it.

No way!

Last edited Mon Jun 8, 2015, 03:47 PM - Edit history (1)

I will marry her in a heartbeat if she will let me that is

Obviously people are going to carry some form of resentment toward her because she is a successful sports and business woman.

Twitter seems to have rejuvenated some of the darkest corners of our culture.

I remember that guy a while back tweeting sexually threatening comments about some retired baseball player's (Curt Schilling?) daughter.

What struck me was not just that it was so overtly horrific and demeaning, but the sense that the guy didn't even think twice about it. Like he was hunched over his keyboard somewhere like that troll cartoon, drooling and waiting for a chance to come up with the most disturbing things to say to show how strong his sports partisanship was. Because Schilling played for the "enemy team" back in the day, apparently.

I lived across from the university baseball stadium for a while in school. Games were free, and it was two-minute walk away. I went over one day and watched part of the game, and people were sitting a few steps behind the batters, SCREAMING insults and taunts, nonstop, at the top of their lungs. Nasty stuff. They thought they were "helping" their team, I guess, and it was all you could hear in the relatively small and quiet stadium.

I know sports fandom can be healthy and fun, but there is a weird level of acceptance of absolutely despicable behavior that ought to go away sooner rather than later. People are clearly acting out scenes from their childhood, or fantasizing about some power they lack in the real world. You see these 50-yr-old lawyers with floor seats in the NBA, snarling epithets at players like they want to kill them.

"Fan" is short for "fanatic." Maybe no one should be a "fan" of anything. Support, cheer, encourage, sure.

But if people can't enjoy it without losing their goddamn minds to the point where racist gibberish or rape threats seem like a logical response, they need to find something else to do for fun.

People throwing bananas at black players during soccer matches is just another day on the pitch. The few times it has happened here (Someone threw a banana at Wayne Simmonds in Ottawa) it was met with rightful outrage.

gets to be called a hottie?



In my opinion there is a huge case of cognitive dissonance among sports writers and media people who want to differentiate.

This is the problem with an article like this. It is validating idiots on Twitter and Facebook as if they are someone with any standing in the world other than "internet racist idiot".

The other criticisms of actual sports media journalists, that somehow using the terms "crush" or "killed" is wrong, have all been used a dozen times to describe Rhonda's ability. And rightfully so.

Its beyond me why articles like this give trolls the time of day.

From the article:

In 2001, sportscaster Sid Rosenberg literally called Venus an "animal" and said she and Serena would fit better posing for National Geographic magazine than for Playboy.

That's pretty much in the same ballpark as gorilla, in my opinion.

He's not a sportscaster, but a morning shock jock who's been fired so many times for drug related incidents and saying idiotic shit I've lost count.

Calling him a sportscaster is akin to calling Rush Limbaugh a newscaster.

He is a sports media figure in NY if not a sportscaster. WFAN is a major sports radio station in NY.

If Sid Rosenberg, a shock jock, is the best one can come up with as a "sportscaster" who has used racist terms to describe Serena, there's no there there.

Today, my favorite player is Victoria Azarenka, but I've always loved Serena. In my opinion, she is the greatest WTA player of all time. One of my favorite photos ever in tennis was after the 2014 US Open when Serena tied Martina & Chris with 18 Slam Titles each and the 3 of them posed for a picture together!

BTW, I'm a white guy who is turning 60 next week.

PEACE!

calling the First Lady "Sasquatch".

Disgusting.

Serena is the hands-down greatest female tennis professional player of all time. Of. All. Time.

She has everything these people should appreciate:

1. She is American.
2. She (and her sister) are consummate professionals.
3. She is respectful to fans and opponents.
4. She is a WINNER!

Yet, for them, something is missing. These people are such idiots, and statements such as the ones they made prove it over and over. As if a gorilla would play tennis with the power and grace of Serena Williams.

My sister in law tried to tell me once that Serena always "pulled the race card"* when she lost a match.
My response..."Well, I don't know how you would know that, since she never loses a match". My SIL's face turned so red, whoo, she was mad!

Forget them, Serena! There's plenty of people out here who love you!

And, ps...Congratulations on your 2015 French Open title, and for winning your 20th Grand Slam. I have enjoyed watching every single one from afar, and hope to see many more. I hope you are feeling better.

and it was her 20th major title at the French Open!!

And yet when I point out that she does not get her due from MSGreedia, others disagree.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10026789142

Let them hate - she has 20 grand slam trophies and that is painful to racists.

Cliven Bundy and Rush Limpballs. Disgusting pieces of shit. They need to be called out on social media.

until this racial crap in our society is purged? Serena Williams is classy, beautiful and exciting to watch. Pro Tennis would not be half as enjoyable without her. Just my 2 cents.