Jeremy mother fuckin' Lin
February 8, 2012 7:38 AM Subscribe
"Lin is saving the Knicks with super-human play, but he's dispelling myths about Asian America by being otherwise hyper-normal and I thank him. He doesn't have a duty to embrace Asian America, speak for Asian America, or represent Asian America because right now he IS Asian America." -- Eddie Huang on Yao Ming, Jeremy Lin, and being Asian in America.
(Jeremy Lin, New York Knicks)
(Jeremy Lin, New York Knicks)
As a Spurs fan, I welcome all the slower, shorter Manu Ginoblis that the league wants to entertain.
posted by Devils Rancher at 8:00 AM on February 8, 2012
posted by Devils Rancher at 8:00 AM on February 8, 2012
As a Spurs fan, I welcome all the slower, shorter Manu Ginoblis that the league wants to entertain.
Come now, with the amount of time he spends lying on the ground, no one is shorter than Manu.
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 8:04 AM on February 8, 2012 [4 favorites]
Come now, with the amount of time he spends lying on the ground, no one is shorter than Manu.
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 8:04 AM on February 8, 2012 [4 favorites]
super-human play
Wow, talk about pre-mature. Dude has had two good games in a row. I wish fans and the media would give Lin a chance to establish himself before laying it on like this.
posted by mullacc at 8:10 AM on February 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
Wow, talk about pre-mature. Dude has had two good games in a row. I wish fans and the media would give Lin a chance to establish himself before laying it on like this.
posted by mullacc at 8:10 AM on February 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
That, and all the injuries over the years, which have... ahem.. allowed his bench to find their stride... but man, when he's driving the basket - anyway. The Knicks have yet to be televised in Austin though, so I've never seen this Lin guy play. I love watching rookies get their legs under them and gain confidence.
posted by Devils Rancher at 8:10 AM on February 8, 2012
posted by Devils Rancher at 8:10 AM on February 8, 2012
Here's his extended highlight reel from the Nets game. I live and work around folks who apparently knew Jeremy growing up in the bay area and there's definitely a lot of pride among Asians around here.
posted by TwoWordReview at 8:18 AM on February 8, 2012
posted by TwoWordReview at 8:18 AM on February 8, 2012
Ok yeah but how much will he continue to rock as soon as defenses start actually paying attention to him? Word is out...the real tests are yet to come.
posted by spicynuts at 8:18 AM on February 8, 2012
posted by spicynuts at 8:18 AM on February 8, 2012
Thanks for sharing this! I'm an Asian American and New Yorker and we've been going nuts off this kid.
He always showed potential. He'd contribute 6 assists in the 8 minutes they let him play. But it was usually garbage time so that number doesn't feel validated.
The Knicks sucking so bad right now is the best thing that could've happened to JLin. It was the only was he could get a chance. I think he will be a mainstay at PG in the league. Hopefully for my Knicks and hopefully to take it all the way once Amare and Melo are healthy.
posted by pez_LPhiE at 8:20 AM on February 8, 2012
He always showed potential. He'd contribute 6 assists in the 8 minutes they let him play. But it was usually garbage time so that number doesn't feel validated.
The Knicks sucking so bad right now is the best thing that could've happened to JLin. It was the only was he could get a chance. I think he will be a mainstay at PG in the league. Hopefully for my Knicks and hopefully to take it all the way once Amare and Melo are healthy.
posted by pez_LPhiE at 8:20 AM on February 8, 2012
It would be nice if the NBA returned to actual PG play like back in the day. Maybe this will start the swing.
posted by spicynuts at 8:33 AM on February 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by spicynuts at 8:33 AM on February 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
If it were up to me, Yao would have had neck tattoos, nike boots, and a harem of shawties from 2 Fast 2 Furious throwing lotus leaves on the ground every where he walked.What does Huang mean by this bit?
posted by zamboni at 8:55 AM on February 8, 2012
spicynuts: "It would be nice if the NBA returned to actual PG play like back in the day. Maybe this will start the swing."
Which would also be a swing back to me paying a lot more attention to the league. Not that they are necessarily interested in courting just me. They've been doing just fine since I kind of stopped paying attention.
That said, I also have to say that the shortened season is making things more interesting too. Sixteen games doesn't feel like a lot but something about it picking up just when football wrapped up feels so natural. (I'm aware this isn't the world's most original thought but I feel like it's the kind of opinion that I feel so strongly that putting it out into the universe as much as possible.)
As for Lin, I've said my piece here multiple times on how important I think representations of people in media are to those growing up. And what I liked most about this blog post is that it states clearly what the importance is -- not that he needs to be somebody's role model, but just that he motherfucking exists on the screen being Asian. That's it. And I hope he continues to do so after this burst of hype.
That said, I wouldn't wish the spotlight of the New York sports media on anyone. What's the target date on the NY press starting to call for Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning's head again? Sometime during pre-season might seem foolish but it wouldn't be surprising either.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 9:00 AM on February 8, 2012
Which would also be a swing back to me paying a lot more attention to the league. Not that they are necessarily interested in courting just me. They've been doing just fine since I kind of stopped paying attention.
That said, I also have to say that the shortened season is making things more interesting too. Sixteen games doesn't feel like a lot but something about it picking up just when football wrapped up feels so natural. (I'm aware this isn't the world's most original thought but I feel like it's the kind of opinion that I feel so strongly that putting it out into the universe as much as possible.)
As for Lin, I've said my piece here multiple times on how important I think representations of people in media are to those growing up. And what I liked most about this blog post is that it states clearly what the importance is -- not that he needs to be somebody's role model, but just that he motherfucking exists on the screen being Asian. That's it. And I hope he continues to do so after this burst of hype.
That said, I wouldn't wish the spotlight of the New York sports media on anyone. What's the target date on the NY press starting to call for Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning's head again? Sometime during pre-season might seem foolish but it wouldn't be surprising either.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 9:00 AM on February 8, 2012
The Knicks are 10-15 and going to earn a lottery pick. The Rockets own the pick as long as it ain't in the top five. I am rooting for the Knicks to get pick six!
Jeremy Lin is kind of fun to watch but he is very unlikely to ever play in an All Star game.
posted by bukvich at 9:03 AM on February 8, 2012
Jeremy Lin is kind of fun to watch but he is very unlikely to ever play in an All Star game.
posted by bukvich at 9:03 AM on February 8, 2012
Also, this: Knicks guard Jeremy Lin immortalized with Taiwanese animation.
posted by inigo2 at 9:04 AM on February 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by inigo2 at 9:04 AM on February 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
zamboni: What does Huang mean by this bit?
I think he meant that he wish Yao was more of a bad ass than what he was. He towed the line of Asian stereotypes by being a model minority. But he goes on to say that Yao did it with such class that it was a great thing.
posted by pez_LPhiE at 9:15 AM on February 8, 2012
I think he meant that he wish Yao was more of a bad ass than what he was. He towed the line of Asian stereotypes by being a model minority. But he goes on to say that Yao did it with such class that it was a great thing.
posted by pez_LPhiE at 9:15 AM on February 8, 2012
That said, I wouldn't wish the spotlight of the New York sports media on anyone. What's the target date on the NY press starting to call for Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning's head again? Sometime during pre-season might seem foolish but it wouldn't be surprising either.
Over/Under is 90 days. I want to call WFAN and tell them to put together a montage of all the callers who were rabidly screaming for Tom Coughlin's head after the Redskins game. You could probably make a 24 hour uninterrupted montage without ever repeating a single caller. Assholes. I hate sports fans.
posted by spicynuts at 9:20 AM on February 8, 2012
Over/Under is 90 days. I want to call WFAN and tell them to put together a montage of all the callers who were rabidly screaming for Tom Coughlin's head after the Redskins game. You could probably make a 24 hour uninterrupted montage without ever repeating a single caller. Assholes. I hate sports fans.
posted by spicynuts at 9:20 AM on February 8, 2012
Can I buy stock in Jeremy Lin? All those Chinese basketball fans are looking for a player to root for ever since Ming left the league, AND this guy is super Christiany nice guy underdog American success story like Tim Tebow. Are you kidding me? If this guy maintains half-way decent play as a starter or sixth man in the league, he will be voted to the All-Star game every year and make more in endorsement deals than any of the other players in the league other than maybe the top three or four. Plus, as mentioned before, this guy is a real life basketball player in a league that emphasizes specialists in general and scorers in particular. He needs to work on his jumper but there's no reason why he couldn't end up being Steve Nash, Jr. And I hope he does - he's fun to watch and fun to root for.
ALL HE DOES IS LIN.
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 9:21 AM on February 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
ALL HE DOES IS LIN.
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 9:21 AM on February 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
Jeremy Lin is kind of fun to watch but he is very unlikely to ever play in an All Star game.
Yao Ming was the top vote getter for pretty much every All-Star game he was eligible for and probably a couple he wasn't. I'd wager he'd make the team again this year were his name to show up on the ballot. Lin doesn't have to be one of the best players in the league to make the All-Star team, just one of the most popular.
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 9:27 AM on February 8, 2012
Yao Ming was the top vote getter for pretty much every All-Star game he was eligible for and probably a couple he wasn't. I'd wager he'd make the team again this year were his name to show up on the ballot. Lin doesn't have to be one of the best players in the league to make the All-Star team, just one of the most popular.
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 9:27 AM on February 8, 2012
I want this guy to win and be good too, but it's been TWO games against bad teams. On a team where HE HAD to do everything. He has the speed, quickness, and brains to make it in the NBA, but it's so early. If he was playing for the Pacers or something, people would give him a couple games before beginning the hagiography.
Let's NOT JINX this one.
posted by skepticallypleased at 9:30 AM on February 8, 2012
Let's NOT JINX this one.
posted by skepticallypleased at 9:30 AM on February 8, 2012
It'll be fun to watch this guy.
Until a Chinese team offers him three times the money and he's gone.
posted by jamjam at 9:34 AM on February 8, 2012
Until a Chinese team offers him three times the money and he's gone.
posted by jamjam at 9:34 AM on February 8, 2012
anybody paying attention to rubio?
posted by valdesm at 9:35 AM on February 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by valdesm at 9:35 AM on February 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
Yao Ming was the top vote getter for pretty much every All-Star game he was eligible for and probably a couple he wasn't. I'd wager he'd make the team again this year were his name to show up on the ballot. Lin doesn't have to be one of the best players in the league to make the All-Star team, just one of the most popular.
I was thinking that too, but would mainland Chinese stuff the ballot for a Taiwanese-American like they did for a fellow Mainlander? I honestly don't know. I don't really hang out enough in the Chinese blogosphere to know the zeitgeist, as it were. (I'd never even heard of Lin until somebody on Facebook mentioned him a few days ago. I'm a bad Chinese-American.)
posted by kmz at 9:42 AM on February 8, 2012
I was thinking that too, but would mainland Chinese stuff the ballot for a Taiwanese-American like they did for a fellow Mainlander? I honestly don't know. I don't really hang out enough in the Chinese blogosphere to know the zeitgeist, as it were. (I'd never even heard of Lin until somebody on Facebook mentioned him a few days ago. I'm a bad Chinese-American.)
posted by kmz at 9:42 AM on February 8, 2012
It would be nice if the NBA returned to actual PG play like back in the day. Maybe this will start the swing.
The league is blessed with more excellent PGs right now then at any point in its history. Welcome back!
Lin can't shoot and he can't go left. He knows how to run an offense, he competes on defense, and he can get to the basket going right. That will keep him in the league as a backup PG or a fringe starter on a bad team, but please temper expectations.
posted by Kwine at 9:45 AM on February 8, 2012 [2 favorites]
The league is blessed with more excellent PGs right now then at any point in its history. Welcome back!
Lin can't shoot and he can't go left. He knows how to run an offense, he competes on defense, and he can get to the basket going right. That will keep him in the league as a backup PG or a fringe starter on a bad team, but please temper expectations.
posted by Kwine at 9:45 AM on February 8, 2012 [2 favorites]
anybody paying attention to rubio?
Yeah. He's on my fantasy team in the Metafilter league. :)
posted by mullacc at 9:51 AM on February 8, 2012
Yeah. He's on my fantasy team in the Metafilter league. :)
posted by mullacc at 9:51 AM on February 8, 2012
I want to call WFAN and tell them to put together a montage of all the callers who were rabidly screaming for Tom Coughlin's head after the Redskins game. You could probably make a 24 hour uninterrupted montage without ever repeating a single caller. Assholes. I hate sports fans.
Normally I'd agree, but they lost to the freaking Redskins. TWICE.
posted by inigo2 at 9:57 AM on February 8, 2012
Normally I'd agree, but they lost to the freaking Redskins. TWICE.
posted by inigo2 at 9:57 AM on February 8, 2012
Until a Chinese team offers him three times the money and he's gone.
Why would they do that and why would he go? Dude is American. He grew up in Palo Alto.
The fact that he's Asian American is half the point. Not all Americans want to exploit their fame / success to emigrate to their parents' ethnic home land, you know.
posted by rkent at 9:57 AM on February 8, 2012 [12 favorites]
Why would they do that and why would he go? Dude is American. He grew up in Palo Alto.
The fact that he's Asian American is half the point. Not all Americans want to exploit their fame / success to emigrate to their parents' ethnic home land, you know.
posted by rkent at 9:57 AM on February 8, 2012 [12 favorites]
Normally I'd agree, but they lost to the freaking Redskins. TWICE.
Yeah? And? And then they won the fucking superbowl. For the second time. With the same coach. Adults should have more patience than a 3 year old.
posted by spicynuts at 10:13 AM on February 8, 2012
Yeah? And? And then they won the fucking superbowl. For the second time. With the same coach. Adults should have more patience than a 3 year old.
posted by spicynuts at 10:13 AM on February 8, 2012
Yao was the rare individual that still believed in Confucius' China. In China these days, you see the angst, the rebellion, and the Kobe Bryant jerseys. People rep AI, Kobe, and now Starbury. Since Tank Man stood against the country in 1989, few of us could honestly defend China with a straight face. For years, it felt like there was a weekly article attacking Chinese in America, Chinese in Detroit, or Chinese in China. We couldn't just be smart, it had to be the green tea. Every job we took at Ford was a job we stole from Americans. China couldn't industrialize like the West because the West already destroyed the environment and wanted to tell China how to do it this time around. I remember being in class trying to find any semblance of reason in China's Tibet policy, but knowing deep down that there was no way to defend the country. Why was I anyway? My parents were born in Taiwan.What is this guy talking about? The west "Already destroyed the environment and [want] to tell China how to do it"? What does being being Asian have to do with defending the Chinese government?
posted by delmoi at 10:14 AM on February 8, 2012
Another thoughtful piece- Jeremy Lin and the Soft Bigotry of Low Expectations.
posted by Apocryphon at 10:27 AM on February 8, 2012
posted by Apocryphon at 10:27 AM on February 8, 2012
It's great that basketball has become such a prominent sport on the international stage. The author of this piece is right - that Lin doesn't have a duty to be a representative of some segment of the population. But it seems to me that this is due to the recent influx of international players into the NBA, not Lin's "hyper-normalcy" (IMO the very use of such a term is rubbish because it perpetuates stereotypes by relying upon the reader's biases, but I digress). The NBA has quickly become a very tolerant league, and fans are naturally accepting of any player who performs well.
Anyway, it's way too early to make any judgment about this kid - he's played two great games but has been waived/cut twice in his career already.
posted by antonymous at 10:42 AM on February 8, 2012
Anyway, it's way too early to make any judgment about this kid - he's played two great games but has been waived/cut twice in his career already.
posted by antonymous at 10:42 AM on February 8, 2012
delmoi: "What is this guy talking about? The west "Already destroyed the environment and [want] to tell China how to do it"? What does being being Asian have to do with defending the Chinese government?"
It means as an Asian American, in the eyes of everyone around you, you're the foreigner, but if you were ever to go back to wherever it is your parents came from, you'd be treated with equal suspicion.
So you're on this schizoid task of being both automatically defensive of your ethnicity because you, like it or not, are representative of 'Asia' to everyone, while internally you identify as American and what everyone is saying kind of makes sense too.
posted by danny the boy at 10:47 AM on February 8, 2012 [6 favorites]
It means as an Asian American, in the eyes of everyone around you, you're the foreigner, but if you were ever to go back to wherever it is your parents came from, you'd be treated with equal suspicion.
So you're on this schizoid task of being both automatically defensive of your ethnicity because you, like it or not, are representative of 'Asia' to everyone, while internally you identify as American and what everyone is saying kind of makes sense too.
posted by danny the boy at 10:47 AM on February 8, 2012 [6 favorites]
kmz: "I was thinking that too, but would mainland Chinese stuff the ballot for a Taiwanese-American like they did for a fellow Mainlander?"
Yup. As evidence I present every Asian sports fan on my Facebook feed.
posted by danny the boy at 10:49 AM on February 8, 2012
Yup. As evidence I present every Asian sports fan on my Facebook feed.
posted by danny the boy at 10:49 AM on February 8, 2012
spicynuts and MCMikeNamara, I'm curious to know what exactly you mean with the comments referring to "actual PG play" being a reason to watch again. We're in the midst of a point guard bumper crop, but maybe you were referring to something more...stylistic? I love that I can tune into a game at random this year and watch some very exciting guards break down defenses - though I also know that this is only possible due to rule changes designed to protect attacking players and enable a bit more recklessness.
posted by antonymous at 10:50 AM on February 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by antonymous at 10:50 AM on February 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
Zach Lowe at Sports Illustrated has a Point Forward writeup on him today. He's calling it Linsanity.
posted by Devils Rancher at 11:00 AM on February 8, 2012
posted by Devils Rancher at 11:00 AM on February 8, 2012
From the Soft Bigotry article:
The negative stereotypes [of Asian-American men] are legion: they’re the geeky, socially inept guys with coke-can glasses in the engineering labs; they’re the perpetual adolescents playing video games on their super-computers at thirty or forty years old; and they’re the physically and sexually immature, small and timid young men who can’t talk to girls and get their second jobs before they get their first kiss. [...] The stereotypes I listed above do not describe the Asian-American men I know, or only offer a profoundly caricatured description of one part of their character.
It's always weird when an author purporting to be pro-diversity jots down a list of traits he says are associated with a particular ethnicity and that most of that ethnicity don't fulfill them. It's especially weird for someone like me, who is Chinese and who does happen to fill a lot of those roles, to see all the things I'm not supposed to be. It's a lot like that dissonant feeling you get when someone asks you if you like The Smiths and, before you can answer, he or she says everybody who listens to The Smiths is a quiet, depressive suburbanite who likes to shop at the Gap. What are you supposed to do with your identity as an individual when someone just happens to call you out just right like that? Reject it and hate yourself? Try your best to turn into somebody else?
I mean, really, it's just kind of a shit thing to say.
posted by dubusadus at 1:07 PM on February 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
The negative stereotypes [of Asian-American men] are legion: they’re the geeky, socially inept guys with coke-can glasses in the engineering labs; they’re the perpetual adolescents playing video games on their super-computers at thirty or forty years old; and they’re the physically and sexually immature, small and timid young men who can’t talk to girls and get their second jobs before they get their first kiss. [...] The stereotypes I listed above do not describe the Asian-American men I know, or only offer a profoundly caricatured description of one part of their character.
It's always weird when an author purporting to be pro-diversity jots down a list of traits he says are associated with a particular ethnicity and that most of that ethnicity don't fulfill them. It's especially weird for someone like me, who is Chinese and who does happen to fill a lot of those roles, to see all the things I'm not supposed to be. It's a lot like that dissonant feeling you get when someone asks you if you like The Smiths and, before you can answer, he or she says everybody who listens to The Smiths is a quiet, depressive suburbanite who likes to shop at the Gap. What are you supposed to do with your identity as an individual when someone just happens to call you out just right like that? Reject it and hate yourself? Try your best to turn into somebody else?
I mean, really, it's just kind of a shit thing to say.
posted by dubusadus at 1:07 PM on February 8, 2012 [1 favorite]
he's dispelling myths about Asian America by being otherwise hyper-normal
right now he IS Asian America
If it were up to me, Yao would have had neck tattoos, nike boots, and a harem of shawties from 2 Fast 2 Furious throwing lotus leaves on the ground every where he walked.
I had enjoyed Lin's highlight reel and the surrounding hoopla tremendously, until the Asian American blogosphere started their typical routine.
What is a "normal" American and what is not? How can one sports player "be" an entire ethnic group (not getting into how Indian Americans and Chinese and Korean and Vietnamese and Filipino and so on could be one ethnicity)? Many Asian Americans do not care about sports. Many Americans do not care about sports. Many people do not care about sports.
The author's fantasy Yao Ming sounds like an asshat, appealing to asshats and inspiring kids to be asshats. Thank heaven for the real Yao Ming.
It's always weird when an author purporting to be pro-diversity jots down a list of traits he says are associated with a particular ethnicity and that most of that ethnicity don't fulfill them. It's especially weird for someone like me, who is Chinese and who does happen to fill a lot of those roles, to see all the things I'm not supposed to be.
I always wonder if these authors realize they're frequently insensitive/occasionally offensive to the real people they supposedly speak for.
posted by fatehunter at 1:26 PM on February 8, 2012
right now he IS Asian America
If it were up to me, Yao would have had neck tattoos, nike boots, and a harem of shawties from 2 Fast 2 Furious throwing lotus leaves on the ground every where he walked.
I had enjoyed Lin's highlight reel and the surrounding hoopla tremendously, until the Asian American blogosphere started their typical routine.
What is a "normal" American and what is not? How can one sports player "be" an entire ethnic group (not getting into how Indian Americans and Chinese and Korean and Vietnamese and Filipino and so on could be one ethnicity)? Many Asian Americans do not care about sports. Many Americans do not care about sports. Many people do not care about sports.
The author's fantasy Yao Ming sounds like an asshat, appealing to asshats and inspiring kids to be asshats. Thank heaven for the real Yao Ming.
It's always weird when an author purporting to be pro-diversity jots down a list of traits he says are associated with a particular ethnicity and that most of that ethnicity don't fulfill them. It's especially weird for someone like me, who is Chinese and who does happen to fill a lot of those roles, to see all the things I'm not supposed to be.
I always wonder if these authors realize they're frequently insensitive/occasionally offensive to the real people they supposedly speak for.
posted by fatehunter at 1:26 PM on February 8, 2012
It's especially weird for someone like me, who is Chinese and who does happen to fill a lot of those roles, to see all the things I'm not supposed to be.
That's the trap of the "grain of truth" stereotype, I think. On the one hand, you hate to give bigots any reason to point at you and say, "see?" On the other hand, fuck it, I like what I like and do what I do.
I see what you're saying, though, and I hadn't thought about it that way, but I think you're right. Pointing out the stereotypes that exist and how they tend to ossify potential and limit opportunities, that's one thing. Saying "yes, they're all like this" or "no, none of them are like this", either way it's basically the same reductive absolutism. Yeah, that is kind of shitty.
What does being being Asian have to do with defending the Chinese government?
So I'm outside a bar smoking, and this woman comes up and starts talking to me. We're jabbering for a couple minutes, and then she says, "Wow, your English is really good. How long have you lived here?" I say, how old am I now, 31? No, I'm 32. So 32 years. And she says, "Oh. Well, welcome to America!"
You're always going to be from the other place, whereever you are. You don't belong, not really. You look at that shitty Pete Hoekstra ad that made the rounds a couple days ago, hear this person's American accent and broken English, and realize that people really do think you're basically a fifth column for foreign powers. The Japanese internment camps weren't that long ago, and it's not hard to find people who still think of them as regrettable but necessary, because who can really tell with those people? Which is all bullshit, but it still sucks.
But you're proud of who you are, where you come from, your history and your heritage. You don't want to let some fucking idiots take that away from you. You start hearing people's uninformed and kind of stupid opinions about your country of heritage, and they sound like their uninformed and kind of stupid opinions about you. So you take the other side, even though you do think that nation is actually a little fucked up and shouldn't be doing that shit. But it's hard to let idiots be right about anything, because that feels like it opens the door to them being right about you.
Is that sensible? No, not always and not especially, and it's not everyone's reaction to this kind of behavior by any stretch. But sometimes people only let you be one thing, and sometimes some people react to that by going with it pretty hard.
posted by Errant at 1:52 PM on February 8, 2012 [9 favorites]
That's the trap of the "grain of truth" stereotype, I think. On the one hand, you hate to give bigots any reason to point at you and say, "see?" On the other hand, fuck it, I like what I like and do what I do.
I see what you're saying, though, and I hadn't thought about it that way, but I think you're right. Pointing out the stereotypes that exist and how they tend to ossify potential and limit opportunities, that's one thing. Saying "yes, they're all like this" or "no, none of them are like this", either way it's basically the same reductive absolutism. Yeah, that is kind of shitty.
What does being being Asian have to do with defending the Chinese government?
So I'm outside a bar smoking, and this woman comes up and starts talking to me. We're jabbering for a couple minutes, and then she says, "Wow, your English is really good. How long have you lived here?" I say, how old am I now, 31? No, I'm 32. So 32 years. And she says, "Oh. Well, welcome to America!"
You're always going to be from the other place, whereever you are. You don't belong, not really. You look at that shitty Pete Hoekstra ad that made the rounds a couple days ago, hear this person's American accent and broken English, and realize that people really do think you're basically a fifth column for foreign powers. The Japanese internment camps weren't that long ago, and it's not hard to find people who still think of them as regrettable but necessary, because who can really tell with those people? Which is all bullshit, but it still sucks.
But you're proud of who you are, where you come from, your history and your heritage. You don't want to let some fucking idiots take that away from you. You start hearing people's uninformed and kind of stupid opinions about your country of heritage, and they sound like their uninformed and kind of stupid opinions about you. So you take the other side, even though you do think that nation is actually a little fucked up and shouldn't be doing that shit. But it's hard to let idiots be right about anything, because that feels like it opens the door to them being right about you.
Is that sensible? No, not always and not especially, and it's not everyone's reaction to this kind of behavior by any stretch. But sometimes people only let you be one thing, and sometimes some people react to that by going with it pretty hard.
posted by Errant at 1:52 PM on February 8, 2012 [9 favorites]
Assholes. I hate sports New York fans.
It's all "Win, win now, why aren't we winning?" and when throwing money at it doesn't work you have the Isiah Thomas Knicks (or, I think we'll probably see in a couple years, the Melo-Amare Knicks) and, shudder, the Mets.
posted by dixiecupdrinking at 2:06 PM on February 8, 2012
It's all "Win, win now, why aren't we winning?" and when throwing money at it doesn't work you have the Isiah Thomas Knicks (or, I think we'll probably see in a couple years, the Melo-Amare Knicks) and, shudder, the Mets.
posted by dixiecupdrinking at 2:06 PM on February 8, 2012
With 25 points Saturday, Lin set the N.B.A. scoring record for a player from Harvard.
I read that in a Matt Damon/Good Will Hunting accent.
posted by srboisvert at 3:26 PM on February 8, 2012
I read that in a Matt Damon/Good Will Hunting accent.
posted by srboisvert at 3:26 PM on February 8, 2012
It's a lot like that dissonant feeling you get when someone asks you if you like The Smiths and, before you can answer, he or she says everybody who listens to The Smiths is a quiet, depressive suburbanite who likes to shop at the Gap. What are you supposed to do with your identity as an individual when someone just happens to call you out just right like that? Reject it and hate yourself? Try your best to turn into somebody else?What is it about the The Smiths that makes people identify themselves as "people who listen to the The Smiths." It just sounds like generic 80s music to me. I don't know, maybe they were the Ur-80s band or something (Like how Seinfield was a revolutionary show when it aired but now every show since then has been a seinfield ripoff it no longer seems special) But for some reason people who listen to the smiths seem kind of arrogant about it for some reason, which in turn can be annoying.
You're always going to be from the other place, whereever you are. You don't belong, not really. You look at that shitty Pete Hoekstra ad that made the rounds a couple days agoHoly shit. I just learned the word Fremdscham and now I get to use it! Seriously, how does that girl live with herself?
posted by delmoi at 6:49 PM on February 8, 2012
JLin tonight: 23 points, 10 assists
Looking legit still. Most importantly Knicks win 3rd straight without Amare and Melo, their 2 big stars. (They lost something like 9 of their last 10 before this 3 straight).
Friday NY takes on Lakers. NY B-ball is back, baby!!
*dodges rock for being a NY Fan*
posted by pez_LPhiE at 7:13 PM on February 8, 2012 [2 favorites]
Looking legit still. Most importantly Knicks win 3rd straight without Amare and Melo, their 2 big stars. (They lost something like 9 of their last 10 before this 3 straight).
Friday NY takes on Lakers. NY B-ball is back, baby!!
*dodges rock for being a NY Fan*
posted by pez_LPhiE at 7:13 PM on February 8, 2012 [2 favorites]
Some of my favorite bits of Linsanity:
Let's Not Rap About Jeremy Lin, Please - "As the soundtrack to a highlight reel of every layup Lin has made at the professional level, Mega Ran's Lin tribute sort of makes sense. But I think we can do better than this."
(if you like the Mega Ran rap, though, you'll probably love Shump Around.)
Asian Harvard Grad Somehow Succeeding In New York - "It's as if no one can truly fawn over "Linsanity" yet because the mere mention of his name might make him disappear, like some kind of magical elf. I've never seen a fan base think so little of and still so goddamn much of a single player before."
The Linsanity Defense - "However long he gets to be on top, Lin has spent the last week reminding everyone how much space there is in the game for joy and surprise. Whether he wins another game for the Knicks or not, he's already done a lot."
posted by Copronymus at 7:28 AM on February 10, 2012
Let's Not Rap About Jeremy Lin, Please - "As the soundtrack to a highlight reel of every layup Lin has made at the professional level, Mega Ran's Lin tribute sort of makes sense. But I think we can do better than this."
(if you like the Mega Ran rap, though, you'll probably love Shump Around.)
Asian Harvard Grad Somehow Succeeding In New York - "It's as if no one can truly fawn over "Linsanity" yet because the mere mention of his name might make him disappear, like some kind of magical elf. I've never seen a fan base think so little of and still so goddamn much of a single player before."
The Linsanity Defense - "However long he gets to be on top, Lin has spent the last week reminding everyone how much space there is in the game for joy and surprise. Whether he wins another game for the Knicks or not, he's already done a lot."
posted by Copronymus at 7:28 AM on February 10, 2012
"But the zeitgeist moment that came afterward was actually more telling, the moment a young Asian man, identifying deeply with someone who looked like him on the court, proudly held a sign aloft:
“Who Says We Can’t Drive?” it read."
posted by inigo2 at 7:58 AM on February 10, 2012 [1 favorite]
“Who Says We Can’t Drive?” it read."
posted by inigo2 at 7:58 AM on February 10, 2012 [1 favorite]
JLin rap? Too late. Chinese-American rapper MC Jin has released "Nick of Time."
posted by Apocryphon at 3:10 PM on February 10, 2012
posted by Apocryphon at 3:10 PM on February 10, 2012
38 points, 7 assists. 17 seconds away from beating the Lakers.
posted by wikipedia brown boy detective at 7:42 PM on February 10, 2012
posted by wikipedia brown boy detective at 7:42 PM on February 10, 2012
I'm LIN-ked in.....how can this not be the most amazing sports story in years?!
posted by skepticallypleased at 7:45 PM on February 10, 2012
posted by skepticallypleased at 7:45 PM on February 10, 2012
Really happy I bought all that Jeremy Lin stock earlier in the week. I pretty much went all in, refinanced the house, put the kids' college funds in there. Doubled my portfolio in four days, not too shabby. And though I think his long term value still remains high, I'm selling before tonight's game. He's not used to playing 35 minutes a night three/four times a week, he's finally going on the road, and team-killer Melo is returning. So it's liquidation time right now but I'll buy back in after the All-Star break.
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 9:25 AM on February 11, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 9:25 AM on February 11, 2012 [1 favorite]
I just wanted to tell this thread, from one week in the future, that Jeremy Lin is still amazing.
posted by dixiecupdrinking at 9:34 PM on February 15, 2012 [4 favorites]
posted by dixiecupdrinking at 9:34 PM on February 15, 2012 [4 favorites]
"I just wanted to tell this thread, from one week in the future, that Jeremy Lin is still amazing."
Yep.
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 3:31 PM on February 16, 2012
Yep.
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 3:31 PM on February 16, 2012
The LinSanity Continues:
New York's Post and Daily News are competing for the most over-the-top pun-tastic head-Lin... And MAD Magazine's blog gives us a forecast of this trend continuing.
New mashed-up meme: The Most LIN-teresting Man in the World.
EVERYBODY's talking about him, even Doctor Ruth. Of course, once you get into the subject of sex, some unpleasant stereotypes come out (stay classy, Fox Sports). But that's mild compared to some of the racist blowback.
The HyperVocal blog even has some excerpts from his old Xanga account where he called himself 'Chinkballa88'. To quote another Asian-American celebrity, "OH MYYY!!!"
posted by oneswellfoop at 3:48 PM on February 16, 2012
New York's Post and Daily News are competing for the most over-the-top pun-tastic head-Lin... And MAD Magazine's blog gives us a forecast of this trend continuing.
New mashed-up meme: The Most LIN-teresting Man in the World.
EVERYBODY's talking about him, even Doctor Ruth. Of course, once you get into the subject of sex, some unpleasant stereotypes come out (stay classy, Fox Sports). But that's mild compared to some of the racist blowback.
The HyperVocal blog even has some excerpts from his old Xanga account where he called himself 'Chinkballa88'. To quote another Asian-American celebrity, "OH MYYY!!!"
posted by oneswellfoop at 3:48 PM on February 16, 2012
And Whitlock's apology doesn't seem quite like the apology it should be:
"I debased a feel-good sports moment. For that, I’m truly sorry,"
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 4:02 PM on February 16, 2012
"I debased a feel-good sports moment. For that, I’m truly sorry,"
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 4:02 PM on February 16, 2012
his old Xanga account where he called himself 'Chinkballa88
Your point?
ehhhh I'm just messin' with ya.
posted by jabberjaw at 10:09 PM on February 16, 2012
Your point?
ehhhh I'm just messin' with ya.
posted by jabberjaw at 10:09 PM on February 16, 2012
*facepalm*
posted by Devils Rancher at 7:27 AM on February 17, 2012
posted by Devils Rancher at 7:27 AM on February 17, 2012
Shorter David Brooks: "What's a 'sports'?"
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 7:29 AM on February 17, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 7:29 AM on February 17, 2012 [1 favorite]
Nate Silver's analysis is interesting, albeit a little contrived.
posted by bukvich at 7:55 AM on February 17, 2012
posted by bukvich at 7:55 AM on February 17, 2012
Seems right to me bukvich.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 10:12 AM on February 17, 2012
posted by Potomac Avenue at 10:12 AM on February 17, 2012
Oh yeah, and FUCKING JEREMY LIN WTFOMGBBQ
posted by Potomac Avenue at 10:13 AM on February 17, 2012
posted by Potomac Avenue at 10:13 AM on February 17, 2012
The Silver article is a little outdated. Take a look at the last paragraph:
I'd like to see Silver or some other economist do an updated report on Lin.
The Grantland article on Lin is my favorite sum-up so far.
Overall, I really appreciate Lin's lack of ego, but I worry that it will hurt the Knicks if Lin needs to step up, but doesn't.
I hope recruiters start looking at Asian-American basketball players more seriously now, at least at the college level. Yao Ming was great and all, but the guy was a mutant so he set a pretty weird standard for Asian NBA players.
posted by jabberjaw at 11:24 AM on February 17, 2012
It’s also worth watching to see whether Lin can extend the streak tonight against Minnesota. Only 17 of the 41 players had streaks that lasted for longer than four games, with many of the more marginal players dropping off the list.Lin persisted past Minnesota then onto Toronto, but started missing the 50% FG metric, hitting 20 PTS / 8 AST versus Minnesota with 33% and 27 PTS / 11 AST versus Toronto with 45%. Then he only scored 10 against the Kings, but had 13 assists, and it was Stoudemire's first game back so Lin played deferentially. It was still a win against the Kings.
And only five players had such a streak that lasted for six games or longer. Four of them are Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, Isiah Thomas and Dwyane Wade. The other was less illustrious: Lafayette “Fat” Lever.
I'd like to see Silver or some other economist do an updated report on Lin.
The Grantland article on Lin is my favorite sum-up so far.
Overall, I really appreciate Lin's lack of ego, but I worry that it will hurt the Knicks if Lin needs to step up, but doesn't.
I hope recruiters start looking at Asian-American basketball players more seriously now, at least at the college level. Yao Ming was great and all, but the guy was a mutant so he set a pretty weird standard for Asian NBA players.
posted by jabberjaw at 11:24 AM on February 17, 2012
Jeremy Lin row reveals deep-seated racism against Asian Americans
posted by Artw at 4:42 PM on February 22, 2012
posted by Artw at 4:42 PM on February 22, 2012
AAJA Media Advisory on Jeremy Lin News Coverage
posted by Artw at 4:49 PM on February 22, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by Artw at 4:49 PM on February 22, 2012 [1 favorite]
« Older wah wah wah wah waahhh | Coming back like Jordan wearing the 45 Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
Also, Lin doesn't even have an apartment in NYC and has been crashing on a teammate's couch.
posted by no regrets, coyote at 7:45 AM on February 8, 2012