Friday, September 14, 2007

Are Fish Sandwiches Really Offensive?

Can suggesting that the Duke players settle for fish sandwiches (among other things) in their lawsuit really be offensive to Catholics? For how many readers was it common knowledge that three of the players were of the Catholic faith? And for how many of those few readers was the connection made between Catholicism and the now-defunct practice of eating fish on Fridays? There is little that can be said these days that isn't offensive to one group or another, even when no slight was intended or even considered. If the fish sandwiches instead had been chicken or beef, would PETA have had a right to get up in arms? As a nation we have been divided and subdivided into more interest groups that any one person can count. Has the media been responsible for any of that? My opinion is that yes, it has. The media is responsible for what is brought to people's attention and it tells us what is most important by putting that information on the front page, or making it the leading blurb to a tv or radio news broadcast, etc. I think finding the mention of fish sandwiches in this situation was not meant to be derogatory or inflammatory. I think Catholics speaking out in an offended position is uncalled for. And I think that reporting the situation is not really news, but more along the lines of gossip. L.L. Woodard http://llwoodard.com/

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