Paul Shirley: Contrarian or A-Hole?
After his essay on the Haiti situation, it’s clear he’s both. Shirley wrote a head-scratching essay in which he admonishes Haitians for being poor and compares donating to the relief effort to giving a homeless guy a dollar. It’s clear he’s not going the conventional route in gaining an admiring audience.
This used to be Paul Shirley's claim to fame. It won't be for much longer.
The baffling theme behind this article is that Haitians have the means to provide themselves better lives but choose not to do so. It seems that he believes that their lack of infrastructure is a reflection on the people and not of a corrupt government, political unrest and a complete lack of an economy. Do Haitians prefer shanties over earthquake resistant modern construction? Probably not. I think they live in shanties because that’s what they can afford. The idea that these people can try harder to have a better life is an incredibly simplistic and arrogant notion, especially from someone who was fortunate enough to play a game professionally and parlay that into writing about music for a living. He’s someone who probably isn’t qualified to discuss hardship.
There is something to be said for trying to be a contrarian and offer a thought provoking look at the other side of an issue. I would have gobbled up an article about opportunistic celebrities or media. If he had wanted to write an essay talking about how donating after a disaster doesn’t help Haiti long-term without investment in infrastructure or means for a sustainable economy, it would be a piece that could have some effect. However, it’s quite another to make light of a Humanitarian disaster and chide a poor and downtrodden people for being poor and downtrodden.
Why he would sabotage his writing career by publishing this is as baffling as his premise here. If you think he survives much longer at ESPN you’re crazy. His ode to PM Dawn today will be his last at the World Wide Leader.   The internet will consume this story, it will soon be national news.  He won’t survive, who would defend him?
To think I thought his praise of Nickelback was the most offensive thing he could write.
http://stuffblackpeopledontlike.blogspot.com/2010/01/no-hope-for-haiti.html
Nothing of what he said was off base. Our own State Department advised against traveling to Haiti in November of 2009 and deemed the entire nation “criminal”.
Read the post above.
- A decades-long embargo as soon as they were independent, imposed by the US, UK and France
- multiple military juntas that plundered the nation’s coffers, followed by a nepotistic father/son duo who ruled the country through murder, fear and terror.
- More military juntas until another corrupt president took over.
And, when they finally seem to get the foundation set for a true rebuilding process, this earthquake happens.
Shirley, don’t talk about that of which you know nothing about.
Great post, Matt. Paul Shirley’s essay was self-indulgent ignorance.