This isn't new, since it was first posted almost a year ago, but I thought it was funny. And inspiring. I mean, look at Jaclyn and then look at her grandfather. That's progress, don't you think?
I noticed that she didn't tell him she was an atheist. That's how
I discovered her videos. (I was just wasting time tonight, which is why I went back and watched some older ones.)
I can understand it. There's really no sense in getting the old fart
too upset. Of course, no one should have to live a lie, but it's not always necessary to volunteer everything, either. Either way, I'm not going to second-guess anyone on that decision, whether to come out of the closet or stay inside.
She's very definitely out of the closet on YouTube, and she doesn't mince words. She's funny - and easy on the eyes, of course. But she doesn't mind offending people. It's an entertaining combination.
I enjoy her videos, but this is the one I had to post. This is the one that really struck me. There's a lot of love between Jaclyn and her grandfather, but a lot of mutual incomprehension, too.
Of course, I'm not sure how much of this can be attributed to age. I suspect that her grandfather was
always crazy as a loon. But then, I don't know. It's hard to even imagine him as a young man, isn't it?
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4 comments:
That's hilarious, but also kind of touching. You can tell the old man really loves her, but he's so trapped in bigotry and ignorance that he just doesn't get it.
Great video!
That's exactly what I thought, Gregg. I'm glad you enjoyed it.
I couldn't watch all of it. The bigotry of the old man really got to me. I forget it all the time but things like this really drive it home - I just have not been exposed to outright racism to the extent that seems to exist in America. Either in NZ or the UK. It might exist, I just don't seem to see it or read comments from people who have these sorts of views. I know bigots, I know racists, I know ignorant people but the extent to which that man was all three is so shocking to me. I have never encountered anyone like that. And I find it very depressing that America seems to be full of them.
Nothing has been more important than race in America, m1nks. That kind of thing doesn't vanish in an instant.
Racism wasn't as big a problem in other countries, because they didn't have a big population of different ethnicity. This is still a lingering effect of slavery, too, of course. For all our talk about a 'melting pot,' America has had a caste system at least as difficult to overcome as anything in India.
This old guy was always a racist, and probably always an idiot, and he's certainly not going to change now. But even racists love their grandchildren, and vice versa.
You can't choose your relatives. If they're distant relatives, you can avoid them,... but grandparents? You can despise their thinking, but they're still your grandparents.
That's why I liked this, I think. I sympathize with Jaclyn. I don't sympathize with her grandfather, though his friends probably do, if they're still alive (wondering what has gone wrong with the younger generation).
This guy will be dead soon. We do progress (and this has been a huge change in attitudes, accomplished mostly peacefully - we can be proud of that). What I find depressing is when I encounter young racists.
Still, in my lifetime, I've seen enormous progress. Do you think we'd have elected a black man as president even twenty years ago? Heck, I've got socks older than that! :)
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