Turd Clipper

It's 2014. Yet, in Donald Sterling's eyes, it may as well be 1814.

The embattled Los Angeles Clippers owner has nobody but himself to blame, even if it's not his voice on tapes telling his girlfriend he disapproves of her associating with black people, even though she is African-American herself.

Sounds like one of the Jeffersons. Namely, Thomas.

When your reputation precedes you as a racist, your players won't waste a warm-up dunk to give you the benefit of the doubt when you've bankrupted yourself of good will long before you get mic'd on TMZ.

The Clippers did the best they could to picket their self-proclaimed master, donning black armbands and heaving their warm-up jackets into a pile at center court for kindling. Unfortunately, the only thing L.A. burned in effigy was it's game-opening two-point lead in Sunday's series-evening loss at Golden State, leaving head coach Doc Rivers accepting blame for the 21-point defeat--the third worst in Clips' postseason history.

To add to the "who me?" mess, Sterling's estranged wife, Rochelle, told ESPN's Lisa Salters she is not a racist.

Whew. That's a relief. A denial straight from the Yes, Ma'am! public relations handbook. Salters reported that Mrs. Sterling was advised not to go on camera with her. You can almost picture the sideline counsel from a head-nodding publicist feeding her lines:

Disassociate yourself from your husband's actions immediately. Reiterate YOU are not a racist. 

Either way, Mrs. Sterling's comments came-off like a self-centered, self-serving, Real Housewife of Orange County who once loved her husband for his personality--not his money. Uh huh. Back to you in Bristol, Jay Harris.

Back to the real victims--the Clippers. The players won't escape this. Neither will any black basketball player, coach, legend, pundit or personality. But the rest can go about their business, until NBA commissioner, Adam Silver, finishes his first true test--an uncharted one even by Association standards. Then we'll go back to the comment well again and find every black player we know to fill the gaps for the same story repeated in countless papers and websites across the Melting Pot. For the Clippers, winning won't quell the leak in the boat; it'll just add more floodlights to the white racist elephant in the cabin.

Guess we didn't come very far at all in 2008 when we elected our country's first black President--as if we really, really would or could. But some actually believed this. Perhaps Donald Sterling believed this.

Nah.

Six years later, minorities are still authorities on race thanks to the foul mouths of the majority. Every time a racist reveals his inner secret--or in Sterling's case, reinforces his reputation--the media run to the first black personality they can find to comment on the matter. And that myopic Melting Pot idea is as much a lie as the millions of white voters who used that election to prove they're really not racists after all.

See? I'm not a...

A what?

A Donald Sterling?

The Clippers' owner is the big picture of race relations in the Melting Pot. The Clippers are the picture of the victims of racism in the Pot. And the rest of us are the spectators walking inquisitively through the gallery until we pass onto the next frame that grabs our attention. We act concerned. We try to feel empathetic, but we move on, because we can. We'll hear more as we pass through, but we'll continue on as if the problem has been solved, until the next problem arises. Then we'll sympathize. We'll act like we care. And we'll move on again.

America. One giant salad that only comes together when someone craps themselves. Then we flush the turd away until the next time we have to return to the toilet.

Sorry. But it's the truth.