SOUTHERNER PAULA DEEN - A HANGING?

Shame on all of you people!  Talk about a hanging in the south! I thought those days were over. You can't tell me that most of you accusers, and so called judge and jury, have not ever used the N word in a joke or in conversation or listened to it in lyrics, or in a show, and the list goes on ... whether you are white or black or whatever color, you're guilty!

I do not believe Paula Deen used the word with animosity.  And her choice of attire for her wait staff at a wedding is her call, folks!  We need to get over this N word stigma.  I mean really!  Murder, rape, killings all over the world, injustices, wars ... those are worth our wrath and time. Not a southern-belle's choice of words.

A southern-belle who struggled with the best of them to eek out a living for her family after divorcing and having only $200 to her name to start over. Early on she had suffered from panic attacks and agoraphobia, so cooking, never leaving her house, became her solace. Luckily her grandmother Irene Paul taught her the art of Southern cooking in those days. And regardless if you like southern cooking or not, all you critics out there, some of the most successful restaurants in this country are just that. It's not the most healthful eating, I'll be the first to say, but it sure does taste good, I have to admit. Even Julia Child's French cooking wasn't the most healthful with all that dairy and flour, but it sure tasted good too.

After Paula's divorce, in 1989 she moved to Savannah, Georgia, with only those 200 greenbacks to start a new life with two sons and a younger brother in tow. She tried hanging wallpaper, working as a bank teller, and selling insurance and real estate, whatever she could find.  On her off time she started a catering service, making sandwiches and meals that her sons and brother delivered for her.  She called the business "The Bag Lady."  Ingenious!  Then when she outgrew the home business she opened a restaurant in Savannah called "The Lady".  Now it's called "The Lady & Sons."  She's a hard worker, folks. Have you ever worked that hard in a kitchen? Do you know what it takes to make it in that business and to get as far as she has to have it fall down around her ears because of a disgruntled employee's grievance?

She even marketed a dessert line to Wal-Mart and now that will go by the wayside at the end of contract, according to Wal-Mart's recent announcement. Pooh on Wal-mart! Her cooking shows have been cancelled by the Food Network. Pooh on Food Network!

SO ARE ALL YOU FINGER POINTERS HAPPY?   Remember the old saying ...

And you better hope that when you laugh at an ethnic joke no matter what race it is about, and you let a questionable expletive slip, or you dress for a party or request someone else to dress like a maid of old southern times, that someone doesn't come at you and try to destroy your world.

Well, I don't believe you can destroy Paula.  She has gumption, just as Martha Stewart had.  And she'll fare well. Her books are selling off the shelves, she's number one at Amazon, and I for one am going to buy her cookbooks because I collect cookbooks ... and I cook with her terrific pots and pans (have the apple green set).  She's a lady, she is.  Still is.

Hang in there, Paula!

P.S. And to all my dear friends of color, you know how prejudiced I am not!  You know where I stand on the subject. But it works both ways, I've noticed.  Black against white too.  Not good.  The N-word  cannot be used as a catalyst in waging war with one another.

Another old saying ...

But then again, I know, I know ... words and names do hurt. So it's also up to us to be careful with what we say to each other. Be kind and loving, regardless of the situation.  If you know what you might say is hurtful, bite your tongue!