Poor little old Oprah Winfrey. According to her she received some of her own medicine of being a racist and sexist. But the truth is one of three things:
1. She went in to buy a $38,000 purse (I don't think there is one person on here that doesn't think that is such a piss poor thing to do, as most people don't make that a year) and because they didn't know she was a Queen of Hollywood and kiss her big no talent ass and the Sales Lady tried to do her a favor that any other women in the world would say thank you for, but pointing out a purse less expensive, she felt she was being decimated against because of her race. What an ego.
2. Since she is too rich and snotty to usually do her own shopping, her shopper went in and when her shopper mentioned her name it didn't mean a thing to them. Actually only a few fooish women are paying hard money to watch her show. That is why her network is not making much money. So she had to come out and get her name in public again.
3. Or the truth is she lied and used this to push her movie. She is buying the Academy Award and is using race to cover for her poor work. She is greedy, selfish and has little if any real talent. So she has to push her movie and with the help of the excuse we have for a media, they give her all she wants without looking to find out the truth.
Now I am sure there are some people who see nothing wrong with anything she does and will defend her and since I could use a good laugh I would love to hear how you do it.
thank you. I said I needed a good laugh. Car, house, even sun glasses and yes unless you are an over paid devia like Queen Oprah, people want sales representatives to help them and show them everything, including items that do just as well, but don't cost an arm and a leg. Anyone who really works for a living understands that. But you still won't get me to change my mind about some fat cat paying $38,000 for a purse. If I am suppose to feel sorry for her, forget it.
I work for a living, pay my way, don't sponge off anyone or rob anyone. If that makes me a have not (and I know people on the poverty level and I help out those closest to me whenever I can so don't put them down just because of the way our government is running the economy) then so be it. I'm not bitter. I think people have a right to work hard and earn their money. I do not believe that the government or anyone else has a right to what I earn or how I spend it. If I want to share my money with anyone I will make that decission and not the government. But if I have money available beyond what it takes to have a nice life, then I help those I can. But if I spent my money on something stupid, and someone points it out, I'm not going to cry class warfare.
Come on, you know she is pushing her movie and that like anyone else she wants to put her name out in public and get people to go see it. Nothing wrong there, but to try and hurt a business or someone trying to make a living just to sell her product is kind of rotten. And yes, you can buy the Academy Award just as people have bought buy the Nobel prize. All it takes is pressure and money. Her movie is about raceism so what better way to push the movie and get people talking about it who would never otherwise than to shout "Look at poor little me and how bad they treat me." That is a bit low and that is my complaint.
As I said I knew there would be "fans" who would see nothing wrong in what she did and I would be happy to hear how they defend her. Thank you again for your response.
Big-haired Bitch/Personality Hire
Dude, what is your deal? And you've got your facts all wrong.
1. She didn't walk into the store specifically to BUY the bag. She walked into the store to shop. She saw a bag she liked, and asked to see it. When I walk into a store and see something I like, I'm gonna ask to see it up close if it's out of my reach.
2. When she asked to see the bag, she was told at that moment, "No, it's too expensive." The sales person made an assumption. Sometimes when you make assumptions, you make an ass out of yourself (and sometimes you don't). She later found out that the bag was $38,000. Yes that's beyond reasonable for the average consumer. But to Oprah, that's ass wiping money. $38,000 to Oprah is the equivalent to the quarters we find in our couch cushions and in the seats and cup holders of our cars. I personally have better things to do than to give a shit how Oprah spends the $38,000+ that she makes.
3. Upon being told that it was too expensive, she walked out. She didn't do the, "Oh bitch! I'm Oprah," thing that many would assume she did. She simply walked out. The only reason the story got out was because she told someone who told someone who told someone else. She actually apologized to the store/country in question for the story getting out and perhaps staining their reputation. Not only that, in a quick interview, she also said that the bag was too expensive. Probably because the bag wasn't worth the $38,000 it cost. (I saw the bag. It really wasn't.)
As Sprite said, I'm not a huge Oprah fan. My mom likes her though. She seems like a pretty cool down to earth lady from what I've seen/heard. I never really picked up on the sexist/racist thing from her. But hey, if that's your angle, knock yourself out. I don't know if it was racism. What I do know is that it was stupid on the part of that sales person. Not for the fact that they didn't recognize Oprah, but for the fact that a woman can't walk into a store and ask to see a bag without some dummy saying, "No. It's too expensive." When I walk into a store, you better assume I've got money to blow and treat me accordingly.
But being butthurt about people having more money than me never got me anywhere in life. So quite frankly, I couldn't care less. She could have spent $38,000 for someone to floss her toes, and I still wouldn't give a fraction of a percentage of the proceeds of a fuck about it.
SIDENOTE: You say you work hard to get where you are and help out others along the way. Do you know Oprah's story? How she came from poverty? Like TRUE poverty and worked her way to what she is? It wasn't old money. It wasn't money that she was born into or was suddenly handed to her. She worked for it. And has built schools in 3rd world countries and many other things that I can go on about forever. I'm not understanding why her hard work is null and void because she has billions of dollars...that she WORKED for...just as you worked for whatever amount of money you have to your name. Even if it is a publicity stunt, so what? It most certainly got your attention...and served its purpose. Again, I'm no fan of Oprah. But I don't have anything against her or her money...and when she spends said money on what the fuck ever, that doesn't bug me either.
Telling her she shouldn't buy $38,000 bags because most people don't make that in a year is like telling me to eat all my food because people in 3rd world countries are starving.
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I don't have any particular axe to grind against Oprah Winfrey I felt she gave quite an impressive performance in The Colour Purple. However I do feel anyone earning these vast sums of money is drastically overpaid. I don't give a damn if anyone thinks I'm jealous of a rich life style but it is obscene to spend 38000 on a purse in fact it's obscene to offer it for sale in the first place and I do have a problem knowing I live well compared to third world countries where people starve never mind can only afford 1 car a family (by the way I can't really afford a car but don't want one). I suppose my inclinations are towards socialism but some fairer distribution of the world's resources seems the only thing rather than pretending to 'rescue' poor oppressed countries like Iraq which just happens to be the world's second biggest oil producer but ignoring other oppressed places like Egypt where the main industry is only displaying the past. I see this whole pretentious incident a symptom of these contradictions.
Poor Scott has invited a shitstorm of long winded fuck you's. I'll keep mine short and sweet. I am not the biggest fan and I'm not the big hater either. Her influence outside of her show and tv network isn't productive or appreciated in my opinion but, I could not care one bit how she spends her cash. What it all boils down to is a She said/She said argument. The store clerk is explaining this situation in a completely different light. It IS quite possible that it was somewhat of a misunderstanding from the beginning. The uber expensive bag was way up high, there was a similar bag at arms reach that was easier to access?? who the fuck really knows. Regardless, the situation was being used as a convenient illustration of how "Even I'm discriminated against" in a lead in to the trailers and interviews for her new movie "The Butler". No different than any famous person who's got a publicist working in the background, she's been possibly prompted to keep conversation relevant and exciting and this was a good and easy way to do that. Unfortunately, it grew legs and in the world of instant communication, got verified, followed up on etc etc... and now we have all stories on the table and a "Neutral" country that's a little pissed that they got dragged into this in the first place. Damage control, finger pointing, resignations, reprimands ... yada yada yada. Don't be surprised if the poor vilified clerk is slipped a small bonus for taking one for the team as a nice way of smoothing things over. She'll wave her magic wand, sprinkle shiny objects in the air and we'll all be distracted and POOF...it'll all disappear. This little episode has gotten more bang for the buck than anyone ever anticipated. So, move along now...nothing to see here. Get your popcorn and junior mints...
Don't waste your tine on idiots and he truly is one. I am not an Oprah fan but nor am I a hater. She can buy whatever she wants. Also, I am from the same area she is and she has done a number of kind and wonderful things. I tend to detest talk shows.
I'm not sure the sales clerk was racist, but it wasn't smart. Maybe the clerk was trying to be helpful, but if a customer wants to see something.. show it. If as a sales person, maybe you can make one attempt at.. this purse is just like it, but half the price.. whatever. AFter the second request to see the uber-purse, it's your duty to show it.
A similar thing happened to my sister in law, obviously on a much smaller scale. She's the wife of a doctor in a small town, fairly well known withing the small town. She went into a custom drapery shop to look at curtains for their new house. The clerk looked at her, dressed normally in jeans and a blouse, and told her straight out..."You can't afford those. Or most things here." My SIL told her she could, the clerk who was the co-owner, didn't believe her. So, she left. Bought expensive curtains elsewhere and returned to show the lady the receipt. The other owner was there this time, as my SIL left she was thrilled to hear them arguing.
Sometimes people are just stupid and not necessarily racist. Maybe the clerk is racist, but there's no way to really tell from this one event. I didnt' know Switzerland had such a problem with racism and prejudice.
And Oprah didn't just tell someone, she said it in an interview. Of course she knew it would blow up and go viral. She's Oprah freaking Winfrey. It's her money and she can spend it however she wishes, it's no one's business and no one has any say in her finances but her.
When the debate is lost, slander becomes the tool of the loser. Socrates From the press i have read it seems to suggest that Oprah actually asked how much the purse was, and was told in response that it was 38 thousand and that she could show her some other purses as well. It was not a refusal to show her only that there were more options available.
nobody cares if she knew who Oprah was, a non issue, the store owner (who was also at Tina Turners wedding) said she did everything right and backed her up so to rebuff one above claim, then she probably did high five her. Its worth noting that these kind of shops especially in Switzerland or otherwise affluent eurpoean places that asking the price before inspection is usually a sign of not intending to purchase, i know Oprah went on about her "black"card and by that i mean bank card surely she should realise that in shops such as this 90+ percent of people have them. This clerk has worked there for years in another shop somewhere like san maritz or monaco and is fully aware how to deal with the customers.
In the end it does seem like a publicity stunt, i feel the race card was pulled out immediately to cause controversy (when clearly its not a race issue) and to apologise to Switzerland itself straight after is another sign of this, its not like the nation itself was hurt by the claims, nor cared.
other than that the original rant was a tad silly, let people who have money spend it like they want to the economy and people who work for them in great numbers will always benefit. if i could have that kind of money i know i wouldnt be frugal. but i do think Oprah was being overtly sensitive and saw an opportunity to plug her work by foolishly playing the race card, and thats not good in any way.
And now after realing that i wasted time reading the story the other night and now doing this i am truly sorry and do promise never to read anything celebrity related ever!!
Wow, I figured this post would get just a couple of tar and feather responses and then sink into the sunset. People do get emotional when talking over subjects and make attacks on those who view different so I just let that pass. They say things on the net that they never would face to face because in real life they are polite, but on the net you can let your true feelings, even if a bit rotten come out. Like I said I brought this up for a laugh to see how people would defend her. As a man I can't understand wanting a purse for $38,000 but then she has the money to fill it overflowing. And yes women can't understand how we men would pay so much for a car.
And if you know how she made her way up the ladder it wasn't just because of talent. She really isn't a good actress or entertainer, but everyone to their own taste. Oprah had good luck and being in the right place at the right time and then she used that to build her career. Nothing wrong with that. Look at all the no talent people on so called reallity shows who are making big money just for making fools out of themselves. If someone is foolish enought to pay you, hey take their money.
And yes, I have had rotten salespeople in my shopping. It really is hard to get good service in most places now a days. One reason is most outfits can no longer hire all the people they need and those working feel pressed and make poor salesmanship errors. Look if you got too much money and want to waste it that is your business. Just because people are rich doesn't make them smart. And I don't like some sales person pushing higher price items on me, but when I ask for help I want them to show me what they have and to answer my questions. Ms Winfrey said this was blown out of context and wishes she hadn't said anything and didn't mean for anyone to get in trouble at the store. I think that is very Lady like and polite of her, but that was after the fact and she got her money's worth of pubic notice for herself and her film. After all that is what this was really all about. The actual shopping and the so called prejudice and racism was what she put out, because that is what the movie is about. No one at the store said anything about "Sorry we can't wait on you because of your race."
I put the three reasons in, knowning that only one was correct to show what might have happened. She does think of herself as Hollywood royalty and that's her ego problem. Of course I am the Grand Duke of Girl Chasers, but that's my ego. (Man I'm going to get hit with a lot of stones for that joke.)
I am NOT a fan of Ms. Winfrey, Doctor Phil, The Duck People, or any of those jerk shows. But then I like the Three Stooges so each to their own kind of humor.
One good thing came out of this thread is people telling stories of what has happen to them in their life and it has proved to be a meaning discussion. I enjoyed reading the pay back stories. Way to go.
P. S. those glasses in my picture belonged to the guy whose boat we took out. It was fun as is was one of his race boats (he had it rebuilt after an accident), but didn't have a wind shield or any goggles as he didn't plan of having anyone taking it out, so he rounded up some sun glasses so when we took turns running across the lake at over 100 mph our eyes didn't get driven to the back of our heads. Those glasses were too small and tight, but that worked out perfect. He had a gov on the carb so it won't do full speed as the lake wasn't big enought to bring it to a halt before running aground at a speed faster. But it was the first time I drove a boat over a 100 mph so I had no complaints about the sun glasses. K Mart or not.
I saw on TV that the store owner thought there might have been a miscommunication issue due to language differences. I have no idea as I wasn't there. Usually the color of money preempts any other color bias. I hope there was no racism involved.
I have never seen an episode of Oprah Winfrey's TV Show, but like someone mentioned above, I thought she did a good job acting in The Color Purple. I really don't know very much about her except that she is a highly successful capitalist. I admire that.
What Byron posted made me think of an episode of The Cosby Show, where Dr. Huxtable takes his son, Theo, with him to buy a new car. Dr. Huxtable dresses way down in some yard work clothes to make the car salesman think he doesn't have much money. However, while he is negotiating with the salesman, Theo lets it slip that his Dad is a doctor. The car salesman's face lights up thinking he can get away with charging more for the car.
Oprah had too much influence over easily influenced people. I was personally glad to see her show go off cable TV.
That being said, she obviously did a lot a good things for some people and probably still does. Still, it's hard for me to relate the mega-rich like Oprah. She's not exactly grounded in reality.
I am not into Oprah like I used to be. I know she has worked hard to get where she is but has anyone thought this sales person might not of known who she was. Because I can't picture anyone doing that if she knew who she was. It was Switzerland RiGHT???? I don't thing that country owes her an apology and Oprah should of said that. If it was me I would of either pulled out my credit card or cash and said yes I would like to buy it or talk to a manager not walk out. Or like in the pretty woman movie if I found it somewhere else would of stopped on the way back and said "see showed the purse and said gotta go do more shopping". So much more you can do then let it hit the airways..That is what I am tired about....
This story is bullshit. Opera asked about the expensive bag and the store assistant replied, "It's like the one in my hand, only much more expensive, I can show you similar bags.” No refusal, no racial profiling, no nothing.
The only person who mentioned "race" in this was Oprah. Based on absolutely nothing. I hate when people use the race card because its convenient, or they want to make an issue where there is none.
Oprah. Once caught a show where she invited 3 men and one woman to comment on her previous show where only women were panelists and audience, and they were able to spew on about womanhood. She gave the men some time to express their points and then, with concentration on one panelist and mostly female audience members chosen, they laid in again. There's no war honey, you were abused. Boohoo fucking who. We have all been laid out by abusive spouses, family members, and intended loves.
If women were so superior and all knowing as she urgently needs to be, then there wouldn't be so many fucked up men. Life's a bitch, get over yourself, and your high horse. Now go give Gayle a kiss while you shake your fat ass in Stedman's face. Blowhard.
For being a woman who has done so much for other people, charities, creating schools in third world countries, Oprah sure does get trashed a lot. One thing...all you know-it-all's who pass judgement on her like ya'all know her, work with her, live near her or whatever. Pathetic really.
btw, i don't believe she ever asked for an apology - my understanding is that the media blew it all up out of proportion.
