We're listening to who?

Okay, I'm not going to try and defend Imus. His comments were not only filled with ignorance and seething with hate, they obviously should never have been made. But I will utter these words only once more, Imus should not have been fired.
First of all, while his comments were stupid and racist they were filled with a certain form of admiration. If you listen carefully to the whole conversation the context of the situation becomes more clear. Imus was granting the women a begrudging form of respect, though it was made in the stupidest of ways. Al Sharpton of all people should understand the need for being aware of context, just look at his history.
The larger problem associated with the Imus firing is that he is being forced into the role of a scapegoat for a much larger problem in the society as a whole. Imus as an authority figure did have a responsibility for the information presented on his show. But since when have Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson been the voices of American conscience. It is funny that when double standards exist for white males, the idea is thrown aside because he still made the comment. So as a white male I am forced to put up with such double standards and yet women and minority groups get off scott free. If Sharpton would demand such a change in the dangerous black culture I would not have such a problem. But to demand such conditions and to expect more just because he was white. If there is one message I could send to any black political party it is distance yourself as much as possible from the dinosaurs of the classic civil rights movement. Times have changed and so should your leaders.