Ta-Nehisi Coates

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Billy Dee Williams says "Young man, pull up your pants..."

03 Nov 2008 12:45 pm

Hah, Obama on the question that vexes all black people over 40. You know where I am on this one. When I was a kid Negroes were wearing their pants backwards--literaly. A few years back, when I worked at the Voice, I couldn't walk through the East Village without seeing a young lady in low-riders with her thong showing. I didn't have a problem with that. Hmmm, that's not the same thing, I guess.

Uhm, moving on...I thought the "Brothers need to pull their pants up" line was pretty funny. It's good to see a dude operating at that level who still has a sense of humor.

Comments (20)

I think the exposed thong thing looks tacky and desperate, but it raises the question for heterosexual male commentors: would lowriders without exposed underwear be just as sexy, or is it the underwear that sells the look?

Had to laugh hard at this.

Sway: ... I got locks
O: ... You look tight.

Now all we can do is wait.


I think we all know who the better comedian in this race is. But yeah, this was mildly funny.

"Having said that, brothers need to pull their pants up." That was beautiful. I hope he can stay that funny, smart and solid.

Also, Deborah, it is the thong that sells the look. Having said that, chicks need to pull their pants up.

At first, I thought, "No big deal. His response seems pretty level-headed, but also pretty obvious and just common sense."

Then, I imagined Bush or McCain or, god forbid, Palin trying to answer this question.

I'm buying the champagne today. It's seems tiny, but the idea of a president who can respond to this question without seeming like either (a) a total prick or (b) completely out of touch... it gets me a little giddy.

Ladies and gentlemen, your next president.

As The Atlantic has reported, Flint, Michigan has a ridiculous city ordinance against baggy pants, which apparently extends to a local theater company's production of "The Full Monty."

http://www.flintexpats.com/2008/11/criminal-performance.html

why have i never heard that guy utter one false note?

not one. false. note.

it's incredible.

by contrast, kerry (whom i voted for) took some flak the other week for that "depends" joke about mccain.

i saw a clip of him explaining how he didn't really mean it and anyhow everyone tells that joke and anyhow how the punch line is "it depends".

man, it was so lame i was almost glad he hadn't won.

i have seen better excuse-making from a five year-old covered from ear to ear in the strawberry pie he wasn't supposed to touch.

i am just in awe of the man. and since i'm voting for my tenth democratic presidential candidate, i'm too damned old to be a gushing fan. but, damn.

Hyper-informal styles -- over-sized clothes, caps askew, drooping drawers, team jerseys -- strike me as the sartorial embodiment of ostracism.

If you’re not invited to the event, why dress for it?

Not that it is particularly funny, but I did grin with his answer. I find him terribly refreshing that (by virtue of who he is) state the obvious to the young folk.

To the thong thang...It's flat out nasty to have one's ass out of their pants. Even if it is considered to be an ass worth showing, my point is beyond that of public decency but of hygiene. The ass crack is not the cleanest part of the body and I shudder at the thought of ass juice on a seat in the bus or on a chair at a restaurant. Yuck. Just cover that ass up please.

too many steves

Oh behalf of straight men everywhere: ladies, if you've got an ass worth showing off, don't wear low-riders. Wear tight pants. The tighter the better. Please?

There's a time and a place for walking around with your butt hanging out--Mardi Gras, Fantasy Fest, after dinner at my house...

Seriously, I look at it as a way of people showing their individuality, and some versions of that make me shake my head and wonder what they're trying to show. If it happens in my classroom, I'm fine with it as long as there's nothing that causes a hostile learning environment. Somebody wants to show their boxers, I'm fine with it, as long as there aren't any skidmarks.

Did I go too far with that last one? I always do that.

In foreign affairs, we speak of "hard power" guns and "soft power" influence.

The future President just brought the soft power to the clothing wars.

I predict a tsunami of trousers with a traditional fit, quite possibly with shirts tucked all the way in.


sporc--
yeah, i noticed that too.

the guy radiates gravitas, and you want to earn his respect.

the mtv announcer--one of the arbiters of cool to millions of youth--was clearly ready to do what ever it took to earn his respect. if his pants had been drooping, he would have jumped up and pulled up his pants.

yeah, soft power is a good way to describe it.

i can only hope he continues to use it for good.

One of the more touching little Boston stories was from a woman who dropped her cell phone as she got onto a bus. A young man in giant pants grabbed the phone and ran after the bus, holding the phone in one hand and pulling up the extra pants material in the other so he could run.

To me, giant pants are on the weird end of the fashion spectrum, like giant shoes and quilted skirts. Pants pulled down to show the underwear are on the "what part of 'underwear' do you not understand" end of the spectrum-it always looks like trying too hard. Like the difference between a clingy and flattering dress, and a shirt that literally* says "I'm a slut and I'm available."

*In the literal sense, not the Biden sense.

He hasn't uttered a false note, it does seem like that. He's also damn good at mocking those who do.

Tony Comstock

Did Barry just answer Ross's question about how to sell conservative values? I think so!

"One of the more touching little Boston stories was from a woman who dropped her cell phone as she got onto a bus. A young man in giant pants grabbed the phone and ran after the bus, holding the phone in one hand and pulling up the extra pants material in the other so he could run."

BWA-HAHAHAHAHAHA-AHAHA-HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

[On the inside, because I'm at work.]

BTW, I believe Cher Horowitz spoke for ladies everywhere back in ye olde 1995 in re the saggy pants look. Obama's just being a biter.

What I can't understand is how this trend has lasted as long as it has. I mean, doesn't it get annoying pulling your pants up all the time? I love to wear heels, but most of the time I prefer my flip-flops; they're just more comfortable.

Rottin' in Denmark

No fashion trend will ever bother me as much as Sway.

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