WILL.I.AM's comment on Einstein

[JeffB]

Originally Posted by Mr. Jeff

Not many things make me angry, this did.

It was WRONG and inappropriate.

If I have to explain why then our world is in worse shape than I thought.

Go ahead vulgarity supporters and rip me up if you'd like, I can take.

I'm curious why this made you so angry? Are you under the impression the kids don't use the same words when adults aren't around? Did you not do the same at their age?

You're right. It was inappropriate. There isn't really any debate to that.

But, if THIS is what makes you think the world is in terrible shape, I'd implore you to look at bigger problems than this. If the worst thing that happened to any of these kids this weekend was hearing a celeb cuss, it's a pretty successful weekend. Keep in mind most years come with stories of team vans being broken into with things stolen. Last year, there was a murder just down the street from the event. With all of THESE things going on, why would a single remark be what upsets you this much?

[Jared Russell]

Originally Posted by Mr. Jeff

After Saturday I don’t recognize his accomplishment.

You really don't recognize his accomplishments because he used profanity in a moment of candor?

You must have a very short list of heroes.

[nathanwalters]

Originally Posted by Mr. Jeff

FIRST is supposed to change the culture, It appears the culture is changing FIRST.

If, as others have suggested, you focus on will.i.am's message and not his choice of words, I would say you are dead wrong. A prominent figure from pop culture took time off from his busy schedule to come to a robotics championship and show an incredibly passionate and unscripted display of support for FIRST and what FIRST is doing in the world. If that's not a change in culture, I don't know what is.

[synth3tk]

Originally Posted by Mr. Jeff

After Saturday I don’t recognize his accomplishment.

You're welcome to your opinion on his choice of words, but in this regard, you're being straight up childish and completely irrational.

Discuss.

[ToddF]

Quoted from the FIRST Mentoring Guide. (If you've never read it, do so.)

"It is important for every adult to remember that there are responsibilities that come with the adult/student relationship. Young people look up to people they trust and respect and will look to mentors as their role models, and they will closely watch the adults’ actions and see their behavior as appropriate.

An adult may think that he or she is showing camaraderie and will fit in with a group of students by using the same offensive language the students use among their peers, and the reaction of the students may make the adult feel like he or she is part of the group. But what the adult is really “saying” is that inappropriate language is ok."

The FIRST organization's choice of spokespersons reflects on the organization. We tell our students that when they are at events, wearing our team's T-shirts, they are representatives of our team, and their behavior and language should reflect the team's values.

Was I surprised that Will said what he did? No. I've listened to his music. (And quite like some of it.) Anyone who had also done so shouldn't have been surprised. Musicians and performers use language like that in their music and on stage all the time. I consider it to be pandering to the audience in an attempt to elicit a specific type of emotional response. As media savvy as Will is, I believe it was a preplanned comment, at least on his part. I certainly saw it coming as soon as he started his previous sentence.

I was more interested to observe the reactions of the FIRST officials around him. I found those reactions disappointing. I certainly now believe that the passage quoted in the mentor handbook to be hypocritical at best.

[Jbkerns]

Originally Posted by Mr. Jeff

I’ve been a mentor for 12 consecutive years and remained silent on Delphi, that stops today. Not many things make me angry, this did.

If William, Kamen, Flowers or FIRST won’t say it, I will.

It was WRONG and inappropriate.

Understanding the majority in attendance were kids raised on idealizing celebrities the shock factor was rewarded with a roar of applause. The crowds response in addition to all the positive supportive post greatly sadden me about we have become. If I have to explain why then our world is in worse shape than I thought. Was it a mistake that he wish he could take back? Maybe, if so he should say so. William boast about being from the hood, many are that are good decent role models. After Saturday I don’t recognize his accomplishment. Go ahead vulgarity supporters and rip me up if you'd like, I can take.

FIRST is supposed to change the culture, It appears the culture is changing FIRST.

Mr. Jeff Sparky 384

My comments do not reflect the opinion of my team.

Jeff,

FIRST has to do both. We change the culture through our robotics competition, but we must also be apart of that culture. To think that we are going to mold high school students into being something different than what they are is a tough sell. Students use vulgar language. That is a fact. To think that any of the students that were in attendance (yes even FLL kids) have never heard that kind of language is foolish. Furthermore, to think that those students had never heard that language from an influential figure (family member, mentor, rapper, you name it) is just the same. These words can be used to great effect. They relay a passion that no other words could. So many times we hear speeches from figureheads of large corporations or prominent figures that can't come close to the passion that Will.I.Am showed in that phrase. There is a time and place for vulgar language. It shouldn't be used in every sentence. But, when used as a tool to portray that level of emotion without the need to hear it live, nothing comes close.

Yes it was unprofessional, but who are we kidding, we work with high school students. If we act like we are in an official meeting every time we are with them, you will only see a small glimpse into what kind of people they will become.

I have a challenge for you. Come up with a phrase akin to what he did. Make it concise and passionate. But, it must only be in text form. I believe that you will have a difficult time doing that. To have something so short echo all of our sentiments of this program is a very impressive thing.

[marshall]

Originally Posted by ToddF

I certainly now believe that the passage quoted in the mentor handbook to be hypocritical at best.

Yep. I do enjoy that mentor handbook though. It's been a great resource for me and our team. It does need revision and should include more than it does now.

[Taylor]

I understand why Jeff has remained silent for 12 years.

[TheOtherGuy]

Originally Posted by ToddF

I was more interested to observe the reactions of the FIRST officials around him. I found those reactions disappointing. I certainly now believe that the passage quoted in the mentor handbook to be hypocritical at best.

What would you have done?

[Chris Hibner]

I thought I would be in a big minority on this one, but I'm pleasantly surprised by the reaction here. I was going to type a long response, but MrNoble nailed it for me. I'm not naive enough to think that students don't talk like that when adults aren't around. I have a good enough memory to remember when I was that age.

I've long thought that Americans are very uptight about a lot of things that don't even raise eyebrows in a lot of other parts of the world. I figured that Will's comment would create a firestorm of hate. I'm glad it's being taken (for the most part) as someone showing their passion.

What is interesting to me, is that when Will was giving his speech leading up to the famous quote, I was thinking to myself "Will is starting to sound a lot like the other people that speak. I'm starting to think that he may be losing some street cred and the students will view him as a typical adult telling them why what they're doing is important and tune out." Then in one fell swoop that got washed away.

[dirtbikerxz]

All right guys, I know I'm only a teen, and I might not have the "respect" to say this, but there is no need to rip apart Mr. Jeff like that. I too agree that Will.I.Am's message was sincere, and his use of those words were appropriate for that situation... but there is no reason to be so brutal to Mr. Jeff.

[TehSwegGey]

Found this on TeeSpring today: [LINK APPEARS TO BE DOWN NOW]

I was thinking about doing this as a way to open the shirt idea to more people than one person could handle in an order (since the company does all the heavy lifting here), but I guess someone already beat me to it... lol.

EDIT: Since the shirt appears to be taken down, maybe due to Branding (idk), I made my own version, which is a little cleaner but still gets the point across

[Akash Rastogi]

I keep seeing people say it was unprofessional, but I work in finance I haven't gone a day at work without hearing my co-workers and superiors curse out of frustration or when they're excited.

What about what Will said was unprofessional? How do you define professionalism?

[Chief Hedgehog]

As an artist, Will.I.Am uses language as his medium to express emotions. So when he said that - I laughed, shook my head and just smiled. He nailed it.

No I do not condone the language used, but I understand the intensity of the emotions at that moment.

[MaGiC_PiKaChU]

If you feel like mere words like this are offending, then I feel sorry for you