Oprah Upset By Hermes Snub And Weak Apology (1 Viewer)

From the story I read, the store closed at 6:30 and she got there at 6:45. They were having some kind of event there and the store was closed. I don't see how she can be offended. Her spokesman said she was "humiliated" and will be discussing her "Crash" moment with her TV audience -- in other words, she'll be claiming it was a racial incident.

That's Oprah. Just one of the common people.

If that doesn't win the award for overreaction of the week, I don't know what will. :rolleyes

Must be a slow news day, huh?

Supposedly the person who turned her away told he that they have had problems with "North Africans" I suppose that makes her humiliation claims a bit more legitimate. But, yeah, I grow tired of celebs expecting special treatment as well.

As opposed to what "South Africans". Why would anyone make such a statement.

Oprah seems to believe that she deserves "special" consideration........... just as a lot of other persons/celebs seem to believe.... and becoming vocal about it, they get something they really want...........attention.......

Some just seem to be unable to accept that they aren't as special as THEY think.........

According to CNN, the "problem with North Africans" comment cannot be verified and may have been invented to make more out of this incident.

Should I one day own a department store, I would post a sign prohibiting useless celebrities from entering.

I always love people with money, they will happily spend 10x the $ for something of the same quality.

belt for commoners = $50

belt for dumb rich people = $1000

HUH!

Brent

Per reports, security cameras support Hermes' assertion that Oprah arrived after closing time.

And while her people state that there were other customers in the store, Hermes claims that it was a private PR event. So, if we were to take Hermes' story at face value, I'd understand that to grant special privilege to Oprah by allowing after-hours access would be disruptive and go so far as to even tarnish their brand prestige (a la, so desperate so that they need the public affection of their store).

In other words, I don't think Hermes is crying over the lost business from Oprah and even the negative fallout if they really stand by their story. They haul in enough from their loyal-bordering-on-fanatical, anonymous clientele, nouveau riche or otherwise.

Yes, their products are overpriced, but the ultra-rich want their ultra-luxe to distinguish their Birkins from the plebians' Coach bags.

So Oprah is going to further publicize this non-event by devoting a whole show on her 'crash' moment? Heh, I'd have Hermes talk to the cattle farmers (pre-BSE).

You know, since speculation is all we have and in it's firmly going one way in thread, why don't I speculate the other way based on my personal biases and experience like everyone is doing:

Exactly, moreso than black people I would say. They are commonly and wrongly referred to as Arabs - a word with a strong negative socio=economic connotation that predates and is completely unrelated to current events. I would compare them to hispanics in the US in terms of numbers and cultural penetration.

No one knows for sure what the hell happened. I find the one sided assumptions fascinating.

--
H

If we stick to the facts, we have this:

Store closes at 6:30.
Oprah arrives at 6:45.

End of story.

Everything else is people's interpretations of the situation. The source of this problem (not to mention almost any situation wherein somebody feels slighted) is one's expectation. When I get to a store 15 minutes after closing, I expect to be S.O.L. When Oprah gets to a store 15 minutes late she expects special treatment. Without that expectation in place, her "snub" cannot exist. Therefore the source of all of this is her own sense of entitlement.

I saw this last night and was dumbfounded at the stupidity of this story.

When you start reading, you're waiting for the revelation that the store turned her away because she's black. Then you see that the store was closed and Oprah just expected to get in cause she's rich and she's Oprah.

Just sickening. And to call it one of the most humiliating moments in her life is an insult to people who actually suffer humiliation.

So will Oprah present both sides?

It cuts a lot of different ways Holadam. Not too long ago, I was in a Burger King with my son. We'd ordered and specifically requested that we wanted one of the burgers that came off the line and not one that was sitting around. Well, we got our order, sat down, and found that the burgers were dried out. The bread was pretty dry on the outside to boot. Obviously not freshly made. So my son returned them and told them the order was unacceptable and waited till the new batch was made. The manager, who was caucasian, instructed his staff, in spanish since the workers didn't speak any english (mexican), to do it over. Well as they started talking among themslves, my son, who speaks some spanish listened. What he heard was that the workers were complaining and saying things like, "Fucking chinaman thinks he's special." The manager, I guess to curry favor, said something to the effect of, "Just make it for the fucking chink faggot." Well as this is going on, my kid writes down the names of everyone there, and informs me of what happened. We went home, and I contacted Burger King corporate by email and letters with copies to the mayor of the town, my congressman, my senators, and other agencies. I discussed what had happened and demanded an official apology and that the manager and his staff be summarily dismissed. All I know is that the next time I stopped there and asked about if that the particular manager was working there, the person in charge stated he was no longer with the company. I didn't see any of the mexican staff either.
Insulting racism comes from anyone, regardless of their color or origin. Not much one can do except get even.

Oprah Winfrey is not common. She’s human but far from common. I don’t care if they were closing the people who stopped Oprah from entering the store likely did not know who she is. Believe me they know she has world wide influence.

Did racism play a role? Possibly but I think it had everything to do with not knowing it was freaking Oprah.

Well, Chu...that's not merely humiliating, that's horrifying. And not merely because I'm of asian descent, but because I'm a father.

I've grown callous to racist bile over the years, but I cannot imagine the deep sadness that would sink in if I knew my sons were subject to such egregious transgressions.

You're right...racism is all about control and competition, which can be borne from anyone.

BTW...I have to ask (and no offense intended) - aren't you wary of making a difficult/special order in a restaurant, even worse a fast food joint?