John Cole provides the best overview of the Don Imus situation I have read so far. Although the language might be a little rough, I encourage you to read the whole thing (it’s one of the few examinations of the situation that does raise some important points). Money quote:

No one has learned anything from this. No one will learn anything from this. There will be no national dialog on race, other than people babbling that there should be a national dialog on race. Civil rights was not advanced one bit. No chance was given for Imus to make things right, no time was spent evaluating what the best response to this situation might be. It was sheer opportunism all the way around, led by a chorus of self-aggrandizing hacks all too eager to milk the situation for all it was worth. All that has been learned in this whole, sordid affair is that when a flawed man does or says something stupid and offensive, the appropriate thing to do is to try and find away to get the most profit for yourself, your cause, or your company, and to run with it.

Imus deserved to be fired for this, probably, but he also probably deserved to be fired for any number of statements or sketches over the past dozen years. What makes this last week so obscene is the way this happened, and it says a helluva lot more about us than it does about Imus. Long live mob justice, and I hope none of you ever say anything stupid or offensive, because if you do, may God have mercy on your soul. No one else will.