Digga Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 Knock yourselves out who really cares ,It's just a slow news day and the Daily Mail obviously needed to fill out its pages Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albert Tatlock Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 Much ado about nothing in my book. I agree Paki is an abbreviation of Pakistani (as Brit is for Briton) and I think I'll continue to use it as such. I use 'Raghead' generally as a descriptor for muslim terorists hell-bent on blowing themselves and other people up - if that's offensive - tough shoite, though I'll maybe accept 'stone age wankers' in exchange. Personally, I find all religious people and people with imaginary friends offensive, whether they wear rags on their head or not, whatever colour they happen to be. I do, and I can, and I will not be told otherwise by anyone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slim Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 We're not allowed to understand racial offense. You can call us sheep shagging inbred manxies as much as you like, we're apparently fair game because we've not got a history of racial oppression to draw on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monasqueen Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 And this has taken 3 years to come to light? Has nobody got anything better to do than dredge through old film? Everyone gets nicknames at school, often with the intention of being offensive, but I don't recall any attempt to try and influence kids not to do this, at least not while I was at school. It was part of life, and we got on with it. It was all part of the hardening process, where you ended up either streetwise and able to take (and give) any criticism, or namby pamby soft. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cret Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 I think it's nonsense as it's clear it was a mate he was referring to, so it would have just been an abbreviation, not an insult. I've heard people say that saying "Jap" instead of "Japanese" can be considered offensive, but again it's really just an abbreviation for people who can't be arsed saying the whole word. Same as Brit, Aussie etc as others have said. It may be a word that is adopted by the Pakistani community but this is the same as nigger. It is quite alright for pakistani or black people to use such terms to each other but a very different matter for a white person to use them. This is something I've wondered about before. Surely if that's the case, such use is still racist in one respect even when it's an "in house" word (for want of a better term!) because if you're saying it's ok for a certain race to use a word but not for others to use it, that is racial discrimination itself (racism). Personally while I understand the historical reasons behind why words are considered racist, I think it's nonsense because the racism is really in the intent, or not as the case may be (like this prince harry thing). I wouldn't for a second bat an eyelid if a black person or asian called me a honky, unless it was clear that they were trying to cause me offence, and even then I'd be more concerned about why they were trying to offend me rather than picking up on a word they might use to try to do so. It's a word and until you take into account the context or intent it doesn't mean a lot, especially when you know the person who says it to you. At the same time - I appreciate that obviAously you can't go shouting these 'taboo' words round the high street because people will invariably take offense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albert Tatlock Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 "Stop...calling...us....Ragheads" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P.K. Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 It was simply impossible for Harry to know if the "officer cadet" concerned was happy to be so named, or was just accepting it due to the social environment he was in. Complete and utter bs. They've been living together in close proximity under a regime that not only encourages comradeship but holds it as a core value. So what next for the headlines: SHOCK! HORROR! PROBE! "Name-Calling" found to be rife in UK Armed Forces! An MOD spokesperson said last night that calling a comrade a "Ginger-headed twat" was completely unacceptable in todays modern killing machine. This is annoying though: Mohammed Shafiq, director of the Ramadan Foundation, said he was shocked and saddened: "This rant, whether today or three years ago is sickening and he should be thoroughly ashamed of himself." Rant??? WTF??? Every pc do-gooder who needs to display ther pc credentials are climbing all over themselves to appease the likes of Mohammed Shafiq for a throwaway remark made several years ago in an environment about which they know nothing. It's just pathetic... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digga Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 Next I'll be told I cannot call a 'Spade' a 'Spade' that will make my job interesting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stavros Posted January 12, 2009 Author Share Posted January 12, 2009 Do you work in the casino then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albert Tatlock Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 Next I'll be told I cannot call a 'Spade' a 'Spade' that will make my job interesting Apparently the new gardener at the white house popped into the building and asked if anyone had seen the spade...and got short shrift for some reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
La_Dolce_Vita Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 I think it's nonsense as it's clear it was a mate he was referring to, so it would have just been an abbreviation, not an insult. I've heard people say that saying "Jap" instead of "Japanese" can be considered offensive, but again it's really just an abbreviation for people who can't be arsed saying the whole word. Same as Brit, Aussie etc as others have said. Yes, I think a big deal has been made of this. But Jap is not quite the same as Paki. Every word carries different meanings. Not saying you are making such a massive and wrongful simplification but you cannot group Brit, Jock, Paki, Jap all together and just say they are abbreviations. In British society for the last 50 years the word Paki has been used as one of the most oppressive terms for anyone who looks Indiann, Pakistani, Bangladeshi etc. Jap is a similar in how it was used but it is rarely used today. It was used in a similar way to Paki but this was during WW2 and previous this war. I consider Jap to be racist and so should it be. The way I see it is that white people in Britain have a nasty history of racism, and one of the largest ethnic minorities was Pakistani and Indian. The word was used in an oppressive manner and white people cannot escape the racist connotations of the word because it is used so little when not being racist. It is a racist term. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
14IntelligenceCompany Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 I concur, its all in the context, any word can be insultive if said in an insultive manner.. look at the paper calling the French "frogs" for how many years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
La_Dolce_Vita Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 This is something I've wondered about before. Surely if that's the case, such use is still racist in one respect even when it's an "in house" word (for want of a better term!) because if you're saying it's ok for a certain race to use a word but not for others to use it, that is racial discrimination itself (racism). But here you are picking up on the idea of some form of discrimination as if it discrimination is the most important point to consider. Awareness of discrimination and efforts to eradicate discrimination come about due to the awareness of the impact of racist behaviour on society and people. There is no edict or law to say that white people cannot say Paki but white people are of the dominant social group when it comes to the conventional discourse. If a white person called someone a Paki the history of that word and value behind it oppresses that non-white person. It is a word that is recognised by both the white and non-white to put that non-white in their place and it reinforces the values behind the word. When a non-white person uses to term to someone else non-white it cannot oppress because both person saying it is what that word means or what a white person would recognise that person to be. I wouldn't for a second bat an eyelid if a black person or asian called me a honky, unless it was clear that they were trying to cause me offence, and even then I'd be more concerned about why they were trying to offend me rather than picking up on a word they might use to try to do so. Being called a honky by a black person is not the same as a white person calling someone a nigger. Think about the value and meaning behind the terms and the history behind them. A black person can hardly oppress the dominant group in society with words such as this. Personally while I understand the historical reasons behind why words are considered racist, I think it's nonsense because the racism is really in the intent, or not as the case may be (like this prince harry thing). This is not so. If I started referring to black people as niggers and pakistanis as pakis because I simply wanted to use a different term then it would still be racism. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WilDDog Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 Complete and utter bs. They've been living together in close proximity under a regime that not only encourages comradeship but holds it as a core value. So what next for the headlines: I agree with pk. I hope nobody calls me Manxie just because I'm from the Isle of Man, now that would be offensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amadeus Posted January 12, 2009 Share Posted January 12, 2009 Reminds me of a rather strange moment in Studebakers ages ago. Standing at the bar waiting to be served - little Indian fella, who I didn't know and had never seen before - standing next to me. Barmaid approaches with usual "who's next" shout and serves him - no probs as I arrived after him anyway. Suddenly he turns around to me: He: Thank you Me: He? He: And by the way - I am from India, so please don't call me a Paki I'm still scratching my head about that to the current day - came completely out of nowhere and I've never figured out why he said that... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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