racist?

[Gregrios]

or even gets pissed off and lets someone have it in a moment of rage, does the language make that person a racist?

When a person speaks out in anger, they are trying to hurt the other person! and sometimes throwing racial slurs accomplishes this aim! Doing so does not make that person a racist, nor does it reflect their true inner thoughts about race. It is simply a means to an end.

You're comparing apples to oranges here. One minute you're talking about a thoughtless comment made out of rage. The next minute you're talking about a methotical process of using a racial slur.

Do you see what I mean?

The section above in blue is not something I said!!! Why the Hell are you portraying it as a quote from me?

OH I know!! You're a Democrat and need to use lies and half-truths to support an argument void of common sense.

Man-Up!

My bad. I got confused.

Funny thing is I wondered that after I had posted it but thought to myself that there's no way I could be that far off base. Guess I was wrong. Anywho, it made for a good laugh. So at least it wasn't a complete waste of time.

[Gregrios]

Just for the record: I still stand by my arguement.

[pimpdave]

your right jonesy
but being from jersey, i would expect you to agree that hotdogs and apple pie are far superior to tea and crumpets.
tea and crumpets are defintely inferior, no fault though to there weak national heritage

I am thoroughly confused. I was born and raised in the USA, and I must say, as a beverage, tea is far superior to hot dogs. Furthermore, tea and crumpets go well together. I'm not sure I've ever enjoyed drinking hot dogs with my apple pie, much less thought to combine the two.

[hecter]

I like apple pie just fine, but I don't like hotdogs. I mean, I'll eat 'em, but meh... It's highly processed meat substitute, really. Gimme a nice, delicious German sausage over a hotdog any day

[walnutwatson]

Just for the record I prefer tea and crumpets

Back to the matter in hand - I have to agree that there must be a belief in what one is saying in order to be labelled a racist
- on the other hand some language does have racism inherent in it's etymology, in these cases it's down to how much you care about other people's feelings.
Example - the word 'nigger' could be considered inherently racist because of it's historical use as a derogatory term, however, in certain circles it is no longer considered racist DEPENDING on who is delivering it to who (or should that be 'whom'?).

I think an important point to remember when treading on dodgy ground like this that we are on the internet and do not know who we are talking to half the time or what ethnicity they are, also it can be quite hard to tell when people are joking, unlike in face to face communication.

On a related note, being British I don't get this 'African-American', 'Irish-American', 'Antarctican-American' thing. Why do you all seem to do it? I'm Romany-Scottish-Irish-English for anyone who cares (Probably with a bit of Viking and Norman mixed in there, and possibly Roman and Mongol)

[mpjh]

What makes language racist, I think, is what action it ingenders or flows from. When someone is called a "nigger" because that slur assists in placing someone in a category that has recuded job opportunities, educational possibility, health care, or other fundamenta human rights, then it is racist. When this is done against a group as a whole it is a racist steryotyping of that group.

Another example, is the racist steryotyping of Muslims as terrorists. This places all Muslims at risk in our society, regardless their conduct. When the govenment encourages this racist view, that risk is even greater.

I think you need to look to the action that the racist language either flows from or leads to.

[walnutwatson]

in america our flag, by law, flys the highest over all others

That's just racism pure and simple though...

Yeh, except there's no such thing as an "American" race, except the ones that the Europeans took the continent away from.

Hmm: not sure who I'm disagreeing with there. Just thougth it oughta be said.

That the Europeans took the continent away from?
Hang on, we may have accidentaly killed a lot of them through passing on diseases like smallpox and influenza but it was only after the American Revolution that they were purposely exterminated and thrown into concentration camps - the Europeans set up colonies and settlements alongside the Native Americans, they did not throw them off their own land as later happened.
Don't try to blame Europe for the U.S's actions.
If you want to talk about South America on the other hand, well, I'll keep my mouth shut on that

[Skittles!]

If you want to talk about South America on the other hand, well, I'll keep my mouth shut on that

Don't forget Australia too..

[pimpdave]

That the Europeans took the continent away from?
Hang on, we may have accidentaly killed a lot of them through passing on diseases like smallpox and influenza but it was only after the American Revolution that they were purposely exterminated and thrown into concentration camps - the Europeans set up colonies and settlements alongside the Native Americans, they did not throw them off their own land as later happened.
Don't try to blame Europe for the U.S's actions.
If you want to talk about South America on the other hand, well, I'll keep my mouth shut on that

You're account of history is completely wrong. Please share with us from whence you got your version, I for one am curious. Look up the biological warfare of King Philip's war. The smallpox infected blankets were NO ACCIDENT.

Look up the French & Indian war.

Read more about the individual colonies, but most dramatically in the Massachusetts Bay and Virginia Colonies.

While there were many settlers who did want to coexist with the Indians (notably in the New Jersey Colony, where many, many towns kept the native names rather than anglicizing them), there were too many capitalists that came over in the second and later waves who saw an opportunity to make money, but that necessitated wiping out the "savages".

Please don't white wash British Colonial history.

(Edited to correct some grammar errors)

[jonesthecurl]

...and for this discusssion, I am counting the US as European - you may relace that with European-descended in any instances ou find appropriate.

[HapSmo19]

You're history is completely wrong. Please share with us from whence you got your version,

Probably from the same place you got your version of who invented the cotton gin.

[jonesthecurl]

If you want to talk about South America on the other hand, well, I'll keep my mouth shut on that

Don't forget Australia too..

...Africa, India...

[Juan_Bottom]

and I must say, as a beverage, tea is far superior to hot dogs.

Perhaps he meant the hot dog water?

[pimpdave]

and I must say, as a beverage, tea is far superior to hot dogs.

Perhaps he meant the hot dog water?

Yes, I was thinking the same thing. In which case, Tea is still far superior to that greasy watery stuff that comes out of Hot Dogs when you microwave them too long.

Or when you say Hot Dog water, do you mean the water you might boil them in, if you like to prepare them that way?

In that case, Tea still wins, and I am still thoroughly confused, because I was unaware it was an American custom to drink Hot Dogs or Hot Dog water. Does that make me a Tory? Probably...

[Juan_Bottom]

I think it makes you a racist?