OT- The “Th” word, W. Va GBB, & The Gov

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EllistonVU
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Re: OT- The “Th” word, W. Va GBB, & The Gov

Post by EllistonVU »

Dsdore wrote: Wed Feb 19, 2020 9:14 pm
EllistonVU wrote: Tue Feb 18, 2020 4:40 pm
geeznotagain wrote: Tue Feb 18, 2020 9:16 am


Am I wrong in assuming that white, heterosexual, males have to be more careful in their speech and actions than any other group when it comes to avoid "offending" someone?
Let me know when white hetero xtian males had 6.5 million of them slaughtered in an "ethnic cleansing" or when they were slaves on this continent for 246 years followed by 100 years of persecution. I promise that when you can do that, I will feel sorry for them so they can validate their little persecution complex.
Ever heard of Stalin?
Sure. He has an alarming list of things in common with our current (cough-cough) "president."

Went with political expediency rather than any sincere intellectual commitment.
Used the the shaming of his "enemies" as a propaganda tool.
Wore nationalism on his sleeve.
Was adept at deception, often deceiving others as to his true motives and aims.
Took pride in being rude and insulting.
Capable of self-righteous indignation and was resentful, vindictive, and vengeful;
Holding grudges against others for many years.
Suspicious and conspiratorial, prone to paranoia, believing that people were plotting against him.
Was thought to have sociopathic personality disorder.
Was sexually promiscuous and had a number of affairs.

Our current (cough-cough) "president" also has a concerning amount in common with Benito Mussolini but that one was already covered in the Coffee Shop a few months ago iirc.


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Re: OT- The “Th” word, W. Va GBB, & The Gov

Post by jpmando »

John 13:34-35
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Versus75
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Re: OT- The “Th” word, W. Va GBB, & The Gov

Post by Versus75 »

mathguy wrote: Tue Feb 18, 2020 5:24 am ... we're at the point where people need to think carefully before using that word....
Until I read this thread, I did not know that the common, 200-year-old word “thug” had a new meaning. I expect the Gov shares my lack of awareness.

Some of you would have me go to the dictionary before saying anything, lest I speak out of turn.

So I went to the dictionary, dictionary.com, and it says NOTHING about this racial-based definition. I suppose I should first consult the general public on which dictionary to use.

As Ogden Nash once penned: “Your lead, partner. I hope we read the same book.”


Dictionary.com
Origin: First recorded in 1800–10, thug is from the Hindi word thag literally, rogue, cheat
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Re: OT- The “Th” word, W. Va GBB, & The Gov

Post by mathguy »

Versus75 wrote: Thu Feb 20, 2020 9:47 pm
mathguy wrote: Tue Feb 18, 2020 5:24 am ... we're at the point where people need to think carefully before using that word....
Until I read this thread, I did not know that the common, 200-year-old word “thug” had a new meaning. I expect the Gov shares my lack of awareness.

Some of you would have me go to the dictionary before saying anything, lest I speak out of turn.
This is not the first time that a public figure has been criticized for use of the word thug. So while this may have escaped your awareness (and the Governor's), that doesn't mean it isn't a thing.

But (at least on my argument) let's keep in mind the "punishment" that I think should be visited upon the Governor: IMO I think he should issue an apology, not for the intent of his statement, but for his word choice. That's all. I don't suddenly think he's a racist jerk. I don't think he should be censured or kicked out of office. I don't think he should lose votes over this. But I think he picked a poor choice of phrase and ought to apologize.

I don't think you need to go to the dictionary before speaking. But if this happened in person instead of through a media outlet and someone tells you that something you said was hurtful to them, why wouldn't you say "Oh! I'm sorry. I didn't know that would be hurtful!" instead of "Oh Gimme a break. Just deal with it and leave me alone." There's just a certain amount of manners involved to me.

I have no problems with this Governor (at least not based on this story) ... but that doesn't mean he didn't make a (minor) gaffe.
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Re: OT- The “Th” word, W. Va GBB, & The Gov

Post by OldDude »

I am offended Mathguy ! You used the word "jerk" making it very obvious that you have a bias against those of Jamaican ethnicity. So, yes, I am being facetious, but do you see my point ? Language definitely evolves over time, but it does not totally abandon traditional meanings at the drop of a hat. As pointed out in another post, the term "Thug" has been in the language for some 200 years with no racial connotations. No group or generation can at all reasonably expect to redefine the English language simply to suit their own desires. The governor called out poor behavior using a common term and attaching a racist intent to that seems to be a very racist view in and of itself.
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Re: OT- The “Th” word, W. Va GBB, & The Gov

Post by mathguy »

OldDude wrote: Fri Feb 21, 2020 12:45 pm I am offended Mathguy ! You used the word "jerk" making it very obvious that you have a bias against those of Jamaican ethnicity. So, yes, I am being facetious, but do you see my point ? Language definitely evolves over time, but it does not totally abandon traditional meanings at the drop of a hat. As pointed out in another post, the term "Thug" has been in the language for some 200 years with no racial connotations. No group or generation can at all reasonably expect to redefine the English language simply to suit their own desires. The governor called out poor behavior using a common term and attaching a racist intent to that seems to be a very racist view in and of itself.
I hear you. Language does evolve, and no, traditional meanings don't get immediately abandoned. Hence my statement that I bear this Governor no ill will, do not find him racist, and think the extent of his "punishment" should be saying that while he's not sorry for calling out the players' horrible and dangerous behavior, he apologizes for using the word "thug" to do it ... not exactly a big problem.

But at the same time, language *does* evolve over time, and new meanings *do* come into being. The african american community has not decided to redefine the word to suit their needs ... they got tired of having this word applied to them on such a regular basis that it started to become personal. That community saw the language evolving in a way that a negative word was being applied more and more exclusively to them.

As far as "scandals" go, I think is a "non-scandal scandal". A public figure called someone out and offended someone else in doing so ... happens so often it is basically unavoidable. But just because the punishment should be somewhere between a slap on the wrist and an eye roll doesn't mean he did the right thing.
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