weasel decentral

was your local school paper the Sunday Sport?

Millhouse

So we were assigned into groups and each group decided on how we wanted to position our paper.

My group was full of idiots and there was no way we were going to produce the times, so we went with a "sun"/"sport" theme. (with me doing the factual articles)

co durham boy

Exactly , we've become a nation of the perpetually offended .

scrubbedexpat141

I'd never even heard this term before.

Millhouse

Even worse, there is a billion people with a word for you and no one is protecting our minority rights.

co durham boy

Used extensively in HK in the 90's . I can fondly remember the Hong Kong Chinese engineers on our project using it like a derogatory term of endearment .

I wore it like a badge of honour !

Miss Ann Thrope

That's not the point here. I agree that some people are too quick to take offence or are looking for reasons to be offended. This does not mean that there are not genuinely offensive terms.

For example, there are a number of well-known words that have been specifically used to demean and bully some minority groups who, in the past, have been powerless to fight back. Now they have identified those words as demeaning (and words like cripple and spastic are good examples also) and asked that people not use them. I think it is a matter of common public decency not to use demeaning language. I realise that sometimes people may do this inadvertently but why persist once this has been pointed out?

Everybody is free to use whatever words they wish but whereas in the past there may have been no consequences to this, now that will reflect on them and they may be called out and sanctioned for it. It's really not that hard to be a decent human being.

scrubbedexpat141

I have rights though, don't I? I mean, I'm white British, surely I'm entitled to some protection?

I bet you did.

jam25mack

Aside from the discussion regarding if the term is offensive or not, it doesn't stop the Chinese having no problem calling us 'Gweilos'..... As with all so called offensive terms, it generally only us who try to limit the use of them. The rest of the world happily calls us a variety of names..... The only difference is we don't get upset about it.

Miss Ann Thrope

The voice of perpetual privilege...

scrubbedexpat141

I think we're still apologising for the Empire, right?

mission

loved that

Inselaffen

or the Singaporean Chinese calling us Ang Mohs (the full version being ang mo kow - which means red haired monkeys)

Bahtatboy

If it wasn't for the Nips
Being so good at making ships
The docks would still be open on the Tyne

That used to be acceptable. And correct.

jam25mack

We're British, of course we are apologising! Not like those pesky Aussies (am I allowed to say that) who only recently admitted decimating the endemic population was bad form.... or the Yanks (same query) who even have a holiday based on their genicidal acts.

I kinda missed a whole page so was a page behind.... Oops!

So if Gweilo is apparently OK, how about Gora? Cracker? Gringo? I need to know when I am allowed to punch someone (as Miss A T has indicated is OK).

In other news, how many of you use the term 'nitty gritty' and without using google know what it refers to?