Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

Um.... it's me.

Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

I think that regardless of what is and isn't a racial slur, what's more concerning is that this is a group of 'British' people doing this. Are they PR? Have they got citizenship? Why are they causing such a separatist issue?
imo, it's a pretty poor way for 'British' people to behave in their host country. Australia is how it is... The w*ankers (I'm agreeing with Vash here) seriously need to get over themselves and the issue or go back to Britain.
It's a storm in a tea cup being protracted by a group of people with nothing better to do with their time. If they put as much effort into integrating into Australia as they are doing in this campaign, then Aus would be a much happier place imo.

Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

While I liked the old pic, I think I like the new one..... ding dong, make sure that hubby of yours is keeping an eye on u ;)

Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

Yes l think the appropriate name for these people is'nt Poms But ' Whinging Poms' :p

Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

Is it really okay to tell immigrants who are offended by another countries culture to "go back to their own country"?

Is this allowed in the UK now?

Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

S'all right, love, don't worry. I've been married 12 years and never had an affair yet, though the same can't be said for hubby. So who should keep an eye on whom? http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...QR/eyebrow.gif

Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

When you move to a country, do you not accept that culture by default? These people are not convicts, forced here under some totalitarian government and stripped of their rights.
They came willingly to Australia, they know the culture, yet here they are complaining about it and petitioning to have a humorous jibe made into an offence.

So let's say they're successful. It becomes an offence... It becomes a 'bad word' to say, like n*gger... How has that helped the situation, or in fact, anyone.

This is the Australian culture. If they want to change it, then surely the best way to do it is to show the Aussies what nice people we are.
Have they achieved this through a petty, small minded politically correct stance?
No, exactly the opposite.

So yes, they have the freedom not to be here if they so wish and yes, imo, in this circumstance, if they don't like it, then they have the freedom to move where they won't be 'insulted' ... surely?

Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

If you pay taxes, then you have every right to complain regardless where you come from.

I think people get upset that it seems to be a "minority" doing all the shouting, but either this "minority" actually do represent the majority; or the majority are just too damned lazy to make themselves heard.

Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

Whilst I don't personally find the word POM an insult, it does depend of the context in which it is being used. My colleagues at work call me a POM and I take it in the spirit which it's given.

In this instance, the picture of the fat git looking ridiculous which accompanies the word is clearly aimed at protraying the British as being idiots. You simply can't take it any other way. Now whether you laugh at this or take offence is a matter for the individual.

Adverts will often be controversial because the makers want to get the product talked about, but should this be at the cost of ridiculing a nation which has strong ties with the country?

I think that because we are British and because we are so aware of offending other nations in the UK, some are probably more outraged than they would have been say 10 years ago. If you took the same advert and put it on British TV but replaced the POM for a P*KI there would be uproar. But the UK isn't Australia.

As a lot of people say, Australia is 20 years behind in many things. Maybe in 20 years the word will be banned, but as IPOM said, we know the way things are here so why should we come into the country and try to change things? Don't we all complain when it's being done in the UK by other races?

As Australians like to term other nations with names, I think that the answer might be for everyone to start using a different name for Aussies - it sounds far too nice. Then we'd see how their sense of humour is.

Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

I'm not sure about that McTree... In Aus, I am not a Citizen yet, though I pay taxes, but I cannot vote. It seems I cannot actually complain in any democratic manner, which imo, sucks. My Aus partner is allowed to vote in the UK though without being a citizen. That's what I'd complain about if I wanted to... Not being called a 'pom'.
If you want to change something, alienating the people who assist you in acheiving and maintaining your comfortable life isn't the way to go, imo.

Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

I agree that they went over the top with the fat geezer. That was unnecessary, childish, and calculated to provoke.

This is an unfair comparison. "Pom" has never possessed the connotations of "Paki". Nor has it been overwhelmingly rejected by the vast majority of the people to whom it has been applied.

I view "Pom" on the same level as "Skippy". I don't consider either of them offensive.

Since coming to the UK, I have also been called "Dingo". That's a new one in my experience, but it didn't worry me at all; I found it quite amusing. :D

Well, there's no accounting for the opinions of arrogant, xenophobic cretins. But don't forget that there will be some people who come to the UK and consider it "20 years behind" their own country.

Indeed. And why complain about a friendly slang term in the first place? It simply doesn't make sense. :confused:

Well, that's another story entirely. You're looking specifically for a negative name for Aussies. That's in no way comparable to our use of the word "Pom". So your suggestion doesn't fit the argument.

In any case, people already use plenty of anti-Australian insults; there are many names used for Aussies which are intended to cause offence. If you want some choice examples, ask the Barmy Army - or some of the Lebanese gangs in NSW.

The difference between our use of "Pom" and the use of words like "dago", etc. is that "Pom" is not intended as an insult (except by a tiny minority of idiots; and what country doesn't have those?)

The history of the word "Pom" proves that it was originally coined as a good-natured slang term. Nearly 100 years on, it is still used in the same way.

So why make a fuss about it?

Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

Not quite true. There are many democratic avenues available to you.

You have the right to contact your local council, MP or police. You still have the right to contact your Ombudsman, or write to the Department of Fair Trading. You still have full access to the legal system.

I lived in Australia for the first 31 years of my life, and never voted once. That didn't stop me from making my voice heard, nor did it prevent me from getting the results I wanted. :)

Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

Sure yes, I can do all that. I'm just drawing an equivalent with what my hub, and yourself I guess, could do in the UK, yet I am not given the same right here. Why does the UK allow you to vote on UK matters without being a citizen, and yet it isn't reciprocal? Voting's important to me. I've done it since i was 18. :)

Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

True, fair point. I'm a UK citizen (and have been since May this year) but I was eligible to vote before that time.

I don't know why it's different in Australia. It seems even more bizarre when we consider that voting is compulsory Down Under. :confused:

Re: POM, an insult??!!
 

I doubt it - I've lived in Wales, and endured much worse than being called a Pom. I've lived in villages in Yorkshire where some don't consider you to be fully human unless your great great great great grandparents lived there. I'm fully aware that racism is racism no matter how it manifests itself, but, IMO, comparing the use of the word 'nigger' to the use of the word 'pom' is ridiculous, especially considering all that was associated with the first word.

I also have no doubt that, as in the UK, there will be a type of mindless moron who will use words to attack, abuse and harass - that's their problem. How I allow them to affect my life is my problem.

Do you think the beer advert is using the word Pom as a racist taunt?

Lynne