cricketman

Good old GB, they have a racist word for everyone!

jdr

But racist is only in the mind of people that need to use it, years ago i worked with Jamaican immigrants, they called us honkies and we called them spades with no problems at all.

Sue

Moderators are volunteers and contrary to popular belief they don't live on BE 24/7. Now and again they go to work, eat, sleep, go shopping and occasionally go to the loo ...... so they get to things as soon as they can.

jackytoo

I don't think daygo is a nice term to use but I don't think Guiri is either. I think Frog only does it to wind us up. Just reminded, don't lots of people call the French frogs!

Sue

I've moved the off-topic posts to a thread of their own so that the original discussion could continue unhindered.

Only one person reported the post in question and it has not been removed for two reasons:

1. The word was not directed at anyone in particular, nor was it directed at a group of people. One could ask how is the use of the word, in this case, any different from saying "cost me about 1000 quid to put my rhd car on brit plates" or "cost me about 1000 quid to put my rhd car on yank plates " etc?

2. As the post has spawned a whole discussion about the use of the word it would be counterproductive to remove the post and all subsequent replies. You seem to have started a really interesting discussion about the subject, and after all this is a "discussion" forum . Instead I have moved the related posts in order that you can continue the conversation if you so choose.

lynnxa

well I knew they did all the other things - but I didn't think they were allowed loo breaks

Fred James

Well you learn something new every day - I didn't know there was a 7 o'clock in the morning!

I must try and get up earlier.

cricketman

All depends on how terms are used. Is daygo or "spick" which I've heard from ignorant horrible British people down here ever used in a positive way? If the term is meant to degrade then it is racist/bygotted.

Guiri is used in a positive and negative way. It's just used to describe tourists who dont look like Spaniards, but can have bad connotations such as being ugly, badly dressed, clueless etc. But you'll often hear Spaniards discuss the hot guiri women for example.

I have friends who call me a guiri when we are joking about and I dont mind. However, after the word cup win which I watched in Malaga wearing a Spain shirt, one of the nighttime street cleaners said to his mate, hey look even the guiris are wearing our shirts, referring to me. I didnt like that very much even though he wasnt being bygotted or anything.

jimenato

However 'Brit' is not derogatory and I don't think 'Yank' is particularly. Dago most certainly is and I know that the Spanish (or at least some of them) don't like it at all.

True that the way it was used in the offensive post wasn't directed at anyone in particular but it was referring to a group of people - the Spanish.

I doubt that many here would be adversely influenced against the Spanish by its use, however as cricketman said it has helped us form an opinion of the twat, sorry, person who used it.

As any Spanish person who reads this will see that it has been dealt with, I'll shut up now.

jimenato

I wonder what the reaction would have been if someone had said in the Africa forum "It cost me 1000 quid to change it to coon plates"?

cricketman

Yes I get your point

However, I think insults about Spanish people from Brits arent deemed as offensive because Britain has never held any power over Spanish people and Spanish people never have felt inferior (ok, maybe coming out of Franco's times they did).

Given the history of enslavement and subservance imposed upon Africans and Indians by the British and other Europeans any offensive term is treated as extremely bad behaviour and banned wherever possible.

I suspect only unfortunate young Spanish people who may have been subjected to abuse while in the UK would ever feel offended by a British person calling them something nasty. The rest would just think the British person was an idiot and probably laugh it off.

If an American called a Hispanic Mexican a nasty word then it would be much more offensive because of the imbalance in power.

Can someone give me a doctorate for my theory?

HBG

No, you've failed it miserably.

You've forgotten what the Spanish conquerors did to the bottom bit of North America, the central bit and almost the whole of South America.

I wouldn't want to compare the atrocities comitted by either the British or the Spanish empire all those centuries ago, but if some wise people called it a draw, it wouldn't surprise me.

Not surprisingly therefore that 750 million people speak Spanish and a similar number English. Centuries ago, learning the new language for those who were conquered would have been easy, aided by a sharp instrument stuck against your throat.

JLFS

I must admit that I was never that offended by the word.

I think in those days things were not pulled apart and analised like today, we just got on with living, and maybe we were not such "ninnies" and hung up on certain labels.

Thinking back, my attitude could be classed as wrong, but in all honesty I did not see any anger resulting from the use of these words from those on the receiving end.

HBG

In perspective, the user of the offending word probably woke up this morning and regretted using it. He obviously has a hang-up about Spain for his own reasons, but when he has another few beers at some later stage he will be back again, with more silly insults.

It doesn't bother me in the least, a few other posters also come along and complain about what they think is wrong with Spain, and a lot of times they may well be right. That's what a discussion forum is about, different views, if we get too cowed to express them, there is nothing left to discuss.

I was at the check out in Mercadona last night and could see my car outside, when a Spanish delivery driver parked too close to it and purposely slammed his door into my car. I could have rushed out and punched his lights out, but I wouldn't be sat here now writing this little post.

That Spaniard wasn't representative of his country and I swallowed. I've swallowed many times over the years, but many more times I've been amazed by a kindness alien to the UK.

I love them both, equally.

JLFS

A good post HBG
The point about too many beers is a good one too, and also he could be a lazy poster and dago is easier and quicker to type than Spanish......

Also it is quite refreshing to see someone post who is not thinking in advance about every little phrase and how it might cause friction on this site, even if under the influence.

I pointed out the use of the dago word because I know how silly things are in the UK ( you must say chalkboard and not blackboard etc), not becuase I thought it was particularly more offensive than calling someone a twat or any one of the many other names bandied about one here.