"I don't mean to be a bigot, but"

In My Humble Opinion
1

I actually had someone say this to me yesterday. We met my daughter’s friend’s parents yesterday. They seemed nice for most of the conversation, but about midway through during our discussion of the schools and surrounding cities the dad of my daughter’s little friend busts out with the aformentioned peice of wisdom.

Huh??!?

Is it just me, or do people who say this really not mean it?

It gets better. Later in the convesation he proceeded to vent about “all of the damn immigrants who can’t drive and who you can’t understand at the drive through.”

This to my wife, who is Russian, an immigrant, and has an accent. :rolleyes:

I feel so sorry for myself that we’ll be forced to socialize with them because our daughters are friends.

2

My mother always told me that people who say “I don’t mean to be rude, but…” have the full intention of being completely rude with their next words.

3

Ambivalence at its best. I feel sorry for their kid.

4

But some of his friends are immigrants! Honest!!!

5

“Don’t take this personally, but…” is always followed by something that can only be taken personally!

6

The year I turned 35 a man at the place I was consulting said to me: “I don’t mean to be offensive but … you look much older.”

I’m not the kind of man who is easily offended, so I laughed about it (and well, it was true anyway. I have A LOT of grey in my hair.) But I always wondered how anyone can start a sentence with “I don’t mean to be offensive but…” and then not expect others to be offended…

7

I suppose in somewhat of a defense, depending on the conversation, there might be a situation in which one would want to make a generalized comment that someone else might construe as being offensive, and, being aware of that and yet not meaning to be offensive, the speaker will “warn” the listener(s). I have done it, but usually in a context of a sensitive topic, one where pretty much everyone has a different view of things, and people might get offended, regardless of how you phrase something, but you want to add the point to the discussion anyways.

Although I’m 99.99999% sure that this was not the situation in which welby1 found himself…

8

Actually, most of the people in Massachusetts can’t drive and can’t be understood at the drive through. No matter where they’re from.

9

I remember my father and grandfather having a political discussion. My grandfather announced that he planned to vote for Candidate X, who would “fight for real Americans.”

My father replied “Puppa, you’re an immigrant! You’re the people the real Americans want to get rid of!”