# Is My Granny Victim of a UL? Re: The Tex/Mex Border **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 22, 2005, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-granny-victim-of-a-ul-re-the-tex-mex-border/322893 "2005-09-22T15:14:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speaker_for_the_Dead)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2005, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-granny-victim-of-a-ul-re-the-tex-mex-border/322893/21 "2005-09-24T19:19:38Z")
> [@furt](#): > > Considering there have been reports of Mexican Army units firing on US Border Patrol officers, you shouldn’t. That seems like a juicy tidbit of information. Where can I learn more? ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2005, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-granny-victim-of-a-ul-re-the-tex-mex-border/322893/22 "2005-09-24T22:54:15Z")
> [@DougC](#): > > Spades being spades and all. 😃 > ~ Since we’re not allowed to insult each other in GQ, I will simply seethe to myself and tell you that’s a wildly inappropriate remark and one of the worst things I’ve read here. Do you even know what that phrase means, or are you ignorant? ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2005, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-granny-victim-of-a-ul-re-the-tex-mex-border/322893/23 "2005-09-24T22:58:55Z")
Do you know what the phrase means? A spade is a shovel and is part of a spade and pail (or pail and spade, if you prefer) set. It’s also one of the suits in a deck of cards. ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2005, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-granny-victim-of-a-ul-re-the-tex-mex-border/322893/24 "2005-09-24T23:05:06Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > Do you know what the phrase means? A spade is a shovel and is part of a spade and pail (or pail and spade, if you prefer) set. It’s also one of the suits in a deck of cards. Which is exactly what was being discussed, right? Oh wait, no, it was **Doug C** and his ethnic slurs. Of course, I’m aware of the farm implement and the card suit; I’m also familiar w/ the more colloquial and crude phrase as the poster used it. I would like to think you aren’t familiar w/ the derogatory phrase, or are you just wearing blinders? ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2005, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-granny-victim-of-a-ul-re-the-tex-mex-border/322893/25 "2005-09-24T23:26:54Z")
For those scoffing at **Portia** , it seems that the idea is prevalent enough to have a book written on the topic. [Call a Spade a Spade: From Classical Phrase to Racial Slur : A Case Study](http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?userid=UO0Fb7FCaV&endeca=1&isbn=0820461768&itm=6) Wolfgang Mieder, Alan Dundes ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2005, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-granny-victim-of-a-ul-re-the-tex-mex-border/322893/26 "2005-09-24T23:39:43Z")
I still don’t see any ethnic slurs in this thread. What I did see was someone basically saying that he was “telling it like it is” with regards to a certain nation’s population leaving that nation. While I may disagree with him as to whether it really is “like it is,” I do not see any racist or ethnic slurs so far in this thread. And I’m not wearing blinders. ---
**Author:** ![DougC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@DougC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DougC)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2005, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-granny-victim-of-a-ul-re-the-tex-mex-border/322893/27 "2005-09-25T00:31:41Z")
- - - How about this, the next time anyone asks if somewhere _ **I** _ know is dangerous, I’ll just say “it’s wonderful, peaches and cream. Milk and honey from the trees. Lions lying with lambs and all that, heaven on earth. Have a nice trip.”… because, for goodness sakes, the last thing I’d want to happen is to say anything that would _offend_ anyone… ~ ---
**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2005, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-granny-victim-of-a-ul-re-the-tex-mex-border/322893/28 "2005-09-25T02:01:45Z")
> [@Portia](#): > > Since we’re not allowed to insult each other in GQ, I will simply seethe to myself and tell you that’s a wildly inappropriate remark and one of the worst things I’ve read here. Do you even know what that phrase means, or are you ignorant? My God you PC types are full of yourselves. Yes, ‘spade’ is a racial slur, but I’m pretty sure “calling a spade a spade” predates it by quite a long way. I’m sick of having to be answerable to the people like you. Well, actually we’re NOT, but I’m sick of your thinking we are. Get your facts straight before you open your gob. **DougC** , you have my full support. ---
**Author:** ![xash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c6cbf5/32.png) [@xash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xash)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2005, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-granny-victim-of-a-ul-re-the-tex-mex-border/322893/29 "2005-09-25T02:22:17Z")
People, please take your arguments out of GQ. **Portia** , next time you take offense to a post in GQ, please report the post instead. Thank you. - **xash** General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![calm\_kiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@calm\_kiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/calm_kiwi)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2005, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-granny-victim-of-a-ul-re-the-tex-mex-border/322893/30 "2005-09-25T02:26:00Z")
> [@TheLoadedDog](#): > > My God you PC types are full of yourselves. Yes, ‘spade’ is a racial slur, but I’m pretty sure “calling a spade a spade” predates it by quite a long way. I’m sick of having to be answerable to the people like you. Well, actually we’re NOT, but I’m sick of your thinking we are. Get your facts straight before you open your gob. > > **DougC** , you have my full support. I didn’t even know it was a racial slur! Here a spade is just a suit in a deck of cards or something for digging. You can call a spade a spade till the cows come home. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2005, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-granny-victim-of-a-ul-re-the-tex-mex-border/322893/31 "2005-09-25T02:47:56Z")
> [@DougC](#): > > - > - > - Well, , , I was told (by people who had lived in the southern states) that it was pretty much the same Mexican gangs doing the drug running, doing the illegal immigration, and also who were responsible for much of the US property crime along the border as well. And others have noted that the Mexican police are not known for being just and forthright. > > So until the State Department starts issuing warnings about living on the Canadian border, I’m going to poke fun at Mexicans wanting to leave their own country. > Spades being spades and all. 😃 > ~ **Doug C**. In my opinion you’re acting like a jerk in this thread. You’re in GQ, and your posts are more suited to the Pit or Great Debates. We can argue about whether you are making remarks that are racist or just your idea of being clever. I’m closing the thread. Please try to not generalize about a population. **samclem** GQ moderator. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-my-granny-victim-of-a-ul-re-the-tex-mex-border/322893.md?page=1)