“Hmmm, that’s what my last girlfriend said, but that proved to be incorrect.”
to which this new person may then offer a wittier comeback.
“Human” came stright out of the can, “that’s what my last girlfriend said” is only slighty more spontaneous, and her response to that is her opportunity to escalate the level of wit. It’s two people getting to know each other by degree, not a matter of winners and losers.
The OP sure has a low “tite” threshold, which is fine, but those who don’t suffer fools at least a little bit probably suffer otherwise.
It’s just silly little wanker-isms.
“hehe the only way i’d ever define myself is as a human!.. but if i HAD to i’d say im a 26 year old vegetarian heterosexual female”
Does no one here see that when asked HOW HE IDENTIFIED as a race, he brought up a lot of wank about how someone else would classify him? (As well as the fact that he believes his race is human).
What is so bad about saying “black” or “white”?
I have a very mixed heritage. One of my parents was born overseas and 3 of my grandparents were. If im asked HOW I IDENTIFY i say “Australian”, not “Well my friend down the road would say im THIS”.
Yes, the race of both Mr and Mrs Skald is the motivation for the abuse. The TYPE of race, however, is not relevant for reasons I’ve now stated ad nauseum and that I don’t particularly feel like typing out again because clearly your thick skull is impermeable to reason.
Race was an issue because some jackass didn’t respect the Skald’s preference not to be identified by race (as evidenced by his outrage over a perceived mixed-race marriage)… so maybe the appropriate question would’ve been what race Captain Klu Klux McKlan is, since clearly HE likes to make race an issue.
Clearly, the rest of us understand the point that was being made despite the fact that you interpreted it as a lame joke. So, who’s the real loser here?
I will admit that it is a tad annoying when someone answers ‘human’ when asked their race. When that is their serious answer, that is a bit annoying. If they are joking, who cares…
OK, I’ll be brave enough to side with the OP. Just a little, though.
Does it bother me when someone claims “human” when asked for their race? No. But it does make me feel as if they’re trying to make a conversation more complicated than it has to be, like they’re being asked something inherently controversial or offensive. I mean, people don’t do this when we’re talking about other labels like gender or nationality or occupation. But when we’re talking about race, suddenly it becomes a tap-dance.
If someone asks what race I am and it’s a complete non-sequitor, then I’ll feel free to say “I’m human”. But if I’m talking about the possibility of me being a target of racism and someone casually asks what race I am, just to get some context, me saying “I’m human” does does sound a bit like a protest statement to an innocent, reasonable question. So I can kinda understand how that response could be irritating.
But I don’t think pitting is in order here, since 1) Skald did answer the question and 2)it’s really a very trivial matter. If all of us created Pit threads over comments that rubbed us the wrong way, there wouldn’t be enough bandwidth.
My experience is that someone is trying to score points about how progressive they are, that such “concepts” as skin color, gender, or other characteristics that just happen to coincide with protected classes. Skin color is one of the first things I notice, along with gender and approximate age, and you’ll never convince me that it’s not the same for others.
I don’t get that strong a vibe from the comment that prompted the OP, though, and it’s definitely not much of a joke if you’re familiar with Skald’s sense of humor.
I wouldn’t be so hard on him. What seems funny to yourself might only be so because you know more about the situation. To others it might appear to be just an off hand or totally out of line comment. Certainly more time should be spent previewing ones post or lightening up a bit, depending on which side of the stupid comment you are.
Since neither the OP nor any subsequent post gives an indication of any comprehension of this fundamental concept, and since the OP presents no other examples of failed attempts at humor, I’m inclined to suspect that this thread is more about race than humor.
I can guarantee you a 26 year old vegetarian heterosexual female is going to identify themselves as such up front without playing any games about it. Some people wear their identities on their sleeve. That grates me more than people who refuse to slap a label on themselves whenever an idiot like you demands that they do so. What about a person who is half white and half black? If they identify as neither white nor black, what answer would satisfy you? Oh, I see that you’re part Australian. What wrenching questions of identity you must face. Marmite or Vegemite? I understand the criticality in resolving those deep questions. :rolleyes:
Maybe try phrasing your question as: “I’m an ignorant douchebag who is only comfortable dealing with people who fall into clearly defined racial categories, can you cook up some misapplied label just to satisfy my need for arbitrary classification?”
Sorry to not answer you earlier. What would I think? I would take this comment in context with whatever else they had said. In Skald’s case I don’t see his response as either snooty or joking, in context.
What monstro said. I’ll also opine that playing coy when asked about your race or someone’s else’s is not the best way to show that race is a non-issue to you. In fact, wrongly or rightly, it often gives the opposite impression and can turn a conversation into a awkward little deal instead of straightforward one. But maybe that’s just me. At any rate, there’s no point in making any speculations about Skald’s racial politics over a one-sentence comment.
I think Skald handled that thread and the real life situation gracefully. I don’t really understand nitpicking one off-hand comment. I think most of us would have gone bugeyed batshit if we were in his shoes.
How could he think of anything but race throughout his wife’s ordeal? I’d imagine it must be frustrating as hell. When I read that post, I saw a little bitter humor and exasperation at play. The only person deserving a pitting here is Dickless the Harasser.
Skald’s perceived (not identifying) race and his wife’s perceived (not identifying) race are relevant to the harasser. And they shouldn’t be. That’s why the harasser’s actions are a problem. He’s the one hung up on what people “should” do, based on his categories.
I do say or write “human” when asked for race. And it’s not a joke. It’s because I live in Los Angeles, where race identification is still a hot-button issue to some. Some people around here would like to see a flesh-colored bandaid that matches everyone. Some think their identifying race is what defines them above all else. And some think that everyone else’s identifying race is what defines everyone else. And that’s why I put “human.” I will not give implicit permission for people to judge not just me but everyone.
I was speaking entirely with the OP (original post and original poster) in mind when I made that post, not people in general. What qualifies someone for being an ignorant douchebag is expecting that someone explain, on demand, their racial identity in the terms and language that you deem acceptable.
When someone says “the census bureau makes me tick the (group X) box”, that really tells you quite a bit. It means that in terms of heredity or physical characteristcs they qualify as group X, but they don’t identify with the culture or type (or choose not to center their personal identity around that). Or, perhaps they have some mixed parentage, and their family history is just none of your goddamned business, thank you very much. If, after receiving that perfectly adequate and honest answer, you then say “but that means you’re a [group x], right? why didn’t you just say that?” then you have just crossed over into ignorant douchebag territory.
Not I. Personally, I feel like you’re obviously the douche in this equation. If Skald’s comment was worthy of a pitting, this steaming pile of a thread ought to merit four or five.