# "Not to be racist, but..." **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 23, 2007, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477 "2007-11-23T02:36:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![descamisado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@descamisado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/descamisado)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2007, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/61 "2007-11-23T20:13:58Z")
[QUOTE=RedRosesForMe] OoooOOOooh. I like this. You need to have some sort of explanatory rant, though, for when she’s sitting spluttering as gravy runs down her face. 😃 [/QUOTE] If **jsgoddess** brings a skinless chicken breast dish to the meal and can work “cuntlet” into her explanation, I’ll pay her cash money (name your price). ---
**Author:** ![11811](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/1/9d8465/32.png) [@11811](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/11811)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2007, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/62 "2007-11-23T20:33:09Z")
[QUOTE=Dead Cat] Sickle-cell anaemia? [/Devil’s advocate] [/QUOTE] Which of course is highly contagious. ---
**Author:** ![11811](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/1/9d8465/32.png) [@11811](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/11811)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2007, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/63 "2007-11-23T20:39:27Z")
[QUOTE=Biggirl] Not to be pendantic but sickle-cell appears in populations [where malaria has recently been prevelant.](http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v198/n4879/abs/198492b0.html) Now, these areas are _usually_ inhabited by black people, but not always. Plus, what in the hell does sickle cell have to do with cleanliness? [/QUOTE] Sickle cell anemia is a genetic disorder. The connection to malaria is that it seems to mitigate some of the effects of malaria. Malaria is not a cause. ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2007, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/64 "2007-11-23T20:41:51Z")
[QUOTE=jsgoddess] I have tried leaving. I have tried not seeing these worthless scum for years. [/QUOTE] Didn’t that work? Why did you give up on a sucessful technique? ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2007, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/65 "2007-11-23T20:49:04Z")
[QUOTE=11811] Sickle cell anemia is a genetic disorder. The connection to malaria is that it seems to mitigate some of the effects of malaria. Malaria is not a cause. [/QUOTE] I didn’t read anything in her post to indicate that she though sickle cell was _caused_ by malaria. ---
**Author:** ![Sierra\_Indigo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Sierra\_Indigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sierra_Indigo)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2007, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/66 "2007-11-23T20:51:52Z")
[QUOTE=j666] Didn’t that work? Why did you give up on a sucessful technique? [/QUOTE] I would hazard a guess and say that her husband may want to sometimes see his family, that there may be certain parts of the family which he wants to associate with, but unfortunately they come installed with Racistards™. And I can’t imagine that the OP would want to be without her husband during the holiday season, so that leads to having to see these people. ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2007, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/67 "2007-11-23T21:01:04Z")
[QUOTE=Sampiro] Not to be a racist, but damn I hate Tyler Perry movies. (Whether or not that’s a racist statement depends on whether you say it around particularly ardent Tyler Perry fans.) [/QUOTE] When viewing Tyler Perry movies I’ve found that the best thing to do is just not to listen to what the characters say, and instead concentrate on looking very hard at the fine-looking women in them (Garbrielle Union, Kimberly Elise, Sharon Leal, etc). Obvoiusly, you’ll want to avert your eyes from the too prevalent “Madea” (Tyler Perry in drag) character. ---
**Author:** ![ForumBot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ee59a6/32.png) [@ForumBot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ForumBot)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2007, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/68 "2007-11-23T21:05:06Z")
[QUOTE=DataZak] Not to be racist, but I prefer a marathon than a 100-metre dash. [/QUOTE] Not to be racist, but them niglets are always winning them dashes, what with their fast-twitch muscle fibers and evolved ability to run from lions in Africa. ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2007, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/69 "2007-11-23T21:17:08Z")
[QUOTE=Sierra Indigo] I would hazard a guess and say that her husband may want to sometimes see his family, that there may be certain parts of the family which he wants to associate with, but unfortunately they come installed with Racistards™. And I can’t imagine that the OP would want to be without her husband during the holiday season, so that leads to having to see these people. [/QUOTE] Nope, not buying it. Granted I have been blessed with my in-laws, but I would happily sacrifice one holiday a year with my spouse to avoid them if we hated each other, and they deliberately tried to offend me. Furthermore, I would never turn my back on my family for my spouse, but I certainly wouldn’t drag my spouse to family gatherings to be tormented. I would go alone with a polite lie, and rap them sharply on the nose if they were disrespectful about the spouse. [Actually, a couple of my in-laws drive me batshit, but recently I’ve started making ‘Oh, did I say that out loud?’ comments. Christmas could be interesting.] ---
**Author:** ![armedmonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@armedmonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/armedmonkey)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2007, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/70 "2007-11-23T21:49:01Z")
I hate to throw facts in the way of a good argument, but to continue the highjack, there _are_ contagious diseases that affect African Americans different from those of European descent. The best example is [Hepatitus C](http://hepcassoc.org/news/article126.html). Not only does ethnicity play a role in treatment and severity: > [@](#): > > In the US, people of all races are adversely affected by HCV infection. However, for reasons that are not yet understood, African Americans have disparate clinical features (e.g., response to therapy) and more complications from HCV infection than Caucasians. Ethnicity may also play a role in prevalence: > [@](#): > > The most recent US census data records that 12% of the population is African American, whereas 75% is white [3]. HCV infection is more prevalent in the African American population than in any other racial group in the United States. Although African Americans represent only 12% of the US population, they represent approximately 22% of the estimated Americans with chronic HCV infection [1]. In short, _of course_ viruses will affect different ethnicities differently. Any high school kid that paid attention in biology 101 knows that viruses propagate through the host’s genetics. It doesn’t take a molecular biologist to point out that the differences in host genetics might affect how the virus reacts, and therefore differences in prevalence and severity will occur with regards to ancestry. And everybody _knows_ this. They just have to think about it for a second. All they have to do is remember what happened to the Native American population upon their first exposure to smallpox. **jsgoddess** ’s sister in law is still a racist cunt, however. I seriously doubt she was thinking about ancestral genetic impact on epidemiology when she was complaining about the “niglets”. ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2007, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/71 "2007-11-23T22:06:08Z")
[QUOTE=A Monkey With a Gun] I hate to throw facts in the way of a good argument, but to continue the highjack, there _are_ contagious diseases that affect African Americans different from those of European descent. [/QUOTE] Not to hijack a hijack with a hijack, but the statement at issue is > [@](#): > > I would have thought black populations have different diseases to white people Your cite says > [@](#): > > In the US, people of all races are adversely affected by HCV infection. What you have provided is evidence that blacks and whites have the \*same \*disease, not different diseases. Furthermore, to keep it on point, you would need to establish that sharing a playground constitutes a significant risk of transmission from one population to another. ---
**Author:** ![The\_King\_of\_Soup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a87d85/32.png) [@The\_King\_of\_Soup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_King_of_Soup)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2007, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/72 "2007-11-23T23:02:21Z")
“Not to be racist, _but_…” is all you need. The “but” is there only to beg an exception to the stated rule. It serves no other purpose. _That_ genteel-like lie has been around for a long while, but “niglets” is new to me. I doubt if it’ll be very successful in the long run (it’s not a subtle variation), but even if it fails there are still a lot of possibilities even for racists of limited imagination (is there any other kind?) to “cleverly” signal to each other their allegiance to bigotry. My favorite recent example I’ve encountered is “nitpicker.” It collapses without mental effort to a word you’re not allowed to use in public, and you can use it whole to decribe people who find fault with more subtle racist innuendoes. One more thought: sometimes public facilities may go downhill because different people are using them, and sometimes, because different people are using them, less effort is spent taking care of them. It’s tough to tell the original cause if you’re not paying attention. And nobody does. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2007, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/73 "2007-11-23T23:24:33Z")
[QUOTE=11811] Sickle cell anemia is a genetic disorder. The connection to malaria is that it seems to mitigate some of the effects of malaria. Malaria is not a cause. [/QUOTE] Yeah, I know. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2007, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/74 "2007-11-24T00:35:31Z")
[QUOTE=Biggirl] Plus, what in the hell does sickle cell have to do with cleanliness? [/QUOTE] Maybe if you’re anemic, you get dizzy and fall down on the slide and… get your germs on it… I got nothin’. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2007, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/75 "2007-11-24T01:00:26Z")
“Not to be racist, _but_…” But Nothing, you Selfish Entitled Bitch!!! I’m F’ing Sick of you stealing all the breast- meat at Thanksgiving! If you so much as reach for a wing, I swear to Og I’ll shove an entire drumstick straight up your ass without so much as a cranbury-sauce lube…! “I wasn’t talking about turkey…” Like I care, Bigot… ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2007, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/76 "2007-11-24T04:53:07Z")
The best response in this situation is to bait and troll in real life in order to get good quotes. Just make sure to post the results here. ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2007, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/77 "2007-11-24T06:34:05Z")
> [@Always Brings Pie](#): > > Go eat another piece of pie and maybe you’ll feel better. Ah, the solution to all our problems. If I eat a whole pie, I bet I’ll feel even better than that! As to the OP, the last time I heard “Not to be racist, but…” (or a rough equivalent thereof, anyway) was before my dad told me that I shouldn’t date girls of other races. While I was dating a black girl, and just a couple of years after he had spent all of his energy trying to push me into a relationship with my Vietnamese best friend. It wasn’t too hard to figure out that “other races” meant something a little more specific and that his concern extended beyond the fact that my grades would apparently suffer if my professors saw me walking around with black girls. 😕 > [@jtgain](#): > > 4\> Should you defer to the opinion of her 12 year old son over her and her husband since he is obviously wiser? I don’t think it’s so obvious. I also find it troubling that you think all grown men are automatically wiser than 12 year old boys, but grown women aren’t. > [@River Hister](#): > > For example, not to be racist, but spanish accents really annoy me, and not to be homophobia but people who act camp are irritating. Not to be Riverist, but people who can’t write English but think they can are really irritating. BTW, thanks for illustrating the OP’s point. > [@zamboniracer](#): > > When viewing Tyler Perry movies I’ve found that the best thing to do is just not to listen to what the characters say, and instead concentrate on looking very hard at the fine-looking women in them (Garbrielle Union, Kimberly Elise, Sharon Leal, etc). > > Obvoiusly, you’ll want to avert your eyes from the too prevalent “Madea” (Tyler Perry in drag) character. Somehow I don’t think **Sampiro** will find those tips useful. ---
**Author:** ![Jolly\_Roger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/91b2a8/32.png) [@Jolly\_Roger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jolly_Roger)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2007, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477/78 "2007-11-24T06:38:44Z")
[QUOTE=Count Blucher] “Not to be racist, _but_…” But Nothing, you Selfish Entitled Bitch!!! I’m F’ing Sick of you stealing all the breast- meat at Thanksgiving! If you so much as reach for a wing, I swear to Og I’ll shove an entire drumstick straight up your ass without so much as a cranbury-sauce lube…! “I wasn’t talking about turkey…” Like I care, Bigot… [/QUOTE] Haha! I like this answer! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-to-be-racist-but/427477.md?page=3)