# Taxonomic names to be revised, because racism **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 19, 2024, 9:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455 "2024-07-19T09:57:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/61 "2024-07-20T21:51:00Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > I promise you I’m not feeling put upon. Ok, but you opened by saying how “this is so tiring” so that sure sounds like feeling put upon. > [@Beckdawrek](#): > > You can’t say anything anymore without worrying who you’re offending That’s remotely not true at all. I say stuff all the time without worry that I’m offending people and, if someone did tell me they were offended, it’s usually trivial to adjust my speaking. That said, using that statement after listing what you guys call the flower is ridiculous. “What? I can’t use this obvious and well-known slur? Well I just can’t say _anything_ any more, can I?” ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/62 "2024-07-20T21:58:07Z")
I did not say I used it. I said “It’s commonly called that here …” I don’t like it anymore than I like the _other_ term for Brazil nuts. But, people do that. Here. Like you wouldn’t believe. It’s pure southern slang. I get the problem. I know it’s wrong. It ain’t gonna change soon. So it’s tiring. ---
**Author:** ![Chingon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chingon/32/17645_2.png) [@Chingon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chingon)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/63 "2024-07-20T22:06:24Z")
Then just say whatever you want to. It’s very easy. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/64 "2024-07-20T22:19:35Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > You can’t say anything anymore without worrying who you’re offending. I have a speech impediment, I have real fear of speaking to people. All this just adds to my fear. > I have no hope of beating this phobia. OK, but does that mean you have to go along with or condone some offensive shit? Forget fear of speaking to people, many people have that, you don’t _want_ to speak to people who casually drop that kind of talk into conversations. Do you really care if some racist likes you? ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/65 "2024-07-20T22:28:36Z")
I don’t. I won’t. I don’t know any racists, personally. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/66 "2024-07-20T22:50:13Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > I just wanna know where this crap stops. I’d like to think it stops when we reach the point where we’re not arbitrarily throwing around racist or otherwise bigoted slurs any more, in service of some notion of tradition. There’s no slippery slope here, I think. Just a bunch of stuff that is clearly stupid and ought to stop. And _not stopping_ is wilfully ignorant. There are two parts to this picture though. There are people who just think it would be good if we stopped doing stuff that perpetuate actual racist terminology or behaviour, and there are people who, whether we’ll meaning or just busybodying, seem to want to excise things that are not racist at all, but in some way resemble it superficially - for example people demanding that action be taken against a Spanish - language website that happens to sell shirts in a variety of colours including black. There is no reason to lump that idiocy in with the other category of stuff, which is perfectly reasonable reform. In fact you’d be doing a great disservice to the proponents of reasonable reform, to not differentiate them from the performers of recreational outrage. ---
**Author:** ![Chingon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chingon/32/17645_2.png) [@Chingon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chingon)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/67 "2024-07-20T23:06:31Z")
Call me crazy, but If I’m commonly around people who call black-eyed Susans nigger daises then I know some racists. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/68 "2024-07-20T23:09:51Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > You can’t say anything anymore without worrying who you’re offending. Wrong. Unless you typically go around using offensive language you have nothing to worry about. “It’s so tiring that we can’t use the n-word to describe flowers! When will this insanity end!?” is not a good look for you. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/69 "2024-07-20T23:14:09Z")
I don’t use it. I said, _again_ “They are commonly known as that” I didn’t name them that. I don’t talk about roadside weeds. That’s just what they are known as. Yes, it’s tiring. It’s silly. And no one here cares. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/70 "2024-07-20T23:15:10Z")
At the very least, it’s a very poor example of whatever the complaint is. ‘Political correctness gone mad’ does exist. There are people out there threatening to report a Spanish website for using the Spanish word for the colour black, to describe a colour option for a black garment. That is an example of insanity, and if that kind of insanity was really common, it would be tiring, I guess. But the rudbeckia example is just something that’s unacceptable, clearly perpetuating the use of a racist slur and simply needs to stop. The one thing is not like, or part of, nor _leading to_ the other. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/71 "2024-07-20T23:17:02Z")
It’s funny how people not from a region or race can be outraged by what that region or race does or says. (As this whole tangent is a possible hijack from the OP discussion, I’ll not reply anymore) ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/72 "2024-07-20T23:20:38Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > It’s funny how people not from a region or race can be outraged by what that region or race does or says. Wow you actually _are_ claiming that using the n-word to describe flowers is just a totally normal thing no one should be outraged about because gosh darn it’s just part of good ol’ Southern culture. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/73 "2024-07-20T23:22:38Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > good ol’ Southern culture. Surely you don’t mean to imply that Southern culture could ever be racist… ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/74 "2024-07-20T23:23:52Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > It’s funny how people not from a region or race can be outraged by what that region or race does or says. I’m not sure who it is that you think is _outraged_. If it’s me, then you’re wrong. I _care_ about the matter we’re discussing, even though I am not the victim of it. I don’t think it’s either a terrible or remarkable viewpoint for me to hold. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/75 "2024-07-20T23:40:25Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > but every accepted name should be considered based on its relevant descriptive nature. Erm, no, that’s not how that works. Basilosaurus doesn’t get renamed to Basilocetus when we realized it was a whale and not a marine reptile. That’s got very little to do with renaming offensive species names, which I have nothing against. But it isn’t being done because the names aren’t _descriptive_, or we would have a very long road ahead of us. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/76 "2024-07-20T23:43:48Z")
Yeah, it isn’t exactly easy coming up with unique names for literally millions of different species. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/77 "2024-07-20T23:55:09Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > At least when someone looks up a photo of Rudbeckia online to see what that flower is called, it’ll say the proper common name. I looked up the scientific name and ‘offensive’ and the only things that came up were people who thought that ‘black eyed’ refers to domestic abuse. So I don’t think this is a big problem for anyone outside a small group of racists that Beck is apparently familiar with. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2024, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/78 "2024-07-20T23:59:46Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > You can’t say anything anymore without worrying who you’re offending. Yeah! For example, if you say “maybe we shouldn’t call this plant by a racial slur”, a totally reasonable thing to say, you’ll get some people who get terribly offended and upset that you’re doing so. Crazy! ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2024, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/79 "2024-07-21T00:02:44Z")
Nvm this one is probably off topic ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2024, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455/80 "2024-07-21T00:03:16Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > > [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > > > good ol’ Southern culture. > > Surely you don’t mean to imply that Southern culture could ever be racist… #heritage-not-hate [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/taxonomic-names-to-be-revised-because-racism/1004455.md?page=5)