I want to follow you, really I do, but I have to admit that I am not. I would say, generally, that if someone were choosing to express themselves this way that I would wonder how the blackness or gayness of the person was relevant. But perhaps I miss your point.
Also, this is an excellent point. I think it all really boils down to the fact that on one of the “pictures of Dopers” pages, she submitted a picture of herself in a bikini (sorry, no cite but trust my grrrrraw!). In any event, I have seen her take shit a time or two over that, and honestly I think that it is from this that the mythical brigade has reached their opinion of her.
Sad,
Here’s the thing Aries28, I can understand what iampunha is saying as well.
I would be uncomfortable with a rant that began by describing some one as a “black bastard” or a 'queer son of a bitch " so I can also comprehend why judging some one by their social economic class could be offensive.
2trew:
Well. it took you long enough to get the schedule up!
Bug off, you demographically challenged, hippy haired, medium height, happy fun list having, name-calling, bed-thrusting poophead.
Hmmm, I gotta say being insulting (to a point) isn’t that much fun.
My, my. Well an explanation is needed it seems. First off, I have not seen the pic of BBJ so no, your assumptions are wrong. The discussion of ‘white trash’ as a description of a mass of people was the topic at hand when it was brought up. Many people expressed their opinions of the phrase, both good and bad, for and against. So we discuss it every time it comes up? It would seem to me that once a person states an opinion it is not necessary for that opinion to be continually stated over and over again, unless it is in a different forum, such as the discussion going on now in IMHO on the term ‘white trash’. And since a lot of the posters in this thread remember those opinions, why state them again?
And yes this is the Pit, and we all know the definition of the forum. Doesn’t mean that you can’t disagree with what is posted.
Duke of Rat a lady doesn’t slam up against the head. That’s totally not necessary.
In the case stated above, the person in question in the Trans Am got exactly what she wanted. A reaction. The best action our OP could have taken would have been to smile at her and blow her a kiss. Total rebuttal, totally unexpected reaction from him and it would have floored her totally. As it was, he gave her minutes of his life because he LET her make him angry. Then again if I had been on a bike and was close enough to observe her ‘cottage cheese ass’ I would have been a little frightened. He had to have been almost in the car with her to observe that. Not good.
Binarydrone
“I would hope that you can see that calling someone an overweight whit trash bitch could easily be seen as offensive.”
Yep…to HER…as he was angry at HER, nobody else.
As I heard it said once (paraphrasing here):
He was just fashioning a shoe…if everybody else wants to put it on and loudly proclaim that it fits…
Hey, I’m a white guy and Lord knows we get our share of slamming. Some of it justified, too, I might add. But if he were to have said instead, “This skinny-ass white trash guy in a Trans-Am honked at me…” I wouldn’t feel the slightest bit insulted, because I would know that all he was doing was describing the driver as a jerk and a moron*
NOT that he was translating that to include ALL skinny white drivers.
*apologies to all jerks and morons for insulting them…
:eek: You said, “HIPPY”!!!
You gonna burn in hell for sure, now!
Professional Offenderati: I couldn’t possibly think of a better explanation than that.
And to whomever questioned why the OP didn’t use other descriptive terms, such as what she was wearing, ect. (the hamsters are painfully slow right now, and I don’t want to try to directly go to the last page and quote off of that particular post) the OP, IMHO, chose to use the terms that would most succinctly paint his picture. “Women wearing the red tank top in the car” doesn’t quite have the same descriptive punch as “white trash bitch in the trans am” if you know what I mean.
If you still insist on throwing your little PC temper tantrum, then I give up.
There are certain people who are white and also knuckle-dragging, mouth-breathing morons. There are certain people who are black, brown or green and are also cretinous dumbfucks. There are also disgustingly obese people in the world. And really, really ugly people. And there are also Trans-Am drivers. We have a right to be disturbed by these people. We also have the right to love and verbally caress them if we so choose.
All the PCness in the world won’t change our visceral reactions to unpleasent things.
It’s OK to call these people out.
Call it like it is… it’s the Pit. Sticks and stones and all that, you know?
Relax.
ultress Sorry for dragging your name into this fray, it was uncalled for. I just really need to work on my sarcasm smiley:( We had a bit of fun with BBJ a while back is the only reason you came to mind.
The only reason I cried “white trash” was to get a rise out of the PC police…the “fat bitch” people were already having their fun and I wanted to fan the flames.
Provoke a reaction.
Like that overweight, white trash bitch in the Trans Am…
You can blow me a kiss now!
Alas, alas. As much as I would like to take credit for coining the Professional Offenderati phrase, it is not to be. I first saw the term in the title ofthis thread started by Sam Stone, way back in '02.
The thread is worth checking out. You may now continue with your regularly scheduled programing.
It is my EXACT POINT that you are WRONG here.
If you insult a person for their behavior, you are addressing the issue that pissed you off. If somebody’s behavior pisses you off, and you turn around and insult them for their appearance, you’re doing two things:[ol][li]Being an asshole (note it’s the behavior I’m addressing) and[/li][li]suggesting that the aspect of appearance you’re targeting (in this case, being fat) is inherently worthy of insult. You are therefore insulting every fat person who reads your ill-aimed insult.[/ol][/li]Is that any clearer? It kind of parallels the difference between a hate crime and a mugging: the mugging targets the wallet–the individual; the hate crime is intended to send a message of terror to other members of the victim’s group. The mugging’s target is the victim; the hate crime’s target is the whole group that shares the attribute that enraged the hater.
To say “I’m just insulting one person, so it’s OK” is utter bullshit.
“That faggot just cut me off!”
“To the stupid nigger who took the last box of twinkies at the HEB:”
Those things are not OK here; neither should be the OP.
I dunno, seems to me that there’s a big difference between insulting someone based on their nature-given traits (skin/eye/natural hair color, height, hand preferance) and things people have some measure of control over. You might not be able to control the fact that you’re a short, blue-eyed, right-handed idiot, but you can control being a fat, tattoed, bleach blond, sluty clothes wearing bitch.
I think I might have worded that wrong. My intention was to explain that a lady doesn’t need to resort to physical violence to get her point across. I already had my ‘rise’ about ‘white trash’ so it usually won’t work twice. I stated my opinion and that’s all I need to do. Everyone has one.
So here’s a big kiss to you. Have a good evening.
And thus we get to the truth: you think it’s OK to insult someone who’s fat because you think being fat is inherently worthy of insult. You assume that it’s something she has “some measure of control over.”
Thanks for admitting your bigotry.
Oh, for cryin’ out loud.
Using the adjective “overweight” hardly makes someone a bigot. Get a freakin’ grip.
It’s called ranting. What the hell are you even doing in the Pit if you’re so damn hyper sensitive??
Ok, what about “White Trash”?
I’ve never considered the term “white trash” as anything but descriptive. I realize we don’t see eye to eye on that.
Whoops. Posted too early.
I think it’s the “trash” part. You can be white and not trashy. You can be poor and not trashy. I’m both. I’m pretty poor and I’m white, but I don’t consider myself “trash.” I’ve never lived in a trailer, but I’ve been friends with many people that have or do, and they’re not “trash.” But there are/were some people in their trailer park that most certainly were.
That’s why I consider it a descriptive term and nothing more.
Yeah, every few days you have to give the Fat People’s Liberation Army a reason to march into a thread. It’s good for them, they could use the exerc–wait a minute…
…contemplating whether to leave that joke in the post… thinking… thinking… maybe an analogy to the Khmer Rouge riding into Phnom Penh would be better… nah, this is funnier…
As I inadvertently started the first of these hefty trainwrecks a few months back, I just can’t take the subsequent ones that seriously. Can’t we just put some warning in the FAQ:
“WARNING: any reference to a person’s obesity/fatness in a thread insulting that person will derail the thread and invite an invasion by the Fat People’s Liberation Army, use caution and proceed at your own risk.”
Wait, I have an idea for atonement. I’m overweight myself. I say, anybody who wants to have some fun making fun of me for being overweight may do so, with impunity, for the remainder of this thread. In exchange, we will never rehash this stupid argument again. Deal? Ready… set… GO!