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Quote:

Originally Posted by ioan (Post 236133)

Well, I grew up in Romania and for the last 10 years I lived in USA. Here is something that I still don't understand, and doesn't matter what explanation you Americans come up with, I still don't get it:
why the black people can say the word "negro" anytime, but for everybody else is taboo? Doesn't things like this actually keep the racism in place? "We are from the black race, we can say "negro", you are from the white race, you can't say the "n" word"....
How stupid.
The kids are raised to be afraid to see what "freedom of speech" really means, for Americans, real freedom of speech can't exist because freedom of speech here is considered offensive.

True true.

And what a lovely country Romania is!

Quote:

Originally Posted by ioan (Post 236133)

Actually, you can say "nigger" in the States. It may considerably shorten your life expectancy, depending on where you say it, but you won't go to jail for it.

In Europe however, you can be jailed for asking the "wrong" questions about the Holocaust, and in Belgium you can be jailed for whatever the politicians dictate the judges they should jail you for. Anything -- and I literally mean anything -- can be deemed racist, discriminatory or inflammatory, depending on how threatening you are for the Powers That Be. Brave New World...

Quote:

Originally Posted by ioan (Post 236133)

The kids are raised to be afraid to see what "freedom of speech" really means, for Americans, real freedom of speech can't exist because freedom of speech here is considered offensive.

I think this is a misreading of what freedom of speech in the US entails. The US government can't regulate the speech of its citizens. However, the marketplace most assuredly can.

With freedom of speech, you are also accepting any consequences the marketplace chooses or chooses not to impose on said speech.

Yeah, if you think freedom of speech is freedom from being considered offensive or foolish, you're missing the point, entirely, ioan.

As Karel pointed out, in other countries you can and will be imprisoned for your speech. All freedom of speech means is your speech isn't regulated by the government. Propriety is a seperate issue; not at all related.

Quote:

Originally Posted by LordFu (Post 236162)

Yeah, if you think freedom of speech is freedom from being considered offensive or foolish, you're missing the point, entirely, ioan.

Explain to me why a black person can use the word "negro" whenever, and I can't because I'm white.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ioan (Post 236133)

Tell you what ioan after you've had your ancestors shipped across the atlantic for about 3 months with minimal food and in "quarters" fit for a chihuahua, then getting off said ship in the caribbean and having strange people feel you up and split you up from your family (assuming you were so "lucky" as to have had them shipped with you) and sent on another ship to another strange a** country where another set of people felt you up before buying you and putting you to work in some hot ***** field from sun up to sunset. Not to mention the frequent beatings, poor food and liability to be strung up from a tree for such offenses as being well...black, whistling or god forbid trying to get out of your situation.

Oh and then the whole share cropping thing, the whole you can't sit, stand, drink, eat, piss or shyt, here, here, here or here. Nor can you go to school or live here, here, here or here and should you attempt to do so you will find such lovely things as burning crosses on your property assuming you haven't had your property burnt to the ground...

Do I need to go on?

Look, I don't really approve of the typical use of the word by those fitting the above discreption, but the mere fact that it needs to be explained to you means you really ought to bone up on the history of the country you're currently living in before passing some really bad argument as a case of lack of free speech.

Anyway, in the states at worst you have a fine from the FCC (or perhaps get fired from a private company). In Europe you so much as look at a Jew wrong and you can find yourself in jail (I'm exagerating of course). Whole pieces of literature and paraphernalia are "illegal" as it may offend a certain group or "cause" people to hate jews. I find that completely offensive.

I tell you what though, you feel free to refer to me as an "n-word" so long as you don't mind any of the "nice" words I have for you and we'll call it even (so long as the censors here don't mess them up).

Quote:

Originally Posted by sondjata (Post 236175)

I'm not in any way racist... far from it, just that this doesn't make any sense. If is that offensive should not be use by ANYBODY.

ioan: You have to understand that the USA was one of the last countries in the world to abolish state-sponsored apartheid. Amazing how Americans can forget that it's only been 44 years since blacks were allowed to go anywhere whites could go, and 43 years since blacks were allowed to vote across the United States.

So there's going to be some racial tension there, yeah. At least for a few more years.

EDIT: This article about Black Codes says that these laws didn't officially end until 2000? Could that be right?!

EDIT2: This article says that long after legal segregation has been abolished in the USA, it continues in practice.

@ioan: Ok, think about it from a different point of view. Most of us here on this forum might call ourselves "geeks" or "nerds" but wouldn't necessarily want to be called that my someone who isn't also a geek. Multiply that by 200+ years of racial tension.