BklynBabe said:

SUPRMAN said:

Because it's the same word regardless of who is using it.

The idea that the color of your skin changes the meaning or intent of a word is ridiculous.

But that's how we treat it.

But here in Oakland, the N word is no longer "a Black thing."

Every person of color in Oakland uses the N word, in public, around Black folks even.

It's not like I can tell them they have to be Black to use it. They obviously don't.

In a cultural sense they way it's used, I can't call it racist.

*crosses Oakland off the vacation list*

IMO SUPRMAN was even playing it light. I've ridden public transportation EVERYWHERE around the Bay for over five years now. I regularly see groups of WHITE KIDS using the word on buses and trains full of adults of all ages and colors. I sat and watched an elderly black woman flinch every time somebody blurted out the word one day. I know she wanted to turn around and tell them to shut their ignorant mouths, because I wanted to do the same thing. Unfortunately you just never know when one of them is going to have a gun or if the gang mentallity will take over, ending with you getting a serious beat down. The bus drivers don't do anything about it, either. I've seen multiple drivers tell kids to stop cursing when they're yelling out variations of the word fuck. But never seen one of them say a damn thing when half the bus is yelling the N word back and forth.

The dichotomy of the situation is that there could also be a group of black kids on the bus behaving exactly the same way. There is just a certain age group that has been desensitized to the use of the word. It holds no more meaning to them than saying dude. However, dude doesn't have 400 years of evil connotations attached to it. And I've seen, read and listened to all the people who say that claiming the word as their own, twisting it around so that it no longer holds those meanings, makes it OK to use it. I've seen it said by people who I think are highly intelligent. People who have explained it with passion and eloquence. But IMO, it doesn't work. You can't erase history. You can't change what it means to a huge swath of black Americans. And you can't pretend that there aren't still a vast number of racists in this country for whom it still holds only one meaning.

So where do we go from here? I don't know. Not a clue. It's one of those things where I can only take account for my own actions. I don't use the word, and it's not spoken in my home. I've discussed it's use at great length with a lot of my friends. A majority of them fall on the side or "it's just a word and the more I use it in that context the less power it holds". Fine. I don't agree, but I don't think it's my place to make anybody change if it's not what they want. Freedom is tricky and all that.

....... that's all. I had more... but I'ma let it slide.

Oakland is a great place, btw. It's really quite large, geographically. Yes, there are bad neighborhoods. Really bad ones, actually. But there is also a lot of beauty in the Town. People, places and things. Not sure I would call it a hot vacation spot. But when I take visiting friends and family around the Bay we always end up in Oakland at one point or another.

TonyVanDam said:

I take it that the judge disregarded the tape recordings Oksana had on Mel's rants.

Check out PEREZ HILTON. He just stated that THOSE TAPES ARE PROBABLY GOING TO END UP AS INADDMISSIBLE EVIDENCE BECAUSE Ms. O Text messaged Mel.

Perez Hilton is no better than Mel Gibson. A hater is a hater is a hater.

BklynBabe said:

*crosses Oakland off the vacation list*

LMAO! I've been there...meh.

Hopefully Mel will wander through Oakland one day soon.

Harlepolis said:

SUPRMAN said:

How does that explain Elin and Tiger?

I haven't followed their big blown out charade like I should've. But if he put his hands on her(whether she was holding a baby or not) and clearly showed signs of instability like Mel, then he shouldn't be near any babies without supervision as well and also seek help.

Elin assaulted Tiger and gets custody of the children.

I guess because Tiger is a threat . . . . he is a man . . . .

SUPRMAN said:

Harlepolis said:

I haven't followed their big blown out charade like I should've. But if he put his hands on her(whether she was holding a baby or not) and clearly showed signs of instability like Mel, then he shouldn't be near any babies without supervision as well and also seek help.

Elin assaulted Tiger and gets custody of the children.

I guess because Tiger is a threat . . . . he is a man . . . .

Were any charges filed against Elin for assaluting Tiger? No one knows expect them what happened that night. You are making an assumption that Elin put her hands or took a golf club to her soon to be ex. Even so, something tells me Tiger doesn't want to speak of about other things that happened that night either.

[Edited 7/21/10 8:41am]

When we have threads such as these there are a couple of fools on the Org who would like to convince themselves and others that using racial slurs are common place and not a big deal. Racial and ethnic slurs or any from of bigotry should be denouced. You have the right to say anything you wish just as people have the right to speak up and out and/or take measures if need be to isolate them economically, politically or socially.

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bboy87 said:

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Ottensen said:

bboy87 said:

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Heathens!

bboy87 said:

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Oh well not like I'm shocked. Apparently because the tapes were inadmissable, that's why he won custody so besides from the public, the judge never wanted to hear it and thought the woman was wrong for releasing it to the public. It's unfair but I guess that's how things go in the justice system.

Fuck Mel Gibson's ass anyway.