What makes people think this is OK?

[Tim]

I'm just looking forward to the day when my children's children's children will no longer have to bear the institutional white guilt for all of the horrible misdeeds of their distant progenitors.

Great! The sooner they forget how horrible it was, the sooner they can start doing it again.

[JohnnyLingo]

Great! The sooner they forget how horrible it was, the sooner they can start doing it again.

See?

[ERCougar]

I'm just looking forward to the day when my children's children's children will no longer have to bear the institutional white guilt for all of the horrible misdeeds of their distant progenitors.

Ugh...
It's not "white guilt". It's called "sensitivity".

[Indy Coug]

Great! The sooner they forget how horrible it was, the sooner they can start doing it again.

Comprehension fail.

[Pheidippides]

Are you saying people would physically attack her? Wow.

Most people I know would not, but I think that violence would not be an unreasonable expectation, depending on time, place, people in the vicinity, etc. In Idaho, Montana, Utah, Wyoming? Probably not. In New York, Houston, or Atlanta? I would physically restrain any friend of mine who came to a party dressed like that for their own safety. It is that offensive.

And then I would probably rethink the friendship.

A fair argument. But maybe in 50 or 100 years socially mandated taboos against the f-bomb will have changed. Could we see the same thing for blackface?

Certainly possible (and I would argue that taboos against the f-bomb are not what they once were in any event).

[JohnnyLingo]

Ugh...
It's not "white guilt". It's called "sensitivity".

There's a difference. Some people definitely feel white guilt. Others are sensitive to the past. I'm okay with the latter and not so okay with the former.

[JohnnyLingo]

Most people I know would not, but I think that violence would not be an unreasonable expectation, depending on time, place, people in the vicinity, etc. In Idaho, Montana, Utah, Wyoming? Probably not. In New York, Houston, or Atlanta? I would physically restrain any friend of mine who came to a party dressed like that for their own safety. It is that offensive.

Why? Can you think of something that would offend me so much I'd want to physically attack someone?

[Tim]

There's a difference. Some people definitely feel white guilt. Others are sensitive to the past. I'm okay with the latter and not so okay with the former.

I'm in the latter, despite what you think. I'm sensitive to mistakes that have been made in the past and I want to ensure that I and my people don't make them again.

[Pheidippides]

Not to threadjack, but I really hate this argument. Words are NEVER just "words". Like actions, every word evokes an emotional response, to some degree, in whoever hears it (and likely, in ourselves). Zappa (ironically, I think) would pretend that we're all emotionless robots, which is really pretty silly. Even if I accept that one's use of profanity doesn't affect that person (and I don't accept that), you have to at least agree with me that no one lives in a vacuum, and for the same reason we should be conscientious of how our actions affect others, we should also be conscientious of how our words affect others. It's not something that I ever want us to "get past". It's what makes us charitable.

By the way, nik, I'm not implicating you in this--I've never noticed you to be one who overuses, or even uses, profanity much. It always bugs me to see others act like it's some sign of personal strength to "be themselves", with little regard to how their statements (and often accompanying profanity) affect others. I don't respect it.

I think what I'm saying and what you're saying are actually the same thing, in different ways: I don't use the words precisely because I recognize that they are not "just words" to everybody and I realize they are damaging to others. The only part I'd quibble with is I don't believe that the use of profanity - in isolation - is damaging. But it is never used in isolation, so we're talking about thought experiments here, not real-world practice, except for the time I die five times in a row in MW2 and everybody else in the house is asleep.

The offensive part to me is not the words per se but that people think so little of others as to use them willy-nilly. I am not offended at the actual sounds - I am offended at the intent behind them. IOW, it's all about charity and respect for others, as you suggest.

[Color Me Badd Fan]

At the kids school they do this wax museum thing every year where they choose a famous historical person or celebrity and dress up and the parents come and walk through like you're visiting a wax museum. Without fail at least a couple kids a year are doing the Al Jolsen black face thing dressed up as Michael Jordan or Mohammed Ali or whoever. It's one of the highlights of my year.

I think a kid dressing up as Jordan or Ali is a huge step up from the two idiots featured at the top of the thread. At least there's some kind of innocent intent and educational angle (albeit, very slight).

The distinction is that the people at the top are simply dressing up as black people- and a caricature of blacks on top of that (e.g. baggy clothing). I've looked at other pictures of their blog and I'm still not thoroughly convinced that the girl actually had to put padding in her pants to produce the large butt.

So, I don't think its offensive to dress up as a certain individual who happens to be black. It is offensive, and stupid to dress up as caricature of a black person which is what these two people did.

[UtahDan]

Great! The sooner they forget how horrible it was, the sooner they can start doing it again.

Also, when are those Mormons going to get over being kicked out of this country and their prophet being murdered? The persecution complexes on those people!

[Tim]

Why? Can you think of something that would offend me so much I'd want to physically attack someone?

If someone called your wife a bitch to her face, then did it again, then again, and she's there crying, and the person isn't stopping insulting her, and you can't leave wherever you are, I think you'd probably strongly contemplate physically attacking them. So... yes, there are things that would offend you so much that you'd want to physically attack someone.

[TripletDaddy]

I'm just looking forward to the day when my children's children's children will no longer have to bear the institutional white guilt for all of the horrible misdeeds of their distant progenitors.

This isn't a bad idea, actually.

I assume this would also apply to our LDS tendency to drone on and on about boring pioneer stories, persecution of the Saints and Joseph Smith, etc. No more Martin Handcart tales of woe.

We could all do with a healthy serving of "get over it," it seems....

[Tim]

Also, when are those Mormons going to get over being kicked out of this country and their prophet being murdered? The persecution complexes on those people!

Stop being reasonable, UD! STOP!

[Pheidippides]

Why? Can you think of something that would offend me so much I'd want to physically attack someone?

I don't know you well enough to say. I have some thoughts, but I'm not really anxious to show up on your doorstep to experiment. There are things that offensive to me, to be sure, but I rarely encounter them in life.

To answer your first question, though, what good does it do to talk about the motivation? You're just as dead.