Oh just give me a break, will you?

[Mikel]

While getting on line, I see a headline that states "Restaurant with a controversial name closing."

So, being the nosy sort, I headed over to watch the video.

RANT

They never once, in two minute and fourteen seconds said the name of this very popular local San Francisco eatery.  Not once.  And they only showed the name for about three seconds.

Dago Mary's.  Opened long ago by an Italian immigrant named Mary.

But, no.  They are not going to risk insulting anybody.

Is that how thin skinned people are now that you can not say the name of a popular restaurant because someone far away may say something?  I am of Italian decent and it does not offend me.  Obviously it did not offend Mary, or the rest of her family.  Or the patrons of the place.  Or the neighbors.

/RANT

[PastMember]

Yeah, that's really sad. My Aunt's daughter is half Italian and she has, since the day she was born, called her "her little Dago-baby."

The worst part about that is - people get too offended over the stupidest shit. So, when something REALLY is offensive... it's no big deal. I can think of better things to get upset over besides the name of a family owned eatery.

People are quite ridiculous.  In general. Lol. :irre:

[emma]

I've got one nearly as stupid....

Apparently here they want to remake a WWII film - The Dam Busters (1955).  Just one teeny tiny problem.  It is based on a true story, and the leading RAF officer (who was a real person, killed in action in 1944) had a black dog, which he called Nigger from which they got the code name for the operation.  

Now at that time, the word was not offensive here in the UK, it was used as a derivative of the latin word for black (Niger), and many black dogs in the UK at that time might have been called that.

They apparently want to rename the dog!

[Jane]

... and the leading RAF officer (who was a real person, killed in action in 1944) had a black dog, which he called Nigger from which they got the code name for the operation.  

Guy Gibson?

[emma]

... and the leading RAF officer (who was a real person, killed in action in 1944) had a black dog, which he called Nigger from which they got the code name for the operation.  

Guy Gibson?

That's the one

[Bree]

Now at that time, the word was not offensive here in the UK, it was used as a derivative of the latin word for black (Niger), and many black dogs in the UK at that time might have been called that.

I think it's all a matter of perspective and upbringing. Like the time you and I were discussing a certain word that can't be said on daytime television where you live, Emma, but is absolutely nothing to me and is said all the time on daytime TV here.

It would be nice if we lived in a world where we didn't get upset over words, but we seem to like to say, "Well, that word isn't offensive to ME" but then still get freaked out when someone uses a word that IS offensive to us.

Since we're a pretty diverse group here, we are pretty much guaranteeing that someone is going to get offended over something that we don't find offensive (and that we might get offended over the things THEY don't find offensive) so let's show a little bit of tact and restraint in this thread, okay? ;)

[Vix]

In the interest of being politically correct, have we become too sensitive?

Point of example: last week or so, John McCain was blasted for his response to a quesion on Iran when he broke into a rendition of "Bomb-bomb Iran" to the tune of a Beach Boys song. This was mentioned on one of our local tv stations and one of the commentators said, "Many people are too young to remember, but during the Carter years and the Iran hostage crisis, that song was played daily on a local radio station and everyone thought it was hysterical." Guess what -- he was right. The song was very popular and considered in ok taste.

That doesn't mean that all such comments are ok to all people, but at some point have we lost our sense of humor and ability to laugh at ourselves and our lives?

[Bree]

I think the problem is that everyone's sense of humor is different. There are things that are funny to me that some of you would be horrified by, I'm sure. ;)

And while I am not terribly sensitive in my personal life, my job here is to help foster an environment where everyone can be comfortable. In that spirit, I'm okay with being a little bit on the strict and humorless side. So sometimes it's not even the words you're saying... it's where you're saying them and who you are saying them to.

[Jane]

The idea that people would want to *change* the name of Guy Gibson's dog worries me far more than not mentioning the name of the restaurant.

If they want to make a movie and *avoid* using the dog and operation name, that's fine.  To deliberately change those names to something else when they are a matter of history is much more worrying to me.

[Avery]

Definitely agree with Jane. I can't believe they're trying to change a name that's part of history. That's definitely censorship going way too far.