Odin2005 (48,105 posts)
Why do wing-nuts always call the president "Barry"?
I know that was his nickname when he was a kid, but why does it seem like it's only wing-nuts who call him that now? Is it a dog whistle of some kind, a way of calling a black man "boy"?
It is really getting on my nerves.
datasuspect (24,654 posts)
1. it's because they think they are clever on one level
on a deeper level, christians and stupid people have an unspoken belief in "name magic."
Odin2005 (48,105 posts)
14. I think he's talking about primitive superstitions about names.
That if you know somebody "real name" you have power over them.
MrScorpio (53,225 posts)
85. That explains a lot about my own stalkers
Thank you!
sharp_stick (8,581 posts)
2. It's just a juvenile insult
they tried using his middle name "Hussein" sometimes as well but because Obama and pretty much everyone in the country has embraced it they decide to use the name he called himself early in his life, as though he's rejected it, as an insult.
I take it as a sign of hope that these ****ing morons can't come up with anything better.
Zoeisright (7,008 posts)
7. Because they're ****ing pigs
and assholes.
Lex (31,848 posts)
17. "a way of calling a black man 'boy'" YES.
A dog whistle.
Archae (25,190 posts)
20. There's a racial motive too.
"Barry" is used as a stereotypical nickname, the way William Horton was called "Willy" even though Horton never used that nickname.
nadinbrzezinski (115,262 posts)
31. Sounds less corny, same intent, as "boy."
Rex (32,296 posts)
48. IMO it is an informal way to insult him.
The GOP has a hard time with respect, they want it all the time and never give it to anyone else. Our POTUS included. Goes along with their, 'we hate everything, all the time' attitude.
SoCalDem (98,826 posts)
60. Distorting, wrong-naming is the ultimate "dis"
Slaves were forced to accept names their master gave them
Eliss island employees routinely "Americanized" immigrants who dared not gripe about it, since any complaint could have made them "ineligible"
Bullies in school taunt their targets with derisive nicknames
Republicans are usually lacking in conversational skills and grammatical knowledge, but they excel in dog-whistle usage and the renaming-game...i.e. DemocRAT...Clear Skies..Clean Coal...No Child Left Behind.,. etc
A person's name is the first thing they are given when they are born, and by the time they reach school age they and only they, should have the choice of being called what they wish to be called.. Another person who deliberately calls them a name they do NOT want to be called, is disrespecting their very person-hood.
winstars (1,148 posts)
68. To dis him, they would say the N word if they could and of course they do when left to their own!!!
AverageJoe90 (4,311 posts)
70. They're just being juvenile.
It could be racism in some cases for all I know........after all, from what I know, racists then and now, have never been fond of referring to African-Americans by their given names(or preferred nick-name). Instead, they'll pull out the "name change" trick, as some others have described, or they'll just go right back to the classic slurs like "Boy", "Uncle", or, of course, even the "N" word.
Raine (19,860 posts)
82. Well I still call Bush the second "chimp" because he
he looks like a chimpanze. I'm sure not going call him Mr President or anything respectful because I don't acknowledge him as ever rightfully being president.
arthritisR_US (3,271 posts)
83. I find that very demeaning
to chimps. Our primate brethren deserve better than that
Raine (19,860 posts)
82. Well I still call Bush the second "chimp" because he
he looks like a chimpanze.
Raine (19,860 posts)
82. Well I still call Bush the second "chimp" because he
he looks like a chimpanze.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v11/tucker13/special/barack_obama_monkey_humor_zps1f2c101e.jpg)
Lex (31,848 posts)
17. "a way of calling a black man 'boy'" YES.
A dog whistle.
Tue Jan 22, 2013, 04:14 AM
UnrepentantLiberal (9,761 posts)
Is it ever OK to refer to the President as Barry or Barack?
Last edited Tue Jan 22, 2013, 09:55 AM USA/ET - Edit history (1)
I'm debating with someone about this in another forum. I think only Michelle Obama can refer to him as "Barack". I think he should only be referred to as Obama, Barack Obama, President Obama or Mr. Obama.
111 votes, 2 passes | Time left: Unlimited
It's OK to refer to him as Barack. ..4 (4%)
It's OK to refer to him as Barack or Barry. ..5 (5%)
Only Barack Obama or President Obama will do. ..43 (39%)
Only Obama, Barack Obama or President Obama will do. ..20 (18%)
Word police suck. ..30 (27%)
I'm a troll. ..1 (1%)
Other. ..8 (7%)
2 DU members did not wish to select any of the options provided.
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A dog whistle? His "wife" would come running.
Oh, I get it...Barry...naturally leads to Barry WHITE...thus the name Barry is racist. But calling Colin Powell and Condoleeza Rice "house ******s" isn't...got it!
Cindie
Barry Obama decided that he didn't like his nickname. A few of his friends at Occidental College had already begun to call him Barack (his formal name), and he'd come to prefer that. The way his half sister, Maya, remembers it, Obama returned home at Christmas in 1980, and there he told his mother and grandparents: no more Barry. Obama recalls it slightly differently, but in the same basic time frame. He believes he told his mom he wanted to be called Barack when she visited him in New York the following summer. By both accounts, it seemed that the elder relatives were reluctant to embrace the change. Maya recalls that Obama's maternal grandparents, who had played a big role in raising him, continued long after that to call him by an affectionate nickname, "Bar." "Not just them, but my mom, too," says Obama.
Obama was known as "Barry" in his youth, but asked to be addressed with his given name during his college years.
datasuspect (24,654 posts)
1. it's because they think they are clever on one level
on a deeper level, christians and stupid people have an unspoken belief in "name magic."
Obama was known as "Barry" in his youth, but asked to be addressed with his given name during his college years
I had forgotten about Barry White, but the only other people I've ever known with the given name Barry were whiter than Wonder Bread with mayo on it. So I fail to see how it's a "dogwhistle".
:shrug: