last1standing (8,927 posts)
26. This is no different than the racist words used by Paula Deen.
I find it striking that both Baldwin and Deen used the same deflection to avoid having to honestly apologize to those they've insulted, "Well they use those words so why can't I?"
Let's be clear, a white person cannot call a black person "n***er" and a straight person cannot call a gay person a "toxic little queen" or a "f**got." Yes, a person within that community can use those terms. This is because they are directing those terms at those they have that common bond with.
If you insult your wife a "bitch" during your nightly "dirty talk" that doesn't mean I have the right to call her one when I see her in the grocery store. If you make fun of the knobbly knees that run in your family that doesn't mean I have license to rag on your mother's appearance. There are times when certain comments are acceptable and when they're not. Just because a word exists and someone else has used it doesn't mean it isn't hurtful when someone else says it.
I don't know why this is even debated.
I posted part this before, but I'll post it again the DUmmie last1standing.
For the purpose of this part of the discussion we are going to look at a person that you hate, Rush Limbaugh. And we'll create a person that you would love, a black, cross-dressing, transgendered, homosexual abortion doctor named Bobbi.
We all know that Rush is a rich white guy. Since Bobbi does abortions for free Bobbi is a dirt poor black guy or girl or something.
With the characters set let's begin the story.
You are standing alone when Rush walks up to you. He slaps the taste out of your mouth and steals your money. How does it make you feel? It probably pisses you off, doesn't it?
Now, let's say you are still standing alone when Bobbi walks up to you and also slaps the taste out of your mouth and steals your money. How does this make you feel? It still pisses you off doesn't it?
The reason it pissed you off both times is because having the taste slapped out of your mouth and your money stolen is a bad thing. If something is a bad thing it is a bad thing regardless of whether you like the person or hate the person.
Now society has determined that the word Paula Deen used 30 years ago is a 'bad' word. This is fine by me; however, society needs to remember that if it is a 'bad' word then it is a 'bad' word. It doesn't matter whose lips speaks it.
In other words, if it is a 'bad' word when Paula Deen says it, it is still a 'bad' word when rappers, comedians and any others say it. Regardless of how politically correct society attempts to be you can NOT judge the 'goodness' or 'badness' of a word by the speaker's pigmentation. To do so is hypocritical and racist.
With that in mind, I would think that maybe you should leave Paula Deen alone until you're ready to also condemn all of the rappers and comedians who sling the 'n' word around like a democrat with someone else's money because if it is a bad word it is a bad word.