TexasJohn... in Britain, coon is every bit as offensive as the 'n' word. Less commonly used perhaps, but still very bad.

There were some issues in Australia a while back too about a brand of cheese...


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coon_cheese

Well, as you well know, I abhor offensive language. I will no longer even think about using the "c" word anymore. And by "c" word, of course, I mean "coon"....DAMNIT!

racism is a matter of mental perspective.. the person that sees a term as racist, is a racist themself.. the person that cannot connect a term to it's racial slur, is in fact the only non-racist....

desiring to ban people for using racist terms/names only encourages that form of racism.. Unless it actually has a negative effect on someone that is not purely created in that someones mind, then there is no grounds for any repurcussions.. Naturally, insulting someone blatently, whether it be racially or not, is grounds for repurcussions.. racial insults are merely a form of insult... but seeing that insult without it being used or directed in an insulting way is the mental action of a racist mind.

what i think about racism
i disagree with some of perrins previous point,if someone sees something as racist that doesn't mean their are racist.Also if someone doesn't see something as not racist that doesn't mean they are not racist it might even mean there are racist.
Like someone saying N______ and not thinking they are racist.That is how race hate vendettas begin.
Also some people think most things are racist like acting like a monkey to someone they think that is racist in cases like that the thinker is a bit racist.

"the person that sees a term as racist, is a racist themself.. "

Thanks for calling me racist Perrin, I really appreciated it.

I don't think Richard is a racist.

The thing that bugs me though is the conclusion that "coon dog" is. I can't imagine that a valid term has to be abandoned because of a strange unfortunate homonym. It doesn't seem reasonable to expect dog people to change the term to raccoon dog or raccoon hound, or for people to abandon the common expression "a coon's age".

I also steer clear of players with offensive names. I'm not sure this is one of them. Just as it is unfair to label Richard a racist, it seems unfair to label the original poster as one too.

Hang, let me clarify... I don't believe he is racist. I just said I would have avoided a game with him for fear that he was racist.

Big part of it is culture. I'm a northerner from a state that has minimal hunting and not many raccoons so the term is foreign to me. Thus when I see the 'coon' my mind immediately goes to the negative connotation of the term and questions the intent of the name. If I grew up in an area with frequent raccoons or hunting I probably wouldn't think twice on the matter.

That's fair.

Well Richard, to me, it sounds very much like you are still implying I am a racist. And an ass (another insult that is an animal). It's hard not to take offence at that. The first syllable of my screen name may have an offensive use, but this would be taking it out of context. A coondog is hunting dog. Nothing more is meant by it than that.

The English language suffers if we try to censor words because some people choose to use them to insult others.

dog, I most certainly do not... I now know where the term comes from. When I said above that I wouldn't join a game with you I meant it in that had it occurred prior to this discussion. I don't wantonly throw around such a slanderous accusation as racism.

I recognize that it is out of context, however my point was that at first glance I don't know context and thus would shy away from it as I don't want to deal with someone who would use it in the negative context.

Richard, it's a harsh truth...

I barely know coondog's name as racist, and mostly from old movies... I don't understand it as racist, nor do I treat it as such... the n word is highly classified as racist, which I find laughable.. how can a word that can be used in positive and negative connotation, be considered a bad word? the only thing that remains it being a bad word is people insisting it is a bad word...

I head once Honkey is a racist slur for my race.. I have no idea what it means, and have no idea how it is a racial slur for my race, so it does not affect me....


the fact of the matter is, if you are thinking about something in a racially derogatory way.. then you are thinking about it in a racially derogatory way... if you were not a racist, the negative aspect wouldn't even occur to you..
Perhaps the exceptions would be anything people are upbrought as being highly racist, like dog's name to you *since you stated it is highly racist in your country* and the n word to me, but continueing to think of them as racist, and giving them power as racist material, just makes racism more abundant... the only logical reason I don't use the n word Irl is because there are a lot of racists in my community...

point in case.. 4 black people are running around using it on themselves, in a positive connotation.. and ignorant white person *unaware of it's previous racially derogatory meaning* shows up and uses it in the same manner as the black people... the black people jump him for being racist. the black people here are racist, for accepting the word for being such, and are hypocrits, since they invited the word to be used by trying to keep it alive 'and' providing it openly while keeping the age old segregation between the races that has previous been attempted to be abolished..

Racial slurs are like any other form of insult, and really it's the tone and manner that they are used that is negative, rather than the words.. the words are only given power by people accepting them as racially derogative, and people attempting to force them into peoples minds as racially derogative.

Imo, ofc'

Thanks perrin for the clarification of what you think of me. Adds one person to the list on WL of who I should ignore from now on. Shame since I did previously respect you but you clearly have zero respect for me.

So once again, thanks for the clarification of who you are.

I approach everything logical, and taking things racially derogative when they are not intended as such is not.. I would of figured from past conversations you would of already discovered that I take everything logically, and oppose without preferences when people are illogical.

and thanks.. for indirectly showing that you are a person that embraces intolerance, and thank you for removing yourself from my mindset.

we should agree to disagree
Coon dog being racist depends which way you use perhaps in an insulting way and i don't thinkcoondog meant it to be racist.Let us agree to disagree.

Ironheart, we are in agreement. I don't think he is racist nor did he intend it in a racist fashion