LINGUIST List 3.883

Tue 10 Nov 1992

Disc: Objectionable Words (Last Posting)

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1. BIASCA DEBRA HALPERIN, Re: 3.871 Objectionable Words
2. , Objectionable Words
3. , Re: 3.871 Objectionable Words

Message 1: Re: 3.871 Objectionable Words

I offer the following as an interesting and expensive consequence of a
local ski resort's failure to be aware of the pejorative aspects of
language in designing its ski-trails and naming them. When the
additional trails were forged, the new area was named "China Bowl."
The runs were each given cutesy names in keeping with the theme of China.
One of them was initially named "no tickee-no laundry." The skimaps were
already printed up for the up-coming ski season when the administrators
of the company realized the gravity of the error. They had to reprint
them at some (unknown to me) great expense. It was a tremendous
embarrassment.

Debra Halperin Biasca
University of Colorado

In the choice of "Jewish" over "Jew" [both capitalized--lower case is
also cnsidered an insult, hence "Negro," &c.], the--to me--obvious
reason for avoiding "Jew" is that "dirty Jewish person" is a nonstarter.
(I am not Jewish but several of my children are.)
David Bergdahl Ohio University/Athens
BERGDAHL  OUACCVMB

Message 3: Re: 3.871 Objectionable Words

To judge from the way we pussyfoot around or rant against
the word Jew, it's got to be one of the most high-affect
terms in Western cultures. To the collection of euphemisms
employed by Jews themselves (Hebrews, Americans of Mosaic
persuasion, etc.), I'd like to add a distinct decibel drop
when Jews say the word to other Jews in public. Not so much
among the young perhaps but still among those of a certain
age.

Norman Miller