Rewriting the Dictionary - Anchor Baby now "offensive"

[daveman]

The thing is: anchor baby is offensive. There's no getting around it. It is like calling a child a bastard.

What the people whining on this thread are really whining about is that the obvious has been stated.

Now, it would be totally awesome if Merriam-Webster defined Republican as an offensive term.

Because it is.

Leftist butthurt is no rational basis for rewriting the dictionary. But I'm sure minorities are thankful to have white liberals dictating what they should be offended about.

Merry Christmas! to all you haters.

Merry Christmas to you, hater.

 

[daveman]

Note to the left:

There is no right to not be offended. Stop pretending there is.

Note the the right: if you deliberately choose to use slurs, don't whine when people react. That's free speech in action.

Indeed. It's a shame you don't support it.

 

[Coyote]

Note to the left:

There is no right to not be offended. Stop pretending there is.

Note the the right: if you deliberately choose to use slurs, don't whine when people react. That's free speech in action.

Indeed. It's a shame you don't support it.

But I do - so you can take your strawman and stuff it. All this whining and attempts at acting persecuted and you can't point to any sort of legislation attempting to bar you from using your chosen slur of "Anchor Baby". All this hoopla over a simple dictionary definition in a book that defines what words are in use today and how they are typically used by the majority of the speakers of that language in a particular country.

That is all this faux fuss is about.

 

[Coyote]

The thing is: anchor baby is offensive. There's no getting around it. It is like calling a child a bastard.

What the people whining on this thread are really whining about is that the obvious has been stated.

Now, it would be totally awesome if Merriam-Webster defined Republican as an offensive term.

Because it is.

Leftist butthurt is no rational basis for rewriting the dictionary. But I'm sure minorities are thankful to have white liberals dictating what they should be offended about.

Merry Christmas! to all you haters.

Merry Christmas to you, hater.

And what evidence do you have to indicate that it is only white liberals who find the term offensive? Oh wait, you don't.

 

[Trajan]

We aren't talking about illegal vs undocumented (there's a strawman for you)

Slur's aren't defined by "partisans" but by intent. I don't believe anchor-baby has ever been meant as anything but a slur.

so your OPINION is a that it is a slur, so those that feel as you do , will now, wash it out of the lexicon. thank you comrade.

What hyperbole. It is not being washed out of the lexicon. It's merely being defined for the way it is currently being used which is as a slur. Definitions are based on how words are used and change with time. That has nothing to do with "my opinion" and no one is stopping anyone from using it...are they?

So you can take your "comrade" and stuff it in your big boy pants

We aren't talking about illegal vs undocumented (there's a strawman for you)

I just did, you are free to weigh in.

You should look up what a strawman is before commenting on it. As to what to call them, I just call them children.

you actually should take your own advice, or learn to comprehend English and straight line reasoning.


I will say it one more time, maybe you blew by that post, I said and stand by the fact that illegal alien started out pretty much the same way ala anchor baby. those that favor both, felt that washing the term thru the spin and rinse of the PC machine would somehow make someone who is here illegally , appear less so or innoculate them and their actions with a change in the labeling, i.e. GW to climate change, its a semantic slight of hand.

The use of our system as it is designed right now, means, Anchor babies exist, the logic attached may be fractured to an extent but its is a descriptor of an action or actions, not a slur, as in some of the examples posted here so far; limey, mick, guinea etc etc.

go back and look at the post I added to foxfyres remarks, alinskys rule no. 13.

and I have asked twice and will ask again, what term would you concoct to describe 'anchor baby'?

 

[Ravi]

The thing is: anchor baby is offensive. There's no getting around it. It is like calling a child a bastard.

What the people whining on this thread are really whining about is that the obvious has been stated.

Now, it would be totally awesome if Merriam-Webster defined Republican as an offensive term.

Because it is.

Leftist butthurt is no rational basis for rewriting the dictionary. But I'm sure minorities are thankful to have white liberals dictating what they should be offended about.

Merry Christmas! to all you haters.

Merry Christmas to you, hater.

Hey, derp, stating a word is usually used as an offensive term has nothing to do with left/right....it has to do with reality.

But under idiot, your picture is listed. And, yeah, idiot is usually used as an offensive term.

 

[manifold]

The next time I see the term anchor baby used in a non-pejorative manner will be the first.

But whatcha gonna do?

 

[daveman]

Note the the right: if you deliberately choose to use slurs, don't whine when people react. That's free speech in action.

Indeed. It's a shame you don't support it.

But I do - so you can take your strawman and stuff it. All this whining and attempts at acting persecuted and you can't point to any sort of legislation attempting to bar you from using your chosen slur of "Anchor Baby". All this hoopla over a simple dictionary definition in a book that defines what words are in use today and how they are typically used by the majority of the speakers of that language in a particular country.

That is all this faux fuss is about.

My chosen slur? Can you find a post of mine where I've used it as a slur?

Yeah, I can't either. US Message Board - Political Discussion Forum - Search Results

So it looks like you're full of shit.

Oh, and which side has proposed a return to the Fairness Doctrine in an attempt to stifle political speech?

Hint: It ain't the right.

 

[daveman]

The thing is: anchor baby is offensive. There's no getting around it. It is like calling a child a bastard.

What the people whining on this thread are really whining about is that the obvious has been stated.

Now, it would be totally awesome if Merriam-Webster defined Republican as an offensive term.

Because it is.

Leftist butthurt is no rational basis for rewriting the dictionary. But I'm sure minorities are thankful to have white liberals dictating what they should be offended about.

Merry Christmas! to all you haters.

Merry Christmas to you, hater.

And what evidence do you have to indicate that it is only white liberals who find the term offensive? Oh wait, you don't.

You're right, I don't. Just like you don't have any evidence that proves "anchor baby" is my favorite slur.

 

[daveman]

The thing is: anchor baby is offensive. There's no getting around it. It is like calling a child a bastard.

What the people whining on this thread are really whining about is that the obvious has been stated.

Now, it would be totally awesome if Merriam-Webster defined Republican as an offensive term.

Because it is.

Leftist butthurt is no rational basis for rewriting the dictionary. But I'm sure minorities are thankful to have white liberals dictating what they should be offended about.

Merry Christmas! to all you haters.

Merry Christmas to you, hater.

Hey, derp, stating a word is usually used as an offensive term has nothing to do with left/right....it has to do with reality.

It has to do with leftist reality, which rarely bears any resemblance to the real one.

But under idiot, your picture is listed. And, yeah, idiot is usually used as an offensive term.

Really? The lame "your picture is in the dictionary" insult, favored by third-graders everywhere?

Damn, that's weak.

 

[Unkotare]

Well, it's not the end of the story because the latter are US citizens, whereas the former are not.

I thought the issue here was whether these words were offensive vs not offensive and not about being a U.S. citizen. Stay focused. The words illegal and anchor babies are what they describe. Whether someone finds it offensive is of no consequence. END OF STORY.

It's not the "end" of the story for exactly the reason I pointed out. The term cannot be a racial slur since it does not specify a race. It can be used as an epithet, as any casual review of the posts on this site will show. "Offensive" depends on the way in which a term is taken by those to whom it is applied, and that is where the rationality of this whole discussion falls apart. A baby cannot take offense. The biggest problem with such a term (aside from the fact that it gives stupid people something to say rather than think) is that it is directed at the wrong target. No baby made the choice to be born in one country or another. Anger over such a choice should be directed at those with the ability to make that choice. And surely a baby cannot determine the long-accepted interepretation of our Constitution. Anger over that must lie with Judges and legislators. The term points attention in the wrong direction.

Hey, those were some good points!

Really? Thank you!

My pleasure.

 

[Coyote]

you actually should take your own advice, or learn to comprehend English and straight line reasoning.


I will say it one more time, maybe you blew by that post, I said and stand by the fact that illegal alien started out pretty much the same way ala anchor baby. those that favor both, felt that washing the term thru the spin and rinse of the PC machine would somehow make someone who is here illegally , appear less so or innoculate them and their actions with a change in the labeling, i.e. GW to climate change, its a semantic slight of hand.

No. And again, you are creating a strawman by trying to put the two in the same category and then use that for your argument.

Illegal alien was not a slur - in fact, it isn't a slur even now. Anchor baby has always had a perjorative stigma from the beginning of it's use.

Look at the dictionary's definition of "illegal alien":

illegal alien
noun
1.
a foreigner who has entered or resides in a country unlawfully or without the country's authorization.
2.
a foreigner who enters the U.S. without an entry or immigrant visa, especially a person who crosses the border by avoiding inspection or who overstays the period of time allowed as a visitor, tourist, or businessperson. Compare resident alien.​

It does not say anything about it being derogatory (unlike the terms anchor baby, redneck and hillbilly).

Your issue is with the "PC Machine" - but this is not a PC issue because nothing about the word has changed - it was and still is a slur, only now (like with redneck and hillbilly) - it is noted in the dictionary definition.

Changing "illegal alien" to "undocumented worker" is sillyness (and yup, PC run amuck)- but it has nothing to do with this issue because it's not a PC issue. The only thing this argument does is put a spotlight on general hatred that some have towards illegals, even to the point of stigmatizing the innocent children of illegal aliens. I suppose that they want to their pet slur to remain pristine and unmarked by the "derogatory" label in a dictionary.

In the end, it doesn't matter what you call it, it's not even a free speech issue because you can say what ever you want. There is no law against it.

The use of our system as it is designed right now, means, Anchor babies exist, the logic attached may be fractured to an extent but its is a descriptor of an action or actions, not a slur, as in some of the examples posted here so far; limey, mick, guinea etc etc.

Anchor babies exist. So do ******* and pickanninies, chinks and hymies and a host of other equally derogatory terms for groups of people. The fact that they exist doesn't make those terms any less derogatory.

go back and look at the post I added to foxfyres remarks, alinskys rule no. 13.

and I have asked twice and will ask again, what term would you concoct to describe 'anchor baby'?

I already told you. Go back and read the post.

 

[Coyote]

Indeed. It's a shame you don't support it.

But I do - so you can take your strawman and stuff it. All this whining and attempts at acting persecuted and you can't point to any sort of legislation attempting to bar you from using your chosen slur of "Anchor Baby". All this hoopla over a simple dictionary definition in a book that defines what words are in use today and how they are typically used by the majority of the speakers of that language in a particular country.

That is all this faux fuss is about.

My chosen slur? Can you find a post of mine where I've used it as a slur?

Yeah, I can't either. US Message Board - Political Discussion Forum - Search Results

So it looks like you're full of shit.

Oh, and which side has proposed a return to the Fairness Doctrine in an attempt to stifle political speech?

Hint: It ain't the right.

I apologize for that - my use of "you" was in a general sense, not you specifically.

As the "Fairness Doctrine" crap - how about a little accuracy? It wasn't "the left" - it was a distinct minority of the left that even brought up that idea and it was dead on arrival.

 

[Coyote]

Leftist butthurt is no rational basis for rewriting the dictionary. But I'm sure minorities are thankful to have white liberals dictating what they should be offended about.

Merry Christmas to you, hater.

Hey, derp, stating a word is usually used as an offensive term has nothing to do with left/right....it has to do with reality.

It has to do with leftist reality, which rarely bears any resemblance to the real one.

But under idiot, your picture is listed. And, yeah, idiot is usually used as an offensive term.

Really? The lame "your picture is in the dictionary" insult, favored by third-graders everywhere?

Damn, that's weak.

ya....kind of like "leftist butthurt", eh?

 

[daveman]

But I do - so you can take your strawman and stuff it. All this whining and attempts at acting persecuted and you can't point to any sort of legislation attempting to bar you from using your chosen slur of "Anchor Baby". All this hoopla over a simple dictionary definition in a book that defines what words are in use today and how they are typically used by the majority of the speakers of that language in a particular country.

That is all this faux fuss is about.

My chosen slur? Can you find a post of mine where I've used it as a slur?

Yeah, I can't either. US Message Board - Political Discussion Forum - Search Results

So it looks like you're full of shit.

Oh, and which side has proposed a return to the Fairness Doctrine in an attempt to stifle political speech?

Hint: It ain't the right.

I apologize for that - my use of "you" was in a general sense, not you specifically.

As the "Fairness Doctrine" crap - how about a little accuracy? It wasn't "the left" - it was a distinct minority of the left that even brought up that idea and it was dead on arrival.

And of course, the whole PC movement is anti-free speech. Undeniably.

 

[daveman]

Hey, derp, stating a word is usually used as an offensive term has nothing to do with left/right....it has to do with reality.

It has to do with leftist reality, which rarely bears any resemblance to the real one.

But under idiot, your picture is listed. And, yeah, idiot is usually used as an offensive term.

Really? The lame "your picture is in the dictionary" insult, favored by third-graders everywhere?

Damn, that's weak.

ya....kind of like "leftist butthurt", eh?

I calls 'em likes I sees 'em.

 

[Ravi]

Leftist butthurt is no rational basis for rewriting the dictionary. But I'm sure minorities are thankful to have white liberals dictating what they should be offended about.

Merry Christmas to you, hater.

Hey, derp, stating a word is usually used as an offensive term has nothing to do with left/right....it has to do with reality.

It has to do with leftist reality, which rarely bears any resemblance to the real one.

But under idiot, your picture is listed. And, yeah, idiot is usually used as an offensive term.

Really? The lame "your picture is in the dictionary" insult, favored by third-graders everywhere?

Damn, that's weak.

Exactly. But the level of insult required for you is very low so I went with the least effort.

 

[Angelhair]

What else are these cry babies going to bitch about? They are all whiners and emotional cripples. If they don't like the terms used here in this country to identify certain things, go back and come back the LEGAL way - THEN have your babies here - come in legally and you won't be an illegal - problem solved.

 

[Trajan]

you actually should take your own advice, or learn to comprehend English and straight line reasoning.


I will say it one more time, maybe you blew by that post, I said and stand by the fact that illegal alien started out pretty much the same way ala anchor baby. those that favor both, felt that washing the term thru the spin and rinse of the PC machine would somehow make someone who is here illegally , appear less so or innoculate them and their actions with a change in the labeling, i.e. GW to climate change, its a semantic slight of hand.

No. And again, you are creating a strawman by trying to put the two in the same category and then use that for your argument.

Illegal alien was not a slur - in fact, it isn't a slur even now. Anchor baby has always had a perjorative stigma from the beginning of it's use.

Look at the dictionary's definition of "illegal alien":

illegal alien
noun
1.
a foreigner who has entered or resides in a country unlawfully or without the country's authorization.
2.
a foreigner who enters the U.S. without an entry or immigrant visa, especially a person who crosses the border by avoiding inspection or who overstays the period of time allowed as a visitor, tourist, or businessperson. Compare resident alien.​

It does not say anything about it being derogatory (unlike the terms anchor baby, redneck and hillbilly).

Your issue is with the "PC Machine" - but this is not a PC issue because nothing about the word has changed - it was and still is a slur, only now (like with redneck and hillbilly) - it is noted in the dictionary definition.

Changing "illegal alien" to "undocumented worker" is sillyness (and yup, PC run amuck)- but it has nothing to do with this issue because it's not a PC issue. The only thing this argument does is put a spotlight on general hatred that some have towards illegals, even to the point of stigmatizing the innocent children of illegal aliens. I suppose that they want to their pet slur to remain pristine and unmarked by the "derogatory" label in a dictionary.

In the end, it doesn't matter what you call it, it's not even a free speech issue because you can say what ever you want. There is no law against it.

The use of our system as it is designed right now, means, Anchor babies exist, the logic attached may be fractured to an extent but its is a descriptor of an action or actions, not a slur, as in some of the examples posted here so far; limey, mick, guinea etc etc.

Anchor babies exist. So do ******* and pickanninies, chinks and hymies and a host of other equally derogatory terms for groups of people. The fact that they exist doesn't make those terms any less derogatory.

go back and look at the post I added to foxfyres remarks, alinskys rule no. 13.

and I have asked twice and will ask again, what term would you concoct to describe 'anchor baby'?

I already told you. Go back and read the post.

you do have a comprehension problem, what does chink, hymie, niggar, **** etc have in common with each other and what does anchor baby not have in common with those?


wait a minute, are you saying there has been no effort to wash illegal alien from the common lexicon or vocabulary amongst the MSM et al?


I am sorry, I cannot seem to find your alternate term for anchor baby, can you point it out to me please? thank you.

 

[Care4all]

If the insult were something like Anchor Droppers, then it would relate to the illegal parent, but the term Anchor Baby, implies, imho, that the child, WHO IS LEGAL, is "less of a person, less of a citizen" than you and me....it comes off as an insult towards the child, a saying to demean the citizenship of the child....and as stated, the child IS A CITIZEN equal to you and me and does not deserve the insult or implication that they are lesser than you and me...at least not while our laws as they stand, state that they are LEGAL.

And maybe the intention of some, is NOT to do this...not to disparage the child, but this is what the term implies, to most....imo.