swilson160 Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 If "Dragons" and "Raptors" are too close for your tastes, you maybe need to think about just giving up on professional sports. Lions, Bengals, Jaguars, Panthers... you must be pulling your hair out over those.Blue Jays, Orioles, Cardinals. Red Sox, White Sox.Maple Leafs, Canucks, Canadiens. Or the best one from the CFL until the mid-90s...I don't think I even have to say it, you all know what I'm talking about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiddFinch Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 At first, I was sure it was going to be Golden State changing to the Dragons because of the Oriental makeup of the population and just that Golden State Dragons sounded cool.<PSA>"Oriental???" I'll presume no offense was intended, but in 2006, this word is offensive - check any dictionary. I do not wish to be the PC police. I have known many Koreans, Japanese, and Filipinos who all objected to the "Oriental" label for various reasons. </PSA> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Admiral Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 See, "Asian" isn't really a good label, though, because people from Pakistan, India, Iran are Asians too, but people use "Asian" here when they specifically mean...well, slant-eyed. I don't think there's anything really offensive about the word Oriental, it's just archaic. People tend to lump Korea, China, and Japan together as the Orient. Does "The Orient Express" bother people? All it means is "Eastern." ♫ oh yeah, board goes on, long after the thrill of postin' is gone ♫ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DG_ThenNowForever Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 Well, you can use South Asian or Middle Eastern, and everyone knows what you mean. I think we can all reasonably agree on the image "Asian" conjures. Nowadays, it's appropriate to use Oriental to describe rugs, and that's about it. If I just gave myself a PC police badge, I guess I'll have to wear it. However, I think it's good to take advantaged of educational moments. 1 hour ago, ShutUpLutz! said: and the drunken doodoobags jumping off the tops of SUV's/vans/RV's onto tables because, oh yeah, they are drunken drug abusing doodoobags Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fiasco! Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 At first, I was sure it was going to be Golden State changing to the Dragons because of the Oriental makeup of the population and just that Golden State Dragons sounded cool.<PSA>"Oriental???" I'll presume no offense was intended, but in 2006, this word is offensive - check any dictionary. I do not wish to be the PC police. I have known many Koreans, Japanese, and Filipinos who all objected to the "Oriental" label for various reasons. </PSA> as a person of filipino descent, i've always said "we are people, not rugs" in response to someone using the term "oriental" to describe people. LinkedIn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 At first, I was sure it was going to be Golden State changing to the Dragons because of the Oriental makeup of the population and just that Golden State Dragons sounded cool.<PSA>"Oriental???" I'll presume no offense was intended, but in 2006, this word is offensive - check any dictionary. I do not wish to be the PC police. I have known many Koreans, Japanese, and Filipinos who all objected to the "Oriental" label for various reasons. </PSA> as a person of filipino descent, i've always said "we are people, not rugs" in response to someone using the term "oriental" to describe people. good lord being married to a filipino makes me offended, so what you're telling me is that because my woman is from the Phillipines she automatically becomes a rug? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fiasco! Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth EditionCopyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company.Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.ori·ental Usage Note: Asian is now strongly preferred in place of Oriental for persons native to Asia or descended from an Asian people. The usual objection to Orientalmeaning ?eastern?is that it identifies Asian countries and peoples in terms of their location relative to Europe. However, this objection is not generally made of other Eurocentric terms such as Near and Middle Eastern. The real problem with Oriental is more likely its connotations stemming from an earlier era when Europeans viewed the regions east of the Mediterranean as exotic lands full of romance and intrigue, the home of despotic empires and inscrutable customs. At the least these associations can give Oriental a dated feel, and as a noun in contemporary contexts (as in the first Oriental to be elected from the district) it is now widely taken to be offensive. However, Oriental should not be thought of as an ethnic slur to be avoided in all situations. As with Asiatic, its use other than as an ethnonym, in phrases such as Oriental cuisine or Oriental medicine, is not usually considered objectionable. LinkedIn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest darkpiranha Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 Sigh....Thanks for those of you that responded to my question with a definitive answer. I had been wondering about this since, well, ten years ago.As to the "oriental" segment of my question, I apologize for whoever felt offended by that. As pointed out, no offense was meant. I apparently missed the memo that "oriental" was now considered offensive. That said, it seems a bit contradictory/hypocritical that it's still okay to use "oriental" as an adjective for things like rugs or food. Either the word is offensive, or it's not. I've heard the N-word used lots of ways as an adjective to describe various things, but I don't think for a minute that anyone would consider it okay just because it's being used as an adjective, and not as noun.When I hear or think of the word "oriental", it conjures up cool imagery, and a specific style and unless someone is Asian and prone to being offended, I can't imagine that "oriental" causes any REAL heartache. Maybe 150 years ago "oriental" was meant to be derogatory, but never once in my lifetime (until reading the above comment) have I ever heard the term intended as offensive or insulting. Then again, maybe I just hang around with too many honkeys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest darkpiranha Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 And now, more seriously, a question about ethnic nicknames.Since there has been so much debate and heartache over the use of team nicknames such as "Chiefs", "Braves", "Redskins", and "Indians", I have often wondered if this moves over into other ethnicities.For example, I consider the Indian nicknames to fall under two distinct categories. English slang/nicknames for Native American people (such as Redskins and Indians), and names that originate from the Native Americans themselves (such as Chiefs and Braves and Seminoles)I am totally in favor of the Redskins changing their name. I agree.. that's an offensive nickname. But Chiefs? Braves? Those are just aspects of Native American culture that lend themselves easily to sports nicknames. My other examples are Vikings, Trojans and Samurai. Are people of Norse descent offended by the use of Vikings as a sports nickname? Do Greeks get upset that USC is using their culture as fodder for a sports team? And while there isn't a pro team called the Samurai (over here, anyway), I can easily see it being used. I think it would be cool and I would THINK that Japanese people would also find it cool and they would be proud. Continuing the analogy, I think a team that ever called itself the Slanteyes would be in the exact same offensive zone as Redskins. Am I wrong about this? Are those (Native American and other ethnicies) two entirely different things? Is it inherently wrong to use warriors of various cultures as nicknames and identities for sports teams? Where's the line?Just curious, and since there are apparently people of various ethnicities here on this board, I imagine I'll get some good, relevant feedback.Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Posted April 25, 2006 Share Posted April 25, 2006 darkpiranha to your post, that question can be found here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.