Comments on: Oh “Boy”

By: DrGail

DrGail — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 15:49:43 +0000

I think the issue is one of context. Certain words, or terms of address, are acceptable in some settings but not in others. For example, women frequently call their friends “girl” in a casual setting, but this is clearly unacceptable in the workplace no matter the speaker or the recipient.

Also, the term “boy” takes on very nasty overtones when the referent is a black man. This is especially (but not exclusively) the case when the speaker is a southerner, and you can be certain that because of the party difference and the context Geoff Davis did not mean to be cute, familiar, or anything except demeaning and dismissive.

I realize that English is a very difficult language given all the nuances, but why is this concept so difficult to grasp?

By: retire05

retire05 — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 14:12:39 +0000

I just love it when the anyone, on both sides of the aisle, decide to be indignant over what is a commonly used term in the South. Ask any woman [in the South] how her husband is and you will probably ask her “How’s your boy?” Same with her grown son. But any small excuse to bash the South by those who don’t live there is reason enough, right?

Now, perhaps one of you would like to send me a $100.00 check for everytime Bob Beckel has called George W. Bush “that boy”? But considering the fact that the north is economically gasping it’s last breath (accounting for the large influx of Northerns moving to the South) I am sure not one of you have the money to take that on.

By: DrGail

DrGail — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 02:41:43 +0000

Good point, Kyle. It sure helps to remember that, while we’re debating and sometimes warring over the nuances of the race and gender issues, the Repugs are still stuck in the 1950s.

This is just another realm in which the Repugs appear to think that everything was SOOOO much better in the 1950s, and we would all do well to go back there.

By: HootNHoller

HootNHoller — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 02:20:52 +0000

I thought the Hooter joke was pretty funny, and I hate Republicans.

You can crucify me now.

By: Kyle E. Moore

Kyle E. Moore — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 01:17:55 +0000

I know, right? I mean, everyone’s in an uproar over Davis’ comments, and they should be, but no one is saying one way or another about McConnell’s remarks about Clinton.

That was the point behind me highlighting both. People play with the boundaries of decency with race and gender in this Democratic primary, but let’s not forget, you know, where some others are.

By: DrGail

DrGail — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 00:52:41 +0000

I’m not quite sure what the difference in my reactions means.

I had heard about Geoff Davis’ comment about Obama, and was mightily (and appropriately) aghast. My inner shrieker said “OMG, I can’t believe he said that in this day and age.”

I had not heard about McConnell’s comment about Hillary, but my reaction was definitely stronger. I thought, “Man oh man, I can’t wait until I can draw a red circle and line through his picture on my ‘Goin’ down gallery 2008′ He deserves to DIE.”

Clearly, I am no fan of “no lips” McConnell (a WATB if ever there was one), but his demeaning of women is just beyond the pale. Perhaps it’s because I’m just too intimately acquainted with the difficulty of gaining credibility as a woman in a “man’s” world. It’s certainly not because I’m a fan of Hillary Clinton.

AARGH! (This is the sound of my head exploding)