Anyone following the Vang trial (six Wi. hunters killed?) Question:

[MnFats]

first let me say I am NOT drawing any conclusions about this case...
but according to reports of the trial, the hunters who were shot referred to Vang as a "mud duck." Testimony indicated that 'mud duck' is a simple Wisconsin gibe against Minnesotans, sort of like 'cheeseheads.'
I want to know: have you ever heard of this?

I have a lot of Wisconsin friends and none of them have ever called me a 'mud duck.'

I wonder. there are other words that sound similar but have a much more inflammatory connotation. Is it possible that some of those words were in fact used?

just curious..

[loveable liberal]

1. Ive been called a mud duck many times.

Im not even sure what that means.

[MnFats]

2. OK but...

I lived there 3 1/2 years and nobody called me that (wausau area).
maybe I'm just out of it...

[loveable liberal]

3. its probably a border thing.

[question everything]

25. Are you a hunter?

I kinda half listened a few days ago when I thought WCCO reported that this was a common name to Minnesota hunters... but perhaps I missed it..

[dodger501]

9. Me too

But it was probably a reaction to my referring to him as a beer-swilling cheese-wiz.

[shraby]

4. It was in the local newspaper tonight

stating that was what those guys called Vang. I'd never heard the term before. It may just be a regional term.

[Freedomfried]

5. Guess they shouldn't of called him that, eh?

I just don't see a gaggle of hunters calling an Asian a local term for hunters from the neighboring state.

Me thinks the "G" word was involved.

[KitchenWitch]

8. I am more than certain the "G" word was used

That word makes me very angry...

My husband is half SE Asian...not a happy word in our household.

[MnFats]

10. I was thinking that "mud duck" sounds like "motherfucker,"

a far more inflammatory word.

as in:
Defense attorney: "did you call him a motherfucker?"
witness: "No. I only called him a mud duck."

[KitchenWitch]

11. True enough

But there is widespread racism against the Hmong and Vietnamese people in northern Wisconsin.

I am glad to see the jury pool is from Madison, a far more tolerant community than Hayward.

[Spike from MN]

19. Someone used that word in front of me once.

At a job I had a few years back, a guy used that term to refer to a co-worker and man, that really set me off. I told him in no uncertain terms to NEVER use that word in my presence again. Funny thing was, before I even opened my mouth to tell him this, he saw the look on my face and stepped back about 3 feet. Gee, I guess it must have been pretty obvious that I was pissed. I'm not Asian but we had a lot of Vietnamese working there and I would NOT tolerate people using that word. Ever.

[trotsky]

6. Yes, I have heard of that.

Some cheeseheads I knew in college enlightened me. The fact that they were attending a university in Minnesota while bragging about how much better their state is, was mildly amusing.

[KitchenWitch]

7. Not been called mud duck but was called swamp duck

by some people in Wisconsin.

[Love Bug]

12. I've been living in MN since 1983 and I've never even heard the

term "mud duck" before.

[Beausoir]

13. Lifelong Minnesotan..

I've never heard the term mud duck.

[katinmn]

14. Me neither.

[Spike from MN]

18. Add one more to the list. I had never heard that term until now. n/t

[Lindacooks]

33. Me too. Never heard it before.

[dpbrown]

15. Mud Duck/People

Mud Duck Blacks Dark skin. See Mud People.

Mud People Blacks Sentiment that only Wasps are born with souls, everyone else God made from mud. Also suggests life without meaning, value or worth. Used by the church that was attended by Mr. Smith - the hate killer that shot up a bunch of Jews and Blacks in the summer of '99.

http://www.angelfire.com/geek/APRACE/glossary.html

[2 year grad student]

16. I heard the term about 15 years ago

In a conversation with family in the Milwaukee area who were originally from Hudson and Baldwin. (I'm originally from the Twin Cities.) We were discussing the term cheesehead and FIBs or FISH for the people from Illinois. The reason given was that there couldn't possibly be 10,000 lakes, we must be counting a few mud puddles. I have not heard again until this post. Attending college and graduate school in WI, I have asked a few people now and then about the term but none of them have ever heard it. I assumed it was a very localized term that never gained widespread use.

[KitchenWitch]

17. Welcome to DU

I have only heard it from Western Wis. residents...

That said, I have relatives in the Milwaukee area and they talk about FIBies and flatlanders all the time, in reference to people from Illinois.

[Love Bug]

20. According to this morning's Strib

Vang said some of the people "deserved to die" because they "disrespected him." I think the jury's task is clear.

[Minnesota Raindog]

21. That statement clinched it for me

As a hunter familiar with the less-than-enlightened attitudes of other hunters, I have no doubt that some harsh words and gestures were exchanged in the woods before those six hunters were gunned down. But nothing--NOTHING--said or gestured or otherwise "disrepected" could ever justify the cold-blooded killing of those guys. Sorry, Vang, you just sealed your verdict with that statement.

[MnFats]

22. seemed like reporter Larry Oakes was hinting at that, too.

i agree with the above poster....nothing at all could have justified what happened out there...

interestingly:
it's on the front page of the Strib today. I had a medical appointment and there were some oldsters waiting to be seen, too.
they were talking about the Vang case.

"I hope he gets the death penalty," said the old guy.
"He will," said the old lady.


yeah, right. Of course, Wisconsin does not have capitol punishment...
I wanted to go over and get my 2 cents in but decided against it..

[GRocky]

24. "mud duck"

I did a little research - this is a common racist term, which is a blanket for anybody that isn't white.

I don't know what to say about this case. After reading Vang's long, rambling letters that he wrote from jail, I felt less disgusted by the guy. My honest opinion is that his blood boiled at the abuse he received from the group of hunters, and he lashed out with the readily available tool.

The judgmental side of me doesn't feel too badly for the slain. My guess is that these are guys that have been cracking crude, racist jokes their whole lives; espousing hate from their backwoods lairs. Karma came knocking.

Yes, that's harsh. Either way, I believe that Vang is guilty.

[Chief]

27. Mud Duck?

"this is a common racist term, which is a blanket for anybody that isn't white."

Wrong.

In nothern WI, it is a common term used to refer to Minnesotans. It has nothing to do with race. It is the same as the Minnesotans calling the Wisconsinites "Cheeseheads". It isn't hate at all, it's just needling. The name comes from the large number of swamps in MN.

It was on the news that the owner of the property had been having multiple problems with people crossing from the public lands onto his private property while hunting. According to the news, the offenders had been mostly Asian.

[dflprincess]

23. They showed tape of him testifying on the news last night

He was shown pictures of the victims and one by one was asked did <person's name> deserve to die? He answered yes to some, no to others. It was chilling.

[question everything]

26. Jury found him guilty. No surprise there, just a sad case

of hot tempers.

Seems that when the first person found him - the one who survived and testified, he apologized and started to leave. But then the owner, with some alcohol in him, decided that he needed to let him have it and jumped on his car and from there all hell broke loose.

Of course he should not have shot them, again and again. Just a sad case of being in the wrong place in the wrong time.

WI does not have the death penalty, does it?

[loveable liberal]

28. KARE 11 headline "Wisconsin Hunting Murders".....

They had it pegged before the verdict came in. I'm not defending what the guy did, but come on. Expecting KARE to have integrity is my fault I suppose.....

[Berserker]

29. Living on the border

I have heard the term mud duck all of my life along with many other not so wonderful things. If you live on the border you will soon find out how much they hate the Vikings and everyone and everything connected to them.
I have even been refused service at a gas station simply because I was wearing a Viking hat and was told many many times I should not wear such things in Wisconsin. Once while leaving a bar in Wisconsin a person yelled at me HEY nice hat bring it here so I can shit in it.
So there is no love between the states of Wisconsin and Minnesota.

[ButterflyBlood]

30. He was just found guilt on all 6 murders

That's life without parole for all 6.

I agree with this completely. Even if Vang's story is completely true, he still admitted that at least 3 of those he killed were unarmed and only 1 shot at him. That's not self-defense. And even if any yelled racist slurs at him, that's not an excuse to shoot someone, much less any person who happens to be with them.

Racism isn't a factor here. The case is pretty opea and shut.

[Berserker]

31. I don't care what

Vang was called while he was hunting there is no reason he should have started killing people. Vang got what he deserved and fast.

[ISUGRADIA]

32. Great points, was sad to see Vang's sister say that the landowner

(I think that was the one)was the one who killed his family and friends.

You can't just start chasing down people and kill them because they might be going to get a gun as Vang claimed. That is not self defense in the law.