This name/nickname thing....

[Coexist]

I have seen DU twist George Bush, Dick Cheney, Marsha Blackburn, George Sensenbrenner, Wolf Blitzer (Franken's joke Leslie), and countless other republican's names into slurs, morphed into profanity, only typed as symbols, given 'fun' nicknames and middle names (Diaper Dave, Wide-stance) and all manner of free expression over the years.

Its sometimes funny, sometimes in bad taste, sometimes childish, but it everyone's right to express themselves.

Now suddenly, Piyush "Bobby" Jindal's given, legal name is sacrosanct? DUer's are peeing themselves over its use?! "But he PREFERS Bobby?!"

Really? Well I'm sure Bush PREFERS 'President Bush', but he never got that from me.

What the heck??

Sorry, I didn't really care when people called President Obama 'Barack Hussein Obama' its his name and he seems pretty proud of it, he is comfortable with it, and I don't care if Piyush is used. Its not racist - its a legal name.

Please spare me the "but the intent is to stir up racism" - its his name. If Barack Hussein Obama can get elected President of these United States, then possessing a foreign sounding name is no longer an hindrance, barrier or excuse for anything. Period.

I'm not even going to bother with the asbestos suit - toss your 'you're secretly a racist' bombs at me - you're wrong, and I'll use Piyush Jindal's given name whenever I damn well please. Put me on Ignore now if it so offends your delicate sensibilities.

The end.

[DainBramaged]

1. Only DU, where we are TOLD to walk in Jesus' footsteps

but then we are TOLD Jesus doesn't exist..........

I agree, by the way.....

[Coexist]

3. when you're TOLD something, it must be right

so when you figure out a solution to your paradox, please enlighten me!

[DainBramaged]

4. It's DU, we do as we're TOLD

:shrug:

[Soylent Brice]

6. an astute observation. n/t

[Vickers]

2. Just... leave... Bobby.... ALONE!!!!!

Overwrought,

John Sidney McCain

[Coexist]

17. thanks for the humor break!

[Marrah_G]

5. No different then freepers who insist on using Obama's middle name constantly

You are focusing on his "differentness" in a negative way.

What you are doing is wrong and has no place in this big tent.

[Coexist]

7. you are telling me I am wrong. And I don't think I am.

so we disagree.

and I DO have a place in this big tent, as do my opinions and ideas.

sorry I don't pass your purity test

[Marrah_G]

10. I didn't say YOU don't have a place. I said what you are doing has no place.

If calling out racism, however unintended it might be is "purity" then yeah, I am guilty as charged.

[Coexist]

16. and I say your are wrong. if people call him "the exorcist" is that bigoted?

you know he was part of one in college. If I call him that is that anti-religion?

Are you personally going to make up the list of what is acceptable to refer to republicans as, and what is not? Or is Piyush/Bobby as far as you go?

Do you hit threads referring to 'Wide-Stance' as homophobic?

Do you tell people that "Ah-nuld" is racist?

Just curious.

[DainBramaged]

19. One of the Pious cabal members here on DU, they try to make us live up to the standards

they themselves cannot live up to.

[Marrah_G]

20. Spin spin spin

Doesn't change a thing. Doesn't excuse anything.

[Coexist]

22. spin?!

you're funny.

[DainBramaged]

8. Right, we'll make note of your "political piousness" and take it under advisement.

We're not a big tent, a small cabal decides what is politically correct here, and the rest of us are shit in their eyes. The world is not cookies and milk, it's Jack Daniels and beef jerky. Get fucking real.

[Marrah_G]

11. If speaking out against racist speech is "political Piousness" then yeah, I am guilty of that.

Its wrong and I think you all know deep down that it is wrong.

[DainBramaged]

12. You over-analyze everything for the sake of correcting those of us who disagree with you

and this isn't the first time, give it a rest or put me on ignore. And you think you are the Pious police here on DU. Your hypocrisy is just as offensive as your attempts to censor our right to mock this stupid asshole Jindal.

[Marrah_G]

14. Okay- no problem.

Back on ignore you go!

Do me a favor and do the same.

[Coexist]

21. I'm just awful - I like South Park AND the Family Guy AND American Dad

AND SNL.

I am a harsh, unfeeling cad.

I even laughed at manbearpig and the prius 'smug' episode. They were funny.

technically, I guess I don't belong here anymore.

[ProudToBeBlueInRhody]

9. I respect our President who didn't change his name to pander....

....to a bunch of racist rednecks. Period.

[Marrah_G]

13. I have a friend named Andy. He is Indian. He has been called Andy since he was a young child.

He says it's pretty common for those with his ethnic background here in the US. Especially when the names are difficult for Americans to pronounce.

[vanderBeth]

15. Yeah, Jindal changed his name when he was 5 to pander

He just knew he was going to be a politician. :eyes:

[CreekDog]

18. same reason you can compare Bush to a chimp but not Obama

this stuff isn't done in a vacuum and there's lots of painful history associated with racial stereotyping of black people by way of comparing them to animals, apes and monkeys in particular, to dehumanize them, to devalue them and to cast aspersions on their intelligence.

and when Mr. Jindal has chosen to be called "Bobby" for whatever reason, to use his ethnic sounding name as an epithet is treading on mighty thin ice in the same way racists have used Barack's middle name "Hussein" as a dog whistle.

it means you better tread lightly because IT IS NOT the same as making fun of George Bush as a chimp or making fun of Dick Cheney's name. because of our treatment of minorities in this country, it means you should not encourage or help establish a connection between your mocking and racial stereotypes and xenophobia, even if that ends up being done by others and not you.

[Coexist]

23. its his name.

I appreciate your thoughtful response, but I disagree.

Barack Obama jokes about his foreign sounding name. I don't care when people use it - as he doesn't.

You can't change how people are going to respond, and I'm not going to live my life afraid of how fellow Democrats on a Democratic message board might take my using a man's legal name.

Hussein is not a slur. Piyush is not a slur.

Peace.