Thursday, October 16, 2014

TOO MUCH SENSITIVITY TODAY

I knew it would happen when the Washington Redskins football team came to Phoenix recently to play the Arizona Cardinals.  Sure enough, there were protestors out in force although not as many as I thought there would be; maybe 100.  Maybe it’s because Washington team owner Daniel Snyder has steadfastly repeated that he will never change the name of the team.  Good for him; the Washington franchise has been the Redskins since 1932 when they played in Boston.  The team was moved to Washington in 1937 and remained the Redskins. 

I don’t see what all the controversy is about.  A poll taken within the last year said that 79% of those interviewed saw nothing wrong with the name.  Plus, the name has been around for a long time and it is only in recent years that problems have evolved.  I would blame a lot of it on the liberal mentality that we have to put up with in this country; especially since Obama has become president.   Of course, he dislikes the name as does liberal publications like Slate and Huffington Post.   Also, Bob Costas of NBC derided Snyder last year for not changing the name.  Does anyone care what Bob Costas thinks?

The Arizona Republic has also joined in with some sportswriters failing to recognize the name so they just call them the Washington team.  It’s a real mature group down there; aren’t you impressed at what sensitivity they have?

Smithsonian linguist Ives Goddard has shown that “European settlers in the 18th century seem to have adopted the term from Native Americans, who used ‘red skin’ to describe themselves, and it was generally a descriptor, not an insult.”  What do you think of that, Costas?

It seems like sensitivity rules these days.   With the liberal mindset that has become entrenched in some groups, there is very little that one can say or do without offending someone else.  These people are taking themselves way too seriously. The Cleveland Indians American League baseball team has been under fire for some time over their depiction of a mascot called “Chief Wahoo.”  The Atlanta Braves have had similar demonstrations over the term “Braves” and many years ago the Stanford University Indians changed their name to “The Cardinal” to avoid further criticism from some tribes. 

It’s a good thing these people didn’t live a few years ago when nicknames were given to almost everyone.  The difference between then and now is that people were a lot more mature in those days and were able to laugh at themselves.  Those who wore eyeglasses were many times called “4 eyes” or “seal beams” with the latter referring to a car’s headlights.  I heard those terms aimed at me a lot during Air Force basic training along with other niceties.  Others like me took those insults like a grain of salt as they were expected.  At 6-5 in height I wish I had a dollar for every time someone asked me how the weather was up there.

The military taught a lot of guys not to sweat the small stuff.  It’s too bad the draft was ended in 1973.  I see a lot of guys now who would learn a lot about life and sensitivity from doing a hitch in the military.  Are you listening, Costas? 

If you have a problem with team names, just remember the mascot of the U. of California Santa Cruz. They are called the "Banana Slugs" and I've yet to hear any banana slugs complain.

To leave a comment or see my response to comments  click here.

19 comments:

Jim McAllister said...


And now with the ASU face paint thing!!! Such a load of crappola and is no wonder this country is getting so screwed up.
And people wonder why I drink?

Mike Merrill

Jim McAllister said...

Yaawwwnnnn.
Somewhere I read that because of the population mentality in Washington, DC that a good substitute would be the Washington Foreskins.

duxoup

Jim McAllister said...

Hi Jim,

I am part native American (I don't care for 'Indian' because I work with REAL Indians and that's a separate ethnicity), and I think it's utterly STUPID about this name thing. Come on, people - get off your high horses and give it a rest. And that goes for the zillions of other 'politically Correct' terms that pollute our 2014 world; including 'weight challenged' (you're fat), height-challenged (you're short), African-American (you're B-L-A-C-K), etc. etc. etc.

I guess the only fair game for not crossing the politically correct line are the poor middle-aged white men who have no protection under the law, or outrage by special-interest groups.

Jim McAllister said...

Jim, I couldn't agree more. This is nothing more than PC BS.
Mike S

Jim McAllister said...

uremus (sam) has left a new comment on your post "TOO MUCH SENSITIVITY TODAY I knew it would happen ...":

Maybe we should change the names of (as I recall from history)25+
of our States, and perhaps as many as thousands of our cities, and uncounted counties within our 50 States (hehe...Obama would be forced to change 57 State names.)
And, uncounted rivers, lakes, recreation sites, etc.
There are many other instances in our language which utilize Indian names and/or phrases.............CHANGE THEM ALL ! ! ! ! ! especially since those names or words are rarely used or considered as insults...in fact, the opposite is true.

Jim McAllister said...

it all depends on whose 'ox is being gored'. Would some object to my fantasy football team, "The TEXAN RED-NECK HICKS" ?

Jim McAllister said...

Mike, It's endless these days. Too many pussies out there who grew up with no sense of humor or confidence. One has to be able to laugh at themselves.

Jim McAllister said...

DUX,
Good idea

Jim McAllister said...

Hi Glo,

It all stems from the yuppie oriented mentality that somewhere, somehow, someone's feelings may be hurt. It's not realistic because life just isn't that way. If you are a kid who wears glasses, you will be called "4 eyes" at sometime in your life. You have to just live with it or punch out someone who says it more times than is advisable.

That's the way life is. It is not the proverbial "bowl of cherries" as the song indicates.

Jim McAllister said...

Mike, PC sucks and guys like Obama only perpetuate it. That why this country has so many wimps.

It's hard to believe that after 82 years someone actually worries about a football team being called "Redskins."

Jim McAllister said...

SAM,

Good idea! Maybe Obama could issue an executive order to handle it! LOL

Jim McAllister said...

"THE RED-NECK HICKS, now, there is a good name and Texans would love it because they have confidence in themselves and also possess a sense of humor.

Jim McAllister said...

Mike Slater has left a new comment on your post "TOO MUCH SENSITIVITY TODAY I knew it would happen ...":

Jim, the thing is the left doesn't have a sense of humor.

The funny thing is a Navajo woman that lives on the reservation in Arizona is leading the fight to get the football team to change the name while there is a high school on the reservation that calls themselves the Redskins.
Mike S

Glo, Politially Incorrect & Proud of It! said...

A friend forwarded this to me, and I was extremely jealous that I had not written it!

No matter which side you are
on in this matter,
this is funny. Here is an e-mail
sent to Clarence Page
of the Chicago Tribune after an article he published
concerning a name
change for the Washington Redskins proposed by a member of
Congress.



Dear Mr. Page...

I always love your articles and I generally agree with
them. I would
suggest, as in an email I received, they change the name to
the "Foreskins" to
better represent their community, paying tribute to
the dick heads in
Congress.

I agree with our Native American population. I am
highly insulted by the
racially charged name of the Washington Redskins. One might
argue that to name a
professional football team after Native Americans
would exalt them as fine
warriors, but nay, nay. We must be careful not to
offend, and in the
spirit of political correctness and courtesy, we must move
forward.

Let's ditch the Kansas City Chiefs, the
Atlanta Braves and the
Cleveland Indians. If your shorts are in a wad because
of the reference
the name Redskins makes to skin color, then we need
to get rid of
the Cleveland Browns.

The Carolina Panthers obviously were named to keep the
memory of militant
Blacks from the 60's alive. Gone. It's offensive to
us white folk.

The New York Yankees offend the Southern population. Do
you see a team
named for the Confederacy? No! There is no room
for any reference to
that tragic war that cost this country so many young
men's lives.

I am also offended by the blatant references to the
Catholic religion among
our sports team names. Totally inappropriate to have
the New Orleans
Saints, the Los Angeles Angels or the San Diego
Padres.

Then there are the team names that glorify criminals
who raped and
pillaged. We are talking about the horrible Oakland Raiders,
the Minnesota
Vikings, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Pittsburgh
Pirates!

Now, let us address those teams that clearly send the
wrong message to our
children. The San Diego Chargers promote irresponsible
fighting or even
spending habits. Wrong message to our children.


The New York Giants and the San Francisco Giants
promote obesity, a growing
childhood epidemic. Wrong message to our children.

The Cincinnati Reds promote downers/barbiturates. Wrong
message to our
children.

The Milwaukee Brewers. Well that goes without saying.
Wrong message to our
children.

So, there you go. We need to support any
legislation that comes out
to rectify this travesty, because the government will likely
become involved
with this issue, as they should. Just the kind of
thing the do-nothing
Congress loves.

As a diehard Oregon State fan, my wife and I, with all of
this in mind,
suggest it might also make some sense to change the name of
the OregonState
women's athletic teams to something other than "the
Beavers."

Jim McAllister said...

Thanks Glo,

That is really funny. I posted it straight to the blog.

JM

Jim McAllister said...

From Joy Wiseman

Jim, everything in your blog is so true. I remember when Dr. Ben Carson gave his speech with Pres. O. sitting n t far away, and the doctor was commenting on that fact that politically correctness has to go away.. I remember being dismayed when Gov. Napolitano rushed to change the name of Squaw Peak. I don't know when it will end, as it has been going on since the mid-90's, at least.

Yours,
Joy

Jim McAllister said...

Hi Joy,

It's ridiculous today. It's like nobody can say anything without being in fear of offending someone else. It's a very thin skinned society and I look at it as being a result of the Democratic rule we currently are stuck with. Hopefully the Republicans will possess both houses of Congress after November 4th and in two years we need to have a Republican president. Obama is the worst and sending him packing in itself will be a nice victory. The paranoia we are stuck with now has to end.

Thanks for the note; always nice to hear from you.

northierthanthou said...

Your use of Goddard's work is little more than an etymological fallacy.

Jim McAllister said...

Huh?

A what?