Ginger-ism

delericho said:

It's really not. If I'm truly bothered by jokes about being a geek, I could stop being a geek easily enough. If a person were truly bothered about jokes about being ginger, they can't stop being ginger - it's a matter of genetics, and part of who they are. The best they could do is hide it, and that's hardly a good solution.

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No, it really is. You completely missed my point. Of course someone couldn't stop being a ginger - that's impossible. The obviousness of that should have been a clue that you were on the wrong trail - at least one would think. Since you missed it, I'll try to explain:

By 'personally choose to see it' I meant how the offended party in question chooses to see the joke. What people don't understand is that they choose to be offended. I learned a long time ago that my happiness in life was predicated solely upon my own perception of the events that occurred in it. If someone made fun of me, I could take that as an attack and be angry or saddened by it ... or I could brush it off. In the case of what we're mostly talking about here, if I say gingers have no soul (remember, I've explained this several times, that I think that statement is ludicrous and therefore obviously not ever said as fact) a ginger could decide to be offended or see it as the joke it is. Really, we have a lot more power than we give ourselves credit for.

So yeah, you're right: A ginger can't take take off their skin or dye their hair ... wait ... umm ... anyhoo, that skin thing still works ... maybe ... uhh ... where was I? Oh yeah, a ginger can't stop being a ginger, no, but they can decide what bothers them and what doesn't and they can decide to see a joke as a joke. Really, is it that hard to tell the difference between someone poking fun and someone taking a shot? Really?

Whether you or I think they have a reason to be bothered by the 'jokes' is largely irrelevant. They are bothered by them.

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Yup, I get that. See above.

I'm also afraid that any claim it is "just a joke" is simply mistaken. I suggest reading here on the topic, and especially this bit about modern discrimination. The cases of violence it describes are thankfully rare, but that doesn't make them any less wrong.

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Wrong. If I make a joke and I say it's just a joke, guess what, it's just a joke! Who knows better in that case, me or you?

For the record, I never said any violence was ok. I also never said any sort of violence was a joke. I want to thank you for illustrating how easy it is for some people to mix the two up for whatever reason. That's really the issue here: Some people can't tell the difference between a joke and a knuckle sandwich.

[sblock=The differenceI put mayo on my knuckle sandwiches.[/sblock]

Zombie_Babies said:

No, it really is. You completely missed my point. Of course someone couldn't stop being a ginger - that's impossible. The obviousness of that should have been a clue that you were on the wrong trail - at least one would think. Since you missed it, I'll try to explain:

By 'personally choose to see it' I meant how the offended party in question chooses to see the joke. What people don't understand is that they choose to be offended.

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I see. So racist, sexist, and homophobic 'jokes', of the order given by the OP are okay, then? I think you'll find very few people who agree with you these days.

For the record, I never said any violence was ok.

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No, but you did say:

Zombie_Babies said:

Umm ... it's really simple. The ginger 'hate' isn't real hate at all. It's all 100% just a joke.

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about which you are quite simply wrong.

Or you know, are people are just offended by just about anything or pretend they are. They are jerks, hypocrites, people who just want control over others. I feel not pitty for such people and do not indulge them.

goldomark said:

Or you know, are people are just offended by just about anything or pretend they are.

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I daresay some people do. Others are genuinely hurt at the 'jokes', the bullying, and all the other crap that they receive purely based on the colour of their hair.

They are jerks, hypocrites, people who just want control over others. I feel not pitty for such people and do not indulge them.

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If you tell a joke knowing it's going to hurt someone else, you're the jerk. If you tell the joke not realising the harm, then fair enough... but once the harm has been explained to you if you persist in telling such jokes (indeed, if you fail to apologise) then, once again, you're the jerk.

It's very easy to say "just laugh it off" when the joke isn't about you personally.

delericho said:

I see. So racist, sexist, and homophobic 'jokes', of the order given by the OP are okay, then? I think you'll find very few people who agree with you these days.

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So you still don't get it. Ok. By the way, quite a few people actually do agree with me. When a joke is told as a joke there's nothing wrong with it. Srsly, you watch any stand up comedy? I don't mean something like Jeff Dunham, either, I mean real stand up. Try it sometime.

No, but you did say:



about which you are quite simply wrong.

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So maybe I should have qualified it with a different percentage, then. I'll give you that. How about 95% just a joke? Does that make you more comfortable?

Dungeoneer said:

It's very easy to say "just laugh it off" when the joke isn't about you personally.

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How many bleepin' times do I have to say this? I am someone who had jokes told about their ethnicity, appearance, whatever. I don't care. Not a whit. Cuz they're jokes!! This argument is one of the most ridiculous I've ever seen. Srsly, you're telling me I can't say laugh it off because I haven't? How could you possibly know that? Everyone has been made fun of at some point during their life and many of them laughed it off. So unless you're telling me I can't tell a ginger that 'you have no soul' is a joke because I'm not a ginger I have no idea what this is supposed to mean. Cuz it doesn't mean anything.

Zombie_Babies said:

So you still don't get it. Ok. By the way, quite a few people actually do agree with me. When a joke is told as a joke there's nothing wrong with it. Srsly, you watch any stand up comedy? I don't mean something like Jeff Dunham, either, I mean real stand up. Try it sometime.

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Have you ever considered the possibility that you may be the one not getting it? People here, and large numbers of people in the world at large, simply do not consider "it's a joke" to be a valid excuse. It doesn't matter if you personally don't care. Other people do, and you don't have any authority to tell them they're not allowed to.

If you don't believe the world at large thinks this way, I encourage you to discuss the topic with Michael Richards, Sergio Garcia, David Chalian, or Justine Sacco.

delericho said:

If you tell a joke knowing it's going to hurt someone else, you're the jerk.

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Not necessarely. It could be someone who are offended or pretend to be by anything. Those bullies are the jerks, champ.

I'm perceiving plenty of incoming jerkism here. Closing the thread.