Oh yeah, I remember the old thread... Those were fun days...

But yeah, this has been discussed to death. But here are my views:

No one should use it.
I don't.
I don't use "a" or "er".
I may say "negro", but I just think that it adds nothing to a conversation.
Free use of the word now has white, and especially latino people saying it.
If I went around calling all caucasians "crackers" or the like, A) I'd feel awkward, and B) It would just not be a good look.
I think that no one should be able to use the word
It should be buried and dead, like the time frame the word came from.
Whenever I hear someone say it, I just cringe.

I'll basically paraphrase my stance here:

Restricting a word from being used will never be possible. The only way for people to stop using it as an insult is for black people to stop taking it as one. Use it as a compliment to each other, and act as if its a compliment even if people are attempting to use it as an insult. 

This should be used for all words, because being "politically correct" only backfires, because those words are considered taboo, it gives those words power; faggot, retarded, bastard, bitch, nigger, honky, cracker, etc. These words are all considered taboo because they are "offensive" so what does that teach people? Only two things; if you want to insult and offend someone, you use those words, and if those words are used on you, you should be insulted and offended.

If people were actually successful in making a word taboo, it would be even worse, as people would simply move from one word to the next. instead of using cracker, they'd just move onto "saltine" or "flour" or "bowling pin" (I don't know) and then those words would have to be taboo too, and eventually we wouldn't have any words left.

insomniac17 said: My issue with this is that whites can't say that, but blacks can call whites stuff like "cracker" all they want. I mean, its horrible what happened to them in the past, but why am I being punished for something I had absolutely nothing to do with?

 Its because the very ignorant blacks think that white people cant get offended by the words cracker and white boy. I am black and I have a few portuguese and spanish friends and English friends. Their ancestors probably enslaved my people, but they havent done anything to me.

CaptainPrefrences said: madskillz said: CaptainPrefrences said: madskillz said: Man, what's the deal creating all these threads? This one really, really hits a new low for you. Do you really take these threads you create to heart or just to keep the points rolling and the like or to be considered popular? Really, it's just pointless. If you really, really wanna find out what people say, go into the darkest part of town and scream the N-word 3 times at the top of your lungs. Then, create a thread about the treatment you received. Thanks. Thanks for contributing to the thread. You know people like you can go to hell for all I care. Its off topic discussion, and some of my threads have over 50 replies to them. I actually started the "what do you think of" threads. I create these threads because its off topic discussion. You know stuff that isnt involved with gaming. I actually put a lot of thought into my threads and want to know what people think of the topic. Isnt it a coincidence that i make terrible threads in your opinion, and get a lot of replies to them? If I really wanted to become popular, dont you think I would be making threads so peopel can see them on the front page? Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me. lol. Thats how I think. As I said people liek you who blame people like me for making to many threads, which are succesful imo, can go to hel., or deal with it. The same goes for you loadedstatement. Until a mod comes to me, and tells me I am spamming, I will keep making these threads. They seem to be popular.     ROTFLMBO ... ok, I haven't heard this since ... grade school. Thanks for showing us your true age. OT ... I'll take pepperoni, pineapple and extra onions on my pizza. And you're sad someone didn't respond to your points? Man, you are cracking me up. It's 8:04 p.m. by my clock - aren't you supposed to be asleep? It's a school night, son.  It may sound kiddish, but it is so true. As I said, if you dotn like my threads, which many other peopel like, dont post on them. its that fucking simple. You and loadedstaement overthere are not going to stop me from making these threads, only a mod can which none have said anything about. I guess you and your little buddy overthere are in the minority? Also, yes I am 15 and yes I am in grade 9. It is 10 16 where I am, but I have a P.A day tommorow. You know madskillz, you are known for making retarded staements like "most people buy there ps3's for blu ray".

 Not to further prove you wrong, but I really did buy my PS3 just for BluRay.  I own 1 PS3 game (Rock Band) and about 30 BluRay titles.

I don't use it and I think the black people who do are idiots. The people who use
'nigga' are almost always part of the entire 'gangsta' culture and I haven't hated a culture so much since the skinheads.

I don't understand why people want to imitate a culture based on crime and violence, its hard to think of worse role models for people than a member of a street gang. 

CaptainPrefrences said: insomniac17 said: My issue with this is that whites can't say that, but blacks can call whites stuff like "cracker" all they want. I mean, its horrible what happened to them in the past, but why am I being punished for something I had absolutely nothing to do with? Its because the very ignorant blacks think that white people cant get offended by the words cracker and white boy. I am black and I have a few portuguese and spanish friends and English friends. Their ancestors probably enslaved my people, but they havent done anything to me.

Well, I don't know much about the subject, but I do know that the whole thing irritates me. I hate racism and sexism in their various forms, but being biased towards any side is just wrong. Life isn't fair, but there is no need to make it more unfair, I think. Quite honestly I'd like for everyone to just get along for once so we wouldn't have to worry about it, but that is never gonna happen. I'm just frustrated with the whole issue.

@ insomniac17

I want peopel to get along also. It makes me happy when I see people of different races interacting well together and even getting married.

loadedstatement said: CaptainPrefrences said: madskillz said: CaptainPrefrences said: madskillz said: Man, what's the deal creating all these threads? This one really, really hits a new low for you. Do you really take these threads you create to heart or just to keep the points rolling and the like or to be considered popular? Really, it's just pointless. If you really, really wanna find out what people say, go into the darkest part of town and scream the N-word 3 times at the top of your lungs. Then, create a thread about the treatment you received. Thanks. Thanks for contributing to the thread. You know people like you can go to hell for all I care. Its off topic discussion, and some of my threads have over 50 replies to them. I actually started the "what do you think of" threads. I create these threads because its off topic discussion. You know stuff that isnt involved with gaming. I actually put a lot of thought into my threads and want to know what people think of the topic. Isnt it a coincidence that i make terrible threads in your opinion, and get a lot of replies to them? If I really wanted to become popular, dont you think I would be making threads so peopel can see them on the front page? Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me. lol. Thats how I think. As I said people liek you who blame people like me for making to many threads, which are succesful imo, can go to hel., or deal with it. The same goes for you loadedstatement. Until a mod comes to me, and tells me I am spamming, I will keep making these threads. They seem to be popular.     ROTFLMBO ... ok, I haven't heard this since ... grade school. Thanks for showing us your true age. OT ... I'll take pepperoni, pineapple and extra onions on my pizza. And you're sad someone didn't respond to your points? Man, you are cracking me up. It's 8:04 p.m. by my clock - aren't you supposed to be asleep? It's a school night, son. It may sound kiddish, but it is so true. As I said, if you dotn like my threads, which many other peopel like, dont post on them. its that fucking simple. You and loadedstaement overthere are not going to stop me from making these threads, only a mod can which none have said anything about. I guess you and your little buddy overthere are in the minority? Also, yes I am 15 and yes I am in grade 9. It is 10 16 where I am, but I have a P.A day tommorow. You know madskillz, you are known for making retarded staements like "most people buy there ps3's for blu ray". Not to further prove you wrong, but I really did buy my PS3 just for BluRay. I own 1 PS3 game (Rock Band) and about 30 BluRay titles.

He said:  "most people buy there ps3's for blu ray".

im going to play gt5 now.  

@captain:

That makes me happy too. =) I've made many friends of many different ethnicities, and we all get along just fine. We defend each other when some jerk comes along and makes a racist comment, and I know I would run to help any of them if they were ever in any trouble.

Grey Acumen said: I'll basically paraphrase my stance here: Restricting a word from being used will never be possible. The only way for people to stop using it as an insult is for black people to stop taking it as one. Use it as a compliment to each other, and act as if its a compliment even if people are attempting to use it as an insult. This should be used for all words, because being "politically correct" only backfires, because those words are considered taboo, it gives those words power; faggot, retarded, bastard, bitch, nigger, honky, cracker, etc. These words are all considered taboo because they are "offensive" so what does that teach people? Only two things; if you want to insult and offend someone, you use those words, and if those words are used on you, you should be insulted and offended. If people were actually successful in making a word taboo, it would be even worse, as people would simply move from one word to the next. instead of using cracker, they'd just move onto "saltine" or "flour" or "bowling pin" (I don't know) and then those words would have to be taboo too, and eventually we wouldn't have any words left.

I agree that outright banning a word is a terrible idea, partly because of freedom of speech and partly because the insult would just devolve onto another term as you said.

But turning that word into a compliment is not realistic, I think. Some people use it as a completely neutral term, but many more use it as a word that can only be used by blacks, or only can be used by non-whites. It's nonsensical and varies wildly; no one is completely safe from getting a punch in the face if the wrong person hears it. And even if you succeed, so what? It's an outdated insult anyway, only really hardcore racists use it AFAIK anymore and trust me there are plenty of racial slurs for those types to fall back on.

Words do have power. Tremendous power in some cases. That's the entire purpose of language -- it's not just insults. Reforming this word in particular is not worth the effort. I'd much rather see it drop out of use altogether.   (By means of social pressure.)  Maybe then it could get recycled in a couple hundred years like many words have been, with only students of language aware that this all ever happened. Or not. Anything other than lurching forward as a tortured, perpetually controversial mishmash.

/2¢