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[Nephtis]

the only fact you have is that the word/phrase has been around for a long time and if you truly believe that alone means your argument has merit, then yeah, you're being ignorant of why this is possibly offensive.

So are you willing to acknowledge that chink is a racial slur? If so, tell me why you're adamantly defending a phrase that could easily be changed without causing any problems?

I don't get you. Why are you so obsessed with that point? Why is it so hard for you to understand that "chink in the armor" has been used, to this day, widely in literary works and even with people who use it to this day when working on armor? "chink" alone is a racist slur, yes. But the use of that word alone and the context for the phrase is completely different, and ridiculously absurd to get offended by.

I mean, English isn't even my first language and I've used that phrase.

 

[GYODX]

I don't think the phrase itself is racist, just that it seems unnecessary to still use it or defend it when the word the phrase depends on is currently a racial slur and not even a new one. I know I've heard chink way more than I've ever heard chink in the armor in normal conversations or online. But like you said, it might just depend on the genre/books. Chink should just be retired as a word.

What the fuck? Is there a Royal English Academy dictating language usage now?

The word doesn't need defending because there is nothing inherently offensive about it. Were your math teachers being culturally insensitive every time they asked you to find the slope of a function?

Moreover, you are never going to convince a majority of English speakers to simply *stop* using a phrase as common and as inoffensive as "chink in the armor". Words and phrases fall out of use with time, true, but it happens organically; it isn't something you can force.

 

[Rembrandt]

Fucking idiots. :/



You are suggesting changing a word that has the same sound but very different derivation to a slur on the basis it may be misunderstood?

Nobody is misunderstanding the term chink if you use it in real life. The only time people would pretend they don't know what you're talking about is on neogaf apparently.

There's a difference between chink being a racial slur, and the ability to USE chink AS a racial slur. Don't mince words here, we all speak English. If you try hard enough, you can use ANY word as a slur. If you try hard enough.

Lmao, okay, I'll just bow out because his is bordering ridiculous. You're right, anything can be a slur. It's not like chink has a history in modern ages or anything. Of course when a person says chink I'm going to think of a flaw in armor because that has been around since 1400s. You're right.

 

[Siegcram]

the only fact you have is that the word/phrase has been around for a long time and if you truly believe that alone means your argument has merit, then yeah, you're being ignorant of why this is possibly offensive.

So are you willing to acknowledge that chink is a racial slur? If so, tell me why you're adamantly defending a phrase that could easily be changed without causing any problems?

I'm a writer and I don't see a reason to limit myself because some people are unable to cope with reading a full sentence. Now, I don't usually write in English but if I would and hand in a script that said "crack in the armor", any competent editor would flag it.

Everything is possibly offensive. The word "Jew" is if said in the wrong tone. Yet it still exists. I don't take to the twitters because I read the word "nigger" in an edition of Huckleberry Finn. Why? Because I'm aware of the context.

 

[Dead Man]

Nobody is misunderstanding the term chink if you use it in real life. The only time people would pretend they don't know what you're talking about is on neogaf apparently.

You are suggesting that nobody outside NeoGAF uses the phrase 'chink in armour'? Genuinely, that is what you are saying?

 

[Xenus]

Nobody is misunderstanding the term chink if you use it in real life. The only time people would pretend they don't know what you're talking about is on neogaf apparently.



Lmao, okay, I'll just bow out because his is bordering ridiculous. You're right, anything can be a slur. It's not like chink has a history in modern ages or anything. Of course when a person says chink I'm going to think of a flaw in armor because that has been around since 1400s. You're right.

It has been in regular use in that form. It's never fallen out of use. You're being even more rediculous becuase you think one meaning that's no more common then the other shoudl outlaw the word from use ever.

 

[Rembrandt]

I don't get you. Why are you so obsessed with that point? Why is it so hard for you to understand that "chink in the armor" has been used, to this day, widely in literary works and even with people who use it to this day when working on armor? "chink" alone is a racist slur, yes. But the use of that word alone and the context for the phrase is completely different, and ridiculously absurd to get offended by.

I mean, English isn't even my first language and I've used that phrase.

I am fully convinced you're not reading my posts. I said the phrase itself isn't offensive, but there is no point in having an Archaic phrase that depends on a word that is commonly used as a racial slur. Your defense is that people use it to this day on armor. Who on the streets thinks of armor when encountering that word?

What the fuck? Is there a Royal English Academy dictating language usage now?

The word doesn't need defending because there is nothing inherently offensive about it. Were your math teachers being culturally insensitive every time they asked you to find the slope of a function?

Moreover, you are never going to convince a majority of English speakers to simply *stop* using a phrase as common and as inoffensive as "chink in the armor". Words and phrases fall out of use with time, true, but it happens organically; it isn't something you can force.

Slope wasn't as widely used as chink as a slur, but whatever. It's not like chink became a common way of referring to Asians for a majority of Americans during a certain part of history. I literally had to type slope slur to find who that was referring to. The slur for chink is literally the first definition on google. Let's not equate the two or pretend that chink as a slur is less popular than chink in the armor.

 

[otapnam]

lame. calling something out that wasnt used in a racist way at all. need to focus on real racial issues not this petty crap. The word chink was used for other sayings long before it was a racist word against chinese/asians






im asian american.

 

[Syriel]

What's silly is somebody saying chink as a slur is outdated, but chink in the armor is a common phrase. That's bullshit. Idek what other slur there is for Asians, tbh. That's how popular that word is. Maybe banana or Twinkie, but if chink is never used than I feel like I was the only person in the world to hear those two,

"FOB" seems to be the goto insult for the racist set these days.

However, I dislike the attitude (especially on GAF, when casual racism against Asians is ignored) that "OMIGOD IT HAS NO MERIT." Well, no, the outrage is definitely misplaced, but it's very, very, most likely having to do with the a) personal experiences of the word being used, and b) the recent Jeremy Lin issue.

I mean, the Jeremy Lin issue WAS an issue because everyone does actually know that chink is a slur. If it wasn't a slur, people wouldn't have been like "wtf," even though it's a mistake... because it was still used in the right context-- the idiom. It's not like someone called Jeremy Lin a chink by itself; despite being used in the proper manner, it was still regarded as distasteful.. and to some, a symptom of the casual racism against Asians that no one seems to care about.

Having the discussion is a good thing in and of itself. Sometimes just seeing/hearing about different experiences can help everyone. I'll admit I was a little surprised (honestly thought you were kidding) when you said you'd never heard "bitch" used in its proper context. Then again, growing up everyone I knew either had a pet or knew someone who had a pet. (Side note: Puppies are the definition of awesome.)

I don't think anyone here is trying to discount experiences of people who have been on the receiving end of a slur, but at the same time, to call for deleting every word from use that has ever been used as a slur seems to be taking things a bit far; especially with some of the implications made by other posters that anyone who isn't immediately willing to do so is a closet racist.

Like was stated before, it's all about context. That's why the Jeremy Lin thing was a gaffe. It wasn't intentionally used as a slur, but the copywriter should have known that there was a secondary meaning possible and used a different phrase. The phrase by itself holds no malice, just as the phrase "slippery slope" holds no malice. Both are common English expressions, that both contain a word that could be used as a slur when standing alone.

Then you have words that can be both ethnic slurs and slang for a job. A good example there is Spooks. If you're using it to refer to black people it's a slur. If you're using it to refer to intelligence agents, it's slang w/o any racial connotation.

 

[Rembrandt]

I'm a writer and I don't see a reason to limit myself because some people are unable to cope with reading a full sentence. Now, I don't usually write in English but if I would and hand in a script that said "crack in the armor", any competent editor would flag it.

Everything is possibly offensive. The word "Jew" is if said in the wrong tone. Yet it still exists. I don't take to the twitters because I read the word "nigger" in an edition of Huckleberry Finn. Why? Because I'm aware of the context.

Idk if the part about huckleberry finn is a joke or not considering the controversy surrounding that nor is that equal to this situation, neither is Jew. These comparisons are weird. You're right, nigger in that book is a sign of the times and nobody uses that word anymore in conversation or phrases in America unless you want to be seen as a racist. Jew is short for Jewish which, I suppose, Jew can be a slur, but I'm guessing at depends more on inflection rather than word itself being offensive. None of these apply to chink which is a word that became an extremely popular slur in America and has stayed a slur since then. You don't hear people say chink in conversations on the street or tv unless you're making armor or some shit apparently.

You are suggesting that nobody outside NeoGAF uses the phrase 'chink in armour'? Genuinely, that is what you are saying?

What, no? I'm saying that if you say chink to a person on the street, they're not equating the word to its definition of "flaw" or "crack." It's just not happening.

It has been in regular use in that form. It's never fallen out of use. You're being even more rediculous becuase you think one meaning that's no more common then the other shoudl outlaw the word from use ever.

If niggers second definition was ignorant, would you defend that like you are this?

 

[Chizzanger]

So wong.

Oh I get it, because Asians speak broken English. Haha. : /

 

[liliththepale]

I am fully convinced you're not reading my posts. I said the phrase itself isn't offensive, but there is no point in having an Archaic phrase that depends on a word that is commonly used as a racial slur. Your defense is that people use it to this day on armor. Who on the streets thinks of armor when encountering that word?

It's no more archaic than the term loophole, yet that still sees daily usage. Just because we don't use chain mail armor anymore doesn't mean people don't get the reference or that it's inappropriate to continue using the metaphor.

And I can vouch for plenty of people who use chink in an innocuous way.

 

[BreezyLimbo]

Idk if the part about huckleberry finn is a joke or not considering the controversy surrounding that nor is that equal to this situation, neither is Jew. These comparisons are weird. You're right, nigger in that book is a sign of the times and nobody uses that word anymore in conversation or phrases in America unless you want to be seen as a racist. Jew is short for Jewish which, I suppose, Jew can be a slur, but I'm guessing at depends more on inflection rather than word itself being offensive. None of these apply to chink which is a word that became an extremely popular slur in America and has stayed a slur since then. You don't hear people say chink in conversations on the street or tv unless you're making armor or some shit apparently.

Oh boy here we go. Alot of black people use that word, actually. In day to day conversation. It is empowering, because unlike the word chink, from day one, that N word has been used as a slur. That is all it was.

What, no? I'm saying that if you say chink to a person on the street, they're not equating the word to its definition of "flaw" or "crack." It's just not happening.

Like I said before-Context matter. Of course you can't go around calling people 'Chink' because that will be offensive to some. Just like I won't go around calling people 'Cracker', because hint hint, context matters. Do you want us to stop using the word cracker too, based on this line of logic?

If niggers second definition was ignorant, would you defend that like you are this?

That word never had a second definition. And if it did, it was only to enforce it as a slur. Your first mistake was coming in to this conversation with this aura of authority. Your second mistake is thinking that the N-word is equatable in any way to the word 'Chink'.

 

[thepotatoman]

I think one person.

One overly reactive person that had resentment building over the years and exploded, even being misguided. Entirely wrong thing.

But, I definitely feel for those people-- as in, Asians who are tired of the bamboo ceiling, of being emasculated in popular media, of the stereotypes, of the racism, all which is rarely ever discussed. It's a fault of us Asians as much as it is of other people, but at a certain point I can understand the anger.

I still don't agree with that dude, but I do have some empathy for how he feels.

Like this shit that still goes completely ignored: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=150214985&postcount=401

Yeah, I can totally get that sentiment. It's just extra crappy to see this guy get thrown under the bus for making that comment.

I mean, in my long and industrious internet commenting career, I'm sure I've at least said a couple things that were extremely idiotic. Just start with a bad day, in an already bad month, combine it with a little alcohol and lack of sleep, and you have a perfect recipe for starting a dumb rant on the internet.

I still regret going completely overboard in internet arguments I've had over freaking video games. And I don't even have the excuse of ever being legitimately slighted in my life over video games, like people who have experienced racism have.

So yes, I can empathise with him, and think it totally sucks that he has to be put in the limelight over something like that.

 

[Rembrandt]

It's no more archaic than the term loophole, yet that still sees daily usage. Just because we don't use chain mail armor anymore doesn't mean people don't get the reference or that it's inappropriate to continue using the metaphor.

And I can vouch for plenty of people who use chink in an innocuous way.

Loophole doesn't have a word in it that's considered a slur by most Americans, though.

 

[Xenus]

If niggers second definition was ignorant, would you defend that like you are this?

It doesn't so your argument is a useless strawman deflecting from the point. In fact I'd say there are probably a large amount of people in the US that either don't know what the word means or don't know the racial connitation at all.

Is it sometimes used as a racist slur. Yes it is but it's not a word that is only associated with the racist slur for the majority of people.

 

[Ventilaator]

People in the Cumberbatch "coloured" thread said that saying "black" will always be okay and you should just go with that. But if NOT TALKING ABOUT RACE AT ALL is still racist, there's just no escape.

Everything is racist now. Some day a child will run up to his mother and say "Look mommy, I coloured this picture" and then he won't get dinner that night for being an insensitive prick.

 

[liliththepale]

Loophole doesn't have a word in it that's considered a slur by most Americans, though.

No, but you were using archaic for an argument against the term's usage, and I was disagreeing with that.

From my perspective, I don't want anyone to ever be called a chink again, Asian or not. I just want chink to refer to its original and primary definition: a narrow crack, typically letting in light. So getting up in arms about this empowers the slur when it shouldn't.

 

[Siegcram]

Idk if the part about huckleberry finn is a joke or not considering the controversy surrounding that nor is that equal to this situation, neither is Jew. These comparisons are weird. You're right, nigger in that book is a sign of the times and nobody uses that word anymore in conversation or phrases in America unless you want to be seen as a racist.

Man, I must have a shitload of audiovisual hallucinations during my recent watch of The Wire then.
It's written by a white man too !!

 

[Fusion Pizza]

This is absurd and stupid as hell. Fuck these people who get offended at every damn thing.

 

[Rembrandt]

Oh boy here we go. Alot of black people use that word, actually. In day to day conversation. It is empowering, because unlike the word chink, from day one, that N word has been used as a slur. That is all it was.





Like I said before-Context matter. Of course you can't go around calling people 'Chink' because that will be offensive to some. Just like I won't go around calling people 'Cracker', because hint hint, context matters. Do you want us to stop using the word cracker too, based on this line of logic?





That word never had a second definition. And if it did, it was only to enforce it as a slur. Your first mistake was coming in to this conversation with this aura of authority. Your second mistake is thinking that the N-word is equatable in any way to the word 'Chink'.

First of all, I'm black and I say nigga all the time and on GAF. I don't need a history lesson behind why we use it.

Cracker isn't offensive even when it's hilariously used as slur, so... My point is why use chink in an average sentence when you can say flaw, unless you're saying chink in the armor every time you say it, if so, why? It seems like an elaborate and archaic way of saying something. If language has evolved, then still why can't you say flaw? All this sounds like is people clinging on to a term that really doesn't need to be around, especially if people can get offended by it.

I already said ignorant wasn't its second definition on the prior page. I'm glad you thought you were teaching me something and eh, it's not the same, but in terms of historical usage and vitriol behind the word, chink is pretty fucking bad.

Man, I must have a shitload of audiovisual hallucinations during my recent watch of The Wire then.

Nigger =/= nigga.

But now I know for sure you're not black, American or even understanding context. When I said that, you really thought I meant black people would be considered racist for saying nigger or anything forming from it or did you want to get that joke in?

 

[BreezyLimbo]

"Chink" is most definitely a slur, and while the phrase/idiom "chink in armor" is not a slur, it shouldn't be THAT hard to see why some people may not like that anymore. You don't have to agree with them, and by all means there's no need to stop using the word if you want to.

Yes, because people seem to realize that it's offensive.

Something that some people actually don't get, is that "chink" by itself is offensive.

You also used an example of a word that is actually NOT used anymore because it's offensive, to... support the idea that a word that is offensive is not offensive because of.... history?
.

It's not. If you are referring to someone else, yes it is. But by itself? It's not offensive.

Cracker isn't offensive even when it's hilariously used as slur, so... My point is why use chink in an average sentence when you can say flaw, unless you're saying chink in the armor every time you say it, if so, why? It seems like an elaborate and archaic way of saying something. If language has evolved, then still why can't you say flaw? All this sounds like is people clinging on to a term that really doesn't need to be around, especially if people can get offended by it.

But cracker is offensive to some. Why do YOU get to choose what is offensive and what is not? Chink is offensive, cracker is not...go around calling little old white ladies cracker, see how far that gets you.

I already said ignorant wasn't its second definition on the prior page. I'm glad you thought you were teaching me something and eh, it's not the same, but in terms of historical usage and vitriol behind the word, chink is pretty fucking bad.

Because as a writer, you don't want to use the same words over and over again. IE.
"Hamilton checked the flaw on his car. It was a tiny little flaw, but a flaw nonetheless. He wondered when he would fix this flaw."
Compared to
"Hamilton checked the flaw on his car. It was a tiny little chink, but a chink nonetheless. He wondered when he would fix this eyesore."

Context is king.

 

[Xenus]

Words should never be outlawed in America, no matter how offensive.

Doesn't mean that words don't fall in and out of favor, and what is appropriate then may not be now.

"Chink" is most definitely a slur, and while the phrase/idiom "chink in armor" is not a slur, it shouldn't be THAT hard to see why some people may not like that anymore. You don't have to agree with them, and by all means there's no need to stop using the word if you want to.

Yes words fall out of favor for all types of reasons it happens organically. For example I reckon is hardly used in America anymore for whatever reason. I just don't believe people should force other people to stop using a word becuase they consider one form of it a slur thus no one should use any other form of it be it proper usage or not. I hold a different view on words that were created as slurs and co-opted for other uses.

 

[Rembrandt]

It's not. If you are referring to someone else, yes it is. But by itself? It's not offensive.



But cracker is offensive to some. Why do YOU get to choose what is offensive and what is not? Chink is offensive, cracker is not...go around calling little old white ladies cracker, see how far that gets you.



Because as a writer, you don't want to use the same words over and over again. IE.
"Hamilton checked the flaw on his car. It was a tiny little flaw, but a flaw nonetheless. He wondered when he would fix this flaw."
Compared to
"Hamilton checked the flaw on his car. It was a tiny little chink, but a chink nonetheless. He wondered when he would fix this eyesore."

Context is king.

Lmao, I'm not arguing with a person that refuses to acknowledge chink as offensive but claims cracker in any sense is. I can't do it. My blackness won't allow me. I'll argue with somebody else.

lol @ you not using scratch, dent, etc. grab a fucking thesaurus; it's unnecessary and you're not proving otherwise.

 

[Dead Man]

What, no? I'm saying that if you say chink to a person on the street, they're not equating the word to its definition of "flaw" or "crack." It's just not happening.

Okay. So fucking what?

 

[GYODX]

Lmao, okay, I'll just bow out because his is bordering ridiculous. You're right, anything can be a slur. It's not like chink has a history in modern ages or anything. Of course when a person says chink I'm going to think of a flaw in armor because that has been around since 1400s. You're right.

OR―novel concept―you can rely on the context to determine whether the word was uttered with racist implications? As you know, words are rarely used in isolation. The word "set" has about 100 different definitions. QUICK, which one did you think of?

I mean, I can understand if it were a word like "faggot", since the "bundle of twigs" definition is so uncommon relative to the slur that, outside of literary contexts, one should be suspicious of people who go out of their way to throw it in a sentence. But "chink in the armor" as a whole unit is just so common that it is entirely conceivable that some people (myself included) would not connect the "chink" part to the slur unless somebody pointed it out to us. That's just how our brains store language. It's why you see some people say shit like "for all intensive purposes"; it doesn't make any bit of sense if you look at the words individually, but people still manage to use what they think they're hearing in the correct context.

 

[BreezyLimbo]

Lmao, I'm not arguing with a person that refuses to acknowledge chink as offensive but claims cracker in any sense is. I can't do it. My blackness won't allow me. I'll argue with somebody else.

But chink is offensive when directed at a person. I've already said as much before. Chink by itself is not offensive. If you want to be ignorant about what I've said, so be it. I'm not here to babysit you through my posts.

 

[liliththepale]

Calling someone a cracker, or whip cracker, might make you feel a little bit guilty but it's not offensive.

 

[Syriel]

Yes words fall out of favor for all types of reasons it happens organically. For example I reckon is hardly used in America anymore for whatever reason. I just don't believe people should force other people to stop using a word becuase they consider one form of it a slur thus no one should use any other form of it be it proper usage or not. I hold a different view on words that were created as slurs and co-opted for other uses.

I'm still waiting for "soda" and "coke" to fall out of use when it comes to carbonated drinks.

The proper term has always been "pop."

 

[Siegcram]

But now I know for sure you're not black, American or even understanding context. When I said that, you really thought I meant black people would be considered racist for saying nigger or anything forming from it or did you want to get that joke in?

I'm not the one dealing in absolutes here. And "nigga" is simply a corrupted spelling of "nigger" to reflect pronunciation. For etymological purposes it's the same word.
You said all and every use of it today is offensive and racist. Yet if it appears, say, in a script, it isn't. If you're talking about history it isn't. Context matters. Always.

The word "nigger" on your screen by itself isn't offensive. Neither is "chink". And "chink in the armor" sure as shit isn't.

Use your fucking brain.

 

[Izuna]

Put putting this out here...

In my College the non-Asian students were sooo extremely racist to the foreign Chinese/Vietnamese and called them chink or chinky or whatever. I didn't know what they meant for the longest time, but I found out that it was their slur or nickname or whatever.

When I saw the title, I didn't understand how it could be racist. I clicked the thread and saw the image, trying to figure out how the tweet was racist and had to be reminded by the OP.

So yes, exactly like the word "cracker". This outrage is just as ridiculous as UK schools banning the term "black board" but "white board" is not banned.

People feel like they need to be outraged by racism but sometimes they get outraged by the things that aren't. I am pretty sure that people loved their complaint of this getting retweeted far more than whatever offense they didn't feel.

 

[liliththepale]

I'm still waiting for "soda" and "coke" to fall out of use when it comes to carbonated drinks.

The proper term has always been "pop."

Soda refers to the sodium carbonate in all sodas. Cola refers to the cola nuts in some sodas. Pop refers to the sound soda makes. I think we have a clear winner.

Spoiler

Sprite!

 

[Rembrandt]

Okay. So fucking what?

Then the majority of people see it as a racial slur which means the phrase is antiquated and has no purpose being around. It's not that hard and it won't be the end of the world to replace it with another word, if language evolves, why the fuck can't that go away!

OR―novel concept―you can rely on the context to determine whether the word was uttered with racist implications? As you know, words are rarely used in isolation. The word "set" has about 100 different definitions. QUICK, which one did you think of?

I mean, I can understand if it were a word like "faggot", since the "bundle of twigs" definition is so uncommon relative to the slur that, outside of literary contexts, one should be suspicious of people who go out of their way to throw it in a sentence. But "chink in the armor" as a whole unit is just so common that it is entirely conceivable that some people (myself included) would not connect the "chink" part to the slur unless somebody pointed it out to us.

I have never on my life heard chink in the armor before the Lin thing which probably isn't the best introduction to the term, huh? On the other hand, I've heard chink several times and upon hearing this phrase, I wonder why it's around or why chink is involved in it. This whole "chink in the armor is used everywhere by everyone!!!" Thing should stop since it's obviously not convincing me. And I have a hard time believing people would hear it and not think of the racial slur because even if other people have heard the phrase more than me, I don't know if they heard it more than they've heard chink or that chink didn't leave a big enough impression on them for them to pick it up out of that phrase like people do with niggardly and the word people associate that with.

Put putting this out here...

In my College the non-Asian students were sooo extremely racist to the foreign Chinese/Vietnamese and called them chink or chinky or whatever. I didn't know what they meant for the longest time, but I found out that it was their slur or nickname or whatever.

When I saw the title, I didn't understand how it could be racist. I clicked the thread and saw the image, trying to figure out how the tweet was racist and had to be reminded by the OP.

So yes, exactly like the word "cracker". This outrage is just as ridiculous as UK schools banning the term "black board" but "white board" is not banned.

People feel like they need to be outraged by racism but sometimes they get outraged by the things that aren't. I am pretty sure that people loved their complaint of this getting retweeted far more than whatever offense they didn't feel.

Lmao, so you're telling me that you heard people use this word to refer to Chinese students, found out it was a slur and still didn't understand why it was racist until you were reminded that chink was offensive? You do understand the only thing i got from your story is that the racism was so insignificant to you that you forgot about it until you had to be reminded about it and even then, you say the word is basically harmless? Maybe I'm just confused or misread your post.

 

[Dead Man]

I'd actually be inclined to agree with you-- I would not be offended if I hear the word used properly. It sounds really cute, and cute things <3.

It's just also commonly used as a slur against Asians. Chink means small opening/slit/crack-- and guess what is one popular way people like to mock Asians? Here are some hints-- "I'll blindfold him with dental floss."

All things considered... it's just an odd choice of word to use if you're at all familiar with the history of Asians in America. They've been killed, assaulted, rounded up in concentration camps, and straight up banned from America, after they were used as cheap indentured and forced labor.

I really rarely ever feel offended, personally, at many things, including this. Just pointing out the facts/reasoning behind some of these things.

I really don't think it is to anyone who has a decent vocabulary or reads books. It's common as hell in history books for instance.

Then the majority of people see it as a racial slur which means the phrase is antiquated and has no purpose being around. It's not that hard and it won't be the end of the world to replace it with another word, if language evolves, why the fuck can't that go away!

Because somebody misinterpreting the word I use is not my problem? If they are so ignorant they don't understand what the fucking word actually means, that is not something I feel any obligation about except to educate them. And I don't think the majority would consider it a slur when used in the right fucking context, as it was here.

 

[Syriel]

Soda refers to the sodium carbonate in all sodas. Cola refers to the cola nuts in some sodas. Pop refers to the sound soda makes. I think we have a clear winner.

Spoiler

Sprite!

Well played.

 

[DBT85]

It's not an odd phrase at all. At all.

 

[Robot Pants]

People are idiots with too much time on their hands. News at 11

 

[Kite]

ehh growing up Taiwanese-American in Texas I've been called chink, chinaman, gook(lol) and slope(lol) on the playground. And to this day hearing the phrase "chink in the armor" does make me wince a bit, but I'm not about to go Al Sharpton on people when they use it in the proper way. I know a lot of people who don't even know it's a racial slur. It's honestly not *that* big of a deal and I prefer saving my outrage for actual serious racism and not this minor baby overly PC stuff.

 

[BreezyLimbo]

I'd actually be inclined to agree with you-- I would not be offended if I hear the word used properly. It sounds really cute, and cute things <3.

It's just also commonly used as a slur against Asians. Chink means small opening/slit/crack-- and guess what is one popular way people like to mock Asians? Here are some hints-- "I'll blindfold him with dental floss."

All things considered... it's just an odd choice of word to use if you're at all familiar with the history of Asians in America. They've been killed, assaulted, rounded up in concentration camps, and straight up banned from America, after they were used as cheap indentured and forced labor.

I really rarely ever feel offended, personally, at many things, including this. Just pointing out the facts/reasoning behind some of these things.

I have never heard of that insult. At this point it's a matter of context. I understand the reasoning of why it's offensive, but I disagree with somehow eliminating the use of the word in all it's definitions simply because it can be used as a slur. It has been an interesting discussion, though. However the night calls to me for now.

 

[GYODX]

I have never on my life heard chink in the armor before the Lin thing which probably isn't the best introduction to the term, huh? On the other hand, I've heard chink several times and upon hearing this phrase, I wonder why it's around or why chink is involved in it. This whole "chink in the armor is used everywhere by everyone!!!" Thing should stop since it's obviously not convincing me. And I have a hard time believing people would hear it and not think of the racial slur because even if other people have heard the phrase more than me, I don't know if they heard it more than they've heard chink or that chink didn't leave a big enough impression on them for them to pick it up out of that phrase like people do with niggardly and the word people associate that with.

Well it's a good thing language usage isn't dictated by your personal experience, because even I as an ESL speaker could tell that "chink in the armor" is a completely inoffensive, commonly-used phrase.

 

[Rembrandt]

Because somebody misinterpreting the word I use is not my problem? If they are so ignorant they don't understand what the fucking word actually means, that is not something I feel any obligation about except to educate them. And I don't think the majority would consider it a slur when used in the right fucking context, as it was here.

Well, I guess we have no reason to continue our convo. There's no where to go and it's kinda pointless. Have fun calling people ignorant for getting offended over a racial slur, though. That's... cool?

Well it's a good thing language usage isn't dictated by your personal experience, because even I as an ESL speaker could tell that "chink in the armor" is a completely inoffensive, commonly-used phrase.

You should go back and read my first post where I said the phrase itself wasn't racist, but I still wondered why chink was in it. Reading comprehension: sometimes/10

 

[Dead Man]

Did you skip over all the history of racism against Asians, then? :x

Did you skip over the fact that something used in one context does not mean it should be removed from all contexts? Otherwise we need a new word for monkeys. Which is stupid.

 

[lednerg]

ehh growing up Taiwanese-American in Texas I've been called chink, chinaman, gook(lol) and slope(lol) on the playground. And to this day hearing the phrase "chink in the armor" does make me wince a bit, but I'm not about to go Al Sharpton on people when they use it in the proper way. I know a lot of people who don't even know it's a racial slur. It's honestly not *that* big of a deal and I prefer saving my outrage for actual serious racism and not this minor baby overly PC stuff.

Nips it in the bud.

 

[Kite]

Nips it in the bud.

I can't even be mad

edit: fyi nip is an ethnic slur against Japanese during WW II, not sure if you meant it as a joke or not but the irony is another accidental slur against asians made me giggle lol Maybe "nip it in the bud" should be phased out as well

 

[Dead Man]

.

I never said you were in favour of banning it. My comment also refers to self censorship, which is what you want. So do we need a new word for monkeys?

 

[Robot Pants]

Ok thank God someone posted this

 

[Nephtis]

It's like we're circling back to the whole usage of the word "Oriental", vs "Asian". :\

edit: to be fair, that refers to the specific use when referring a person though. I can give that one a tiny bit more leeway.

 

[Izuna]

Lmao, so you're telling me that you heard people use this word to refer to Chinese students, found out it was a slur and still didn't understand why it was racist until you were reminded that chink was offensive? You do understand the only thing i got from your story is that the racism was so insignificant to you that you forgot about it until you had to be reminded about it and even then, you say the word is basically harmless? Maybe I'm just confused or misread your post.

Calm down.

I said that just because I knew it could have a bad meaning, doesn't mean that it retroactively made it "unseeable" when this phrase popped up.

But what YOU are saying is that any group can take any word, make it offensive, and thus we should remove it from the language. That is "PC gone mad" really.

When we end up banning "cheese and crackers" being a thing anyone can say I hope you will see how ridiculous this really is.

Asians who have heard Chink first as an offensive slur, do not recognise the phrase, or simply heard it as a slur far more often will notice the intentions of the US Army and know that they aren't trying to offend them. If the word is too much and emotionally/physically hurts them if they read it, then while bad, it's indicative of a separate issue. The retweets that made this story popular are not all from people who are offended by the word.

 

[Syriel]

It's like we're circling back to the whole usage of the word "Oriental", vs "Asian". :\

That one is simple.

If you're using Oriental to describe a rug, you're golden.

If you're using Oriental to describe a person, you're racist.

(*)The UK gets a pass on this for the same reason they get a pass on fag. US slurs are not always UK slurs.

 

[Xenus]

*edit: Sorry. I'm not in favor of banning of the word, but it is a word that will hopefully fall out of favor, for one or the other definition.

Personally, I'd prefer for it to stop being used as a racial slur, and go back to the meaning of "flaw."

I don't think anyone would argue that. When people get upset is when other people start demanding they stop using a word or apologize to them over using a word for it's proper none racist connitations. I don't think even a mojority of people would begrudge a chinese person for wincing when they heard the word or getting upset until realize it wasn't being used in that way. Most people are just against this word is racist in this context so if you ever use it in any other form you're being a racist insensitive asshole and it should be banned.