Last week: Outraged by Kathy Griffin. Today: Wants London mayor impaled on a pike

@Dashapants

Already saw it, and it was awesome. You’re a person of quality taste, I can see.

@Ivory Bill-senpai

This is true.

Also, I have noticed that when speaking to Europeans about racism, they tend to brush it off as merely being an American ideological issue, and that since there was not such a thing as mass chattel slavery of black people to the extent that it was practiced in the US, we shouldn’t try to preach at their faces about how best to conduct themselves around black people.

I find this last bit somewhat problematic, it’s like they’re saying “Well, this is how we DO THINGS in EUROPE, and you just have to DEAL with IT, sweetcheeks.”

But I really do understand their resistance to having outsides meddling with their affairs.

OT
@Valentine
From the other thread… but I knew I could find you here:
You know, it seriously never occurred to me I could learn Ukrainian now, at my advanced age. Hmm. Make you a deal, bro. You keep at that writing (because, as another commenter said, you will get through this if you keep working at it) and I’ll get started on the Cyrillic alphabet.

Anybody got any good advice on language- learning programs?

BTW, is there a way to search WHTM? I’d like to name the other Mammotheer I referred to above, but do not have the time to search for your name, for example. After I saw Wonder Woman I had to have the pic of the little fan girl, and it took quite a while to find it – and mad thanks to whoever posted that.

Wonder Woman is great. Except they could have come a little closer to, you know, acknowledging lesbianism. But I loved it and will see again soon.

@Fran

I saw that article earlier. There are two issues being conflated there.

There are slurs being tossed about at futbol games, yes, but so are insults about people’s mothers, etc. That’s just people who don’t get “friendly” aspect of sports (i.e. many sports fans). It’s like mindless harassment one gets while playing videogames. It’s bad, but it’s not meaningful. The people throwing the slurs do not hate black people particularly, they just aim to throw a hurtful insult to demoralize. This tends to be less racism and more assholishness. Which, yes, there should be someone slapping that shit down. There is some actual racism too, but it’s nowhere near as pervasive as in the states. (On the other hand, I can speak only for parts of the former USSR that I had observed first hand, and there are boonies of Russia where some of my friends hail from, and the situation there may not be too different from some hicksville in the states, though the minority of choice there is not necessarily black.)

The parade itself was more like cosplay in poor taste. There wasn’t an insulting element to it. People just culturally appropriate everything in Russia, that’s how interaction with other cultures works there. “See a big fancy headdress –> want to wear a big fancy headdress and face paint!” is the mental process that gets followed, largely without considering how the people in the culture that produced it might interpret this. That’s why the Nigerian guy quoted at the end of the article was like “I don’t think they meant to be insulting; it was just some dumbass pageantry.”

Scented Fucking Hard Chairs | June 4, 2017 at 7:39 pm
Gotta say, I honestly don’t give a shit about Kathy Griffin’s photoshoot and don’t think she should have apologised for it. If dozens of burning, hanged effigies all holding “DEATH TO OBAMA” signs on the White House lawn – you know, things meant as threats – are okay according to the US at large, then a one-off publicity stunt that’s over the top but not meant as a threat is okay as well.

*shrugs*

Another example of everyone who isn’t a cishet white Republican Christian male having to take the “high road” and be “better people” or else we’re supposed to suffer for daring to do anything to the poor little snowflakes because how very dare we!

Otherwise known as “it’s only okay when we do it!”

The “Barmpot-in-chief”* has doubled down on his scurrilous attack on Sadiq Khan. That’s provoked someone called Bill de Blasio (? That’s what it sounded like on the radio) to come to Sadiq’s defence and (in a nicely snarky way) contrast his exemplary conduct in dealing with the attacks to Trump’s complete lack of experience.

(* as used by a commentator on the BBC last night; like it as it reminds me of my Northern childhood)

@Axe

Knew I was gonna get my snoot booped for that one. 😀 That’s what they usually say when I talk about racism in Europe, though: “We didn’t really do a slavery and Jim Crow and whatnot, so you can’t conflate what we do with what happens in your side of the pond!”

In all actuality, yes, slavery was very much a thing in Europe, but since I’m a nice person, I have allowed them to cede this one small hill in the ideological battle.

Also, since the U.S. has such a lengthy history of forcing their hand in the affairs of other countries, I don’t like to seem like Yet Another Imperialist American who Decides Things for The Rest Of the World.

Hence why I allow Europeans to posit that Trans-Atlantic Slavery was merely a weird little American thing.

@Dasha

I understand entirely, but when you get right down to brass tacks, they are actually just being racist, and even if racism is a tiny thing in Russia, it really is actually still just a thing.

I’m not saying I want to exact a punishment from the Russian people or that they are all bad people.

I just really wish people would stop handwaving away racism in Eastern European countries.

ETA:

@Axe

Honestly, Europeans get really fucking mad when you, as an American, say things like this.

It’s like they jump on your neck and start yelling “SO THE FUCK WHAT? YOU GONNA TELL THE US NAVY TO INVADE US? HUH!? IS THAT IT?”

Admittedly, if I launch a navy it will be under my personal banner and not the U.S. flag.

But this is why I am hesitant to debate about whether slavery was a thing in Europe.

@Sir Alan

Delighted to. Honestly, I am painfully aware of how Americans are perceived as wanting to control everything around them, and I get that, so I don’t like to challenge Europeans when they declare that they had very little to do with the whole Slavery thing.

I know we’ve got a reputation and, therefore, I avoid playing up to the stereotype, so to speak. This is generally why I am tetchy about even ever mentioning the issues with racism in Europe to begin with.

ETA:

On the contrary, it’s like a breath of fresh air to actually hear it from you and know that I am not, actually, just being an Oversensitive American™. You’re a credit to your people and I am glad you could be honest with me. I would like for more people to be like you in this regard.

@Valentine

I like your response, it’s very nuanced and pleasant.

See, here’s the thing: if you were wondering why this is a sore spot with me, I have spoken to some Russian people who are just straight up like, “No, racism doesn’t real here, you fucking American Cyka Blyat. I bet you also think all Russians drink Vodka and wear little furry hats, you stupid American baby. Fuck off.”

In other words, they invalidate my concerns entirely. I am very glad that you have acknowledged that I do have good reason to think this way. As I said, I don’t want to exact some sort of toll or tell people how to live their lives, and I realize I’m not going to singlehandedly make Russia great again (lol). These were never my intentions; I merely sought out a simple acknowledgment of the sort you have given me, which makes you tres cool in my eyes.

@fran
пожалуйста ))) this racism also what make people forget that there can be black russian and mixed and nonwhite russian. That why i so glad that Тимати is popular. He put like new face for russia.

Also like all country there right wing groups. Problem with Ukraine now though is people in US like to say we all nazis ((( which also not helping things because obviously we not nazis. People on twitter calling me nazi because i told one American he should not talk over eastern european jew talking about being jewish in Eastern Europe.

There lots of refugee from somali and other place in africa coming to russia – they always stopped for papers. Before also in Vladivostok i go out with second engineer (indian) and elec (filipino) and they stopped for papers because they not white. In Vladivostok! So many nonwhite people there because close japan, korea, china and police still stopping for papers! They never ask me for mine. All nonwhite nationality from that ship report me they stopped for papers maybe 3 – 4 times when they go out in Vladivostok…

Valentine – I noticed that back on page 2, you spelled бабушка “babyshka” which would be бабишка (which makes me think of a diminutive word for an infant, but only if you pronounced it “байбишка.”)

Also, I’ve taken German and hated it. I agree with the Russian word for it: Немецкий! (Nemetzski) Apologies to German speakers; it translates, I was told, to “dumb” as in unable to speak properly. I think my biggest problem with German is that we were being taught high German and also I was in (Lutheran parochial) middle school.

JS said

There’s Minnesotan, which is pronounced similarly to the way most of the locals speak in the Fargo movie… but not exactly, because they used a humorous book called “How to speak Minnesotan” as the dialect coach.

I have that book!! It also works very well in NW Iowa, btw.

wwth – Let me practice my Minnesotan: That video was not too bad.
(translation: I was crying with laughter!!!1!) I have lived through many a long goodbye in Iowa! *wipes tear*

@dasha
Forgive me but i have to little bit disagree that it not ‘institutional’ – there plenty right wing groups very organise who talk openly about race mixing making ‘white people less strong’ just like american righr wing group. My friend share with me one program by british tv presenter who black. I forget his name. But it called something like ‘strange russia’. He want to annoy me to get me to say it bullshit but sadly i agree with what i saw cos i meet already people like this ((( it not majority of people i know cos this extemist. But then there also lot of ‘conservative’ people who want ‘tradition’. And black people not traditonal russian in their eye. From USSR time also like this.

@hambeast

Sorry! Yes sometimes i putting y when i mean u on english because it y on russian ? я дебил.