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Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2009 1:04 pm
by mom2five
My 11 year old son found this on the internet this morning and I thought it needs to be shared.
http://newmedia.funnyjunk.com/pictures/learnchinese.jpg

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2009 2:09 pm
by a1mamacat
mom2five wrote:My 11 year old son found this on the internet this morning and I thought it needs to be shared.
http://newmedia.funnyjunk.com/pictures/learnchinese.jpg

I find this offensive, not funny.

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2009 2:36 pm
by BackInTex
a1mamacat wrote:
mom2five wrote:My 11 year old son found this on the internet this morning and I thought it needs to be shared.
http://newmedia.funnyjunk.com/pictures/learnchinese.jpg

I find this offensive, not funny.
Lighten up. If you saw something similar about the way Southerners (from the US) talked you'd LOL.

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2009 2:44 pm
by a1mamacat
BackInTex wrote:
a1mamacat wrote:
mom2five wrote:My 11 year old son found this on the internet this morning and I thought it needs to be shared.
http://newmedia.funnyjunk.com/pictures/learnchinese.jpg

I find this offensive, not funny.
Lighten up. If you saw something similar about the way Southerners (from the US) talked you'd LOL.
No, I wouldn't. I would laugh at situations, phrases that are colloquial or even geographical, but not at jokes about people's ethnicity.

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2009 3:23 pm
by BackInTex
a1mamacat wrote: No, I wouldn't. I would laugh at situations, phrases that are colloquial or even geographical, but not at jokes about people's ethnicity.
Sure you would. But only if it weren't one of the 'protected' ethnicities.

I'm sure you've laughed at plenty of Jeff Foxworthy jokes "You might be a redneck..." But, I guess because the culture he makes fun of is mostly, if not all, white Americans, its O.K. Because white Americans aren't ehtnic.

Do you find the following offensive?

Q. Why do we need France on our side against Saddam and Osama?
A. So the French can show them how to surrender.

Q: How many gears does a French tank have?
A: 4 reverse and 1 forward, in case the enemy attacks from the rear.

"I don't know why people are surprised that France won't help us get Saddam out of Iraq. After all, France wouldn't help us get the Germans out of France!" —Jay Leno

I'm sure there is some comic in China with a whole monolog of "You might be a Hun if...."

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2009 5:36 pm
by christie1111
I don't find it funny.

IMHO

I am with Saucy on this one. Actually, we agree on quite a bit so there!

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2009 7:17 pm
by TheConfessor
BackInTex wrote: Do you find the following offensive?
I'm not sure what your point is, but since you asked, I find your French "jokes" tired, unfunny, and moderately offensive. I figure they reveal more about the person telling them than they do about the French.

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2009 7:22 pm
by DevilKitty100
I'm not amused nor offended. But I am worried........that I'm neither amused nor offended.

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2009 8:21 pm
by littlebeast13
a1mamacat wrote:
BackInTex wrote:
a1mamacat wrote:
I find this offensive, not funny.
Lighten up. If you saw something similar about the way Southerners (from the US) talked you'd LOL.
No, I wouldn't. I would laugh at situations, phrases that are colloquial or even geographical, but not at jokes about people's ethnicity.

I've never understood the difference....

Seriously....

lb13

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2009 9:08 pm
by BackInTex
littlebeast13 wrote: I've never understood the difference....

Seriously....

lb13

The difference is the attitude with which you feel good about yourself for being PC, yet can still keep your sense of humor and laugh at those you deem appropriate.

There is no difference. Seriously.

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sat Feb 07, 2009 9:11 pm
by BackInTex
TheConfessor wrote:
BackInTex wrote: Do you find the following offensive?
I'm not sure what your point is, but since you asked, I find your French "jokes" tired, unfunny, and moderately offensive. I figure they reveal more about the person telling them than they do about the French.
They are not my French jokes. Yes, they are old and tired. I wouldn't tell them to get a laugh.

And your snooty "I figure they reval....." line reveals much about you as well. 8)

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 2:40 am
by TheConfessor
BackInTex wrote:
TheConfessor wrote:
BackInTex wrote: Do you find the following offensive?
I'm not sure what your point is, but since you asked, I find your French "jokes" tired, unfunny, and moderately offensive. I figure they reveal more about the person telling them than they do about the French.
They are not my French jokes. Yes, they are old and tired. I wouldn't tell them to get a laugh.

And your snooty "I figure they reval....." line reveals much about you as well. 8)
Why are you taking umbrage if they're not your jokes? Jay Leno consistently insults his viewers' intelligence, which I think is much worse than insulting their ethnicity. I'd be more offended to be called stupid than to be called French.

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 10:12 am
by peacock2121
I am feeling badly for mom2five.

She has 41 posts here and she is getting 'scolded' about what she thought needed to be shared.

I found it interesting that that is where I went, rather than thinking about the humor or insult in the post itself.

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 10:18 am
by littlebeast13
peacock2121 wrote:I am feeling badly for mom2five.

She has 41 posts here and she is getting 'scolded' about what she thought needed to be shared.

I found it interesting that that is where I went, rather than thinking about the humor or insult in the post itself.

Me too because I've always liked mom2five even though she doesn't post much. Anyone who has an Animaniacs themed avatar has to be a really cool person.... 8)

There could be exceptions if I wake up this evening and find out uly has changed his to Slappy Squirrel.....

lb13

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 12:30 pm
by ulysses5019
littlebeast13 wrote:
peacock2121 wrote:I am feeling badly for mom2five.

She has 41 posts here and she is getting 'scolded' about what she thought needed to be shared.

I found it interesting that that is where I went, rather than thinking about the humor or insult in the post itself.

Me too because I've always liked mom2five even though she doesn't post much. Anyone who has an Animaniacs themed avatar has to be a really cool person.... 8)

There could be exceptions if I wake up this evening and find out uly has changed his to Slappy Squirrel.....

lb13
Are you awake yet?

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 12:54 pm
by mom2five
I feel the need to defend my finding humor in something, and thinking that someone else might as well, but then again, meh!

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 1:00 pm
by a1mamacat
peacock2121 wrote:I am feeling badly for mom2five.

She has 41 posts here and she is getting 'scolded' about what she thought needed to be shared.

I found it interesting that that is where I went, rather than thinking about the humor or insult in the post itself.
That was not my intention, Pea. As we see many times on the board, people do post their views and beliefs. I normally do not, but this got to me.

I have a dear friend who is not a native English speaker, and she gets some ridicule at work from people who don't know her. She shrugs it off, but I know it hurts her.

Sorry to Mom2five if I came off as scolding.

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 1:03 pm
by peacock2121
a1mamacat wrote:
peacock2121 wrote:I am feeling badly for mom2five.

She has 41 posts here and she is getting 'scolded' about what she thought needed to be shared.

I found it interesting that that is where I went, rather than thinking about the humor or insult in the post itself.
That was not my intention, Pea. As we see many times on the board, people do post their views and beliefs. I normally do not, but this got to me.

I have a dear friend who is not a native English speaker, and she gets some ridicule at work from people who don't know her. She shrugs it off, but I know it hurts her.

Sorry to Mom2five if I came off as scolding.
I did not think it was your intent. If I had thought that, I probably would have scolded you in some stoopid way. If you had responded to an 'old-timer' in the exactly same way, it would have not even registered for me to feel badly for them.

I know my reaction was based in the feelings I know I had when I was a newbie.

I appreciate you standing up for what is important to you.

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 1:21 pm
by BackInTex
peacock2121 wrote: I appreciate you standing up for what is important to you.
I am with Pea on this, for several reasons.

There are a lot of people here that don't agree with me on many of the things I post. And I know some of what I post actually may offend some here.

My intent is never to offend (unless I feel I'm being attacked though I know that is childish of me, but it is one of my weaknesses I work on constantly to keep under control). But I feel it is important to express yourself even if some are offended by that expression, if and only if you truly are not trying to offend (just to ward off any of the Andres Serrano among us).

What I appreciate here when I'm blasted (even if I childishly strike back) , is that it makes me aware in my everyday real in-person life of what may offend others. Believe me, I have much more restraint in person as I assume most of us do. It is too easy to be a SOB behind a keyboard and screen, even knowing I am not anonymous. So in some sense, this place is practice for real life.

Sorry if this offends any of you, and I'm not saying any of you are just "practice friends". I do include you all in my circle.

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 3:08 pm
by Jeemie
peacock2121 wrote:I am feeling badly for mom2five.

She has 41 posts here and she is getting 'scolded' about what she thought needed to be shared.

I found it interesting that that is where I went, rather than thinking about the humor or insult in the post itself.
It's beebs' fault.

She told us we should all say exactly what we feel, with no wishy-washy talk!

:lol:

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 5:46 pm
by kayrharris
ulysses5019 wrote:
littlebeast13 wrote:
peacock2121 wrote:I am feeling badly for mom2five.

She has 41 posts here and she is getting 'scolded' about what she thought needed to be shared.

I found it interesting that that is where I went, rather than thinking about the humor or insult in the post itself.

Me too because I've always liked mom2five even though she doesn't post much. Anyone who has an Animaniacs themed avatar has to be a really cool person.... 8)

There could be exceptions if I wake up this evening and find out uly has changed his to Slappy Squirrel.....

lb13
Are you awake yet?

Some people just ask for it.

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 6:52 pm
by mrkelley23
Ethnic humor is a long cherished corner of the American psyche. I'm pretty sure, although I can't prove it by any archived posts, that some of the people who were offended by this thread posted ethnic jokes in the past, although I'll grant you they were a different ethnicity.

Were you all offended by the multitude of signs that showed up in China last year for the Olympics that contained unintentionally hilarious mistranslations of English, in the name of commerce?

I'll agree that there is a line that should not be crossed, but this post, IMNSHO, didn't cross it.

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 7:11 pm
by VAdame
Were you all offended by the multitude of signs that showed up in China last year for the Olympics that contained unintentionally hilarious mistranslations of English, in the name of commerce?
And you can find plenty more here:

http://engrishfunny.com/

One of my favorite mistranslations was from years ago (Reader's Digest, I think?)

"American Dentist -- 2th Floor. Teeth repaired by the latest methodists."

I think all dentists' offices should be on the 2th floor. And have appointments at 2:30. (Say it out loud.)

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 8:06 pm
by littlebeast13
kayrharris wrote:
ulysses5019 wrote:
littlebeast13 wrote:
Me too because I've always liked mom2five even though she doesn't post much. Anyone who has an Animaniacs themed avatar has to be a really cool person.... 8)

There could be exceptions if I wake up this evening and find out uly has changed his to Slappy Squirrel.....

lb13
Are you awake yet?

Some people just ask for it.

And this time it wasn't me.....

lb13

Re: Anyone can speak Chinese

Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2009 8:09 pm
by ulysses5019
littlebeast13 wrote:
kayrharris wrote:
ulysses5019 wrote: Are you awake yet?

Some people just ask for it.

And this time it wasn't me.....

lb13

Do I have to come over there and slap some sense into you?