Posted on 01/30/2008 5:49:49 AM PST by forkinsocket
Last week, Canadians discovered, courtesy of an obscure trial in Texas, that "Canadian" does not always mean what they think it means. This followed the release of an internal memo from Mike Trent, assistant district attorney of Harris County, Texas, in which he congratulates a junior prosecutor because "he overcame a subversively good defence ... that had some Canadians on the jury feeling sorry for the defendant." The implausibility of there being many Canadians on a Texan manslaughter jury led some to conclude that "Canadians", in this context, might mean "black people", though Trent claims he thought real Canadians were present. And, though noting in passing that the National Post, the ex-Conrad Black newspaper that broke the story, delights in provocation for the sake of it, there does seem to be some evidence that the code is in general use. It's on the Racial Slur Database, for example (yes, there is such a thing. "It's supposed to be funny and/or informational," says its creator). It is also, increasingly, on the various blogs that have picked the story up. Apparently, it's most often used among waiters maligning black patrons as bad tippers - as one blogger put it, "Hey, we have a table of Canadians ... They're all yours." But it seems the euphemism has been around for at least 15 years, according to another blogger, from Michigan City, Indiana, who remembered "none too liberal white folks" using it about "poor, primarily black sections of town". Another recalled it being used in a financial brokerage house in New York City.
(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...
Never heard that one.
The author should hear what we in Michigan think of the word ‘Canadian.’ Some of their tax-hike-happy trash is in our governor’s mansion.
Oh, we get their garbage from Toronto, too.
“Has ‘Canadian’ become a racist euphemism?’
Oh, only about 20 years ago.
that’s not a canadian, that’s a hockey player.
That’s been going on for years. I’m surpised it’s taken this long for the PC crowd to get hold of it.
I’ve heard “democrats” used but never “Canadians”.
Really?
Who knew? Canadian conjures images of clean cities and wacky liberalism and high Nanny State taxes not Black Americans..
I first heard this one 30 years ago.
"Eskimo" is another one.
Not enough real racism to complain about - gotta make sht up now.
that’s not a canadian.. that’s a conservative. :)
Yes indeed. The world now knows Canadians spend their time reading internal memos concerning obscure trial in Texas. I know I'll never recover from the shock that as a Canadian I've been left out and obviously missing a good time.
The shame of it all is that it took a Pom Liberal rag to tell me.
Exactly the point. That passes as "clever" for some people.
When I hear the word Canadians I feel pain. It tears my heart out. “Too many men on the Ice”, Ken Dryden, 2004 NHL playoffs, 9 straight losses. I bleed Black’n’Gold. I hate those cheatin’ Habs. I think we should bomb Montreal not Bagdad!!!(sarcasm) Really when I hear Canadian I think of the greatest game on earth, Hockey, hunting black bear with bow and arrow and great beer. I love Mooseheads. Nothing better than a cold Moosehead and Hockey night in Canada!! All hail, Don Cherry!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No sh!tter from the Navy days.
Guy in our shop re-enlisted and wanted to do it at Concord. Anyone who wants the afternoon off can go, so naturally most people that at least can stand the guy go. Our Div-o (who was a black LT and actually a really good guy)was the re-enlisting officer. As we are trudging through the Snow to the bridge/battlefield LT says he grew up not to far from here. My buddy says Really? LT confirms and says it’s 20 miles or so away. Buddy says ahh, I thought you were canadian. Half the shop falls to the deck in stitches.
We told him it was a shop inside Joke that all our Div-o’s were from Canada. Much like All your base belong to us, it began to pop up everywhere. All our Div-o’s are Canadian...
That's the spirit!
Hockeyhockeyhockeyhockeyhockeyhockeyhockey....
In Pennsylvania the preferred euphemism is “Democrats” because it’s about 95/5 one way and vice versa depending on whether you’re in Philadelphia or not.
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