'That boy's finger does not need to be on the button'

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

U.S. Rep. Geoff Davis, a Hebron Republican ... said in his remarks at the GOP dinner that he ... recently participated in a "highly classified, national security simulation" with Obama.

"I'm going to tell you something: That boy's finger does not need to be on the button," Davis said.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/040...n_Kentucky.html

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

For some reason that link is not working for me, but I'll give the guy the benefit of the doubt and suggest it has more to do with Obama's age.

Ageist instead of racist

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

For some reason that link is not working for me, but I'll give the guy the benefit of the doubt and suggest it has more to do with Obama's age.

Ageist instead of racist

He is 49. Obama is 46.

[nane1104 146]

link didn't work for me either.

To me that sounds very disrespectful and even before I was reading who it was about, I thought this was a pretty racist term.

I definitley associate "boy" with old slavery terminology.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

I don't know the history of that particular term - other than its part of the southern dialect.

It does seem condescending. Then again we are living in a climate where its acceptable for the president to describe the public, as well as people in the military as "folks".

Edited April 14, 2008 by Number 6

[almaty 19]

race...the ohioan is a chopf##k hater

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

almaty, kentucky, not ohio.

and the link works for me... i wonder why it isn't working for you guys

[Sister Fracas 5]

I'd say it's offensive considering the history of the use of the word. Even if you stretch and say that isn't how he meant it, it's still very condescending.

almaty, kentucky, not ohio.

and the link works for me... i wonder why it isn't working for you guys

didn't work for me either.

Edited April 14, 2008 by Sister Fracas

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

For some reason that link is not working for me, but I'll give the guy the benefit of the doubt and suggest it has more to do with Obama's age.

Ageist instead of racist

He is 49. Obama is 46.

Yeah but McCain is 71 and old enough to be his father.

It is an unfortunate choice of words, however.

[almaty 19]

almaty, kentucky, not ohio.

and the link works for me... i wonder why it isn't working for you guys

even worse, my family is orginally from that state..all haters..except for me....

[PlatyPius 5]

Link worked for me....

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

This is what Wikipedia has to say about it. This pretty much aligns with what I've always believed about the term:

Historically, in countries such as the U.S. and South Africa, "boy" was not only a 'neutral' term for domestics but also used as a disparaging racist insult towards non-white males (especially of African descent), recalling their subservient status even after the 20th century legal emancipation (from slavery, evolved to race segregation, viz. Apartheid) and alleged infantility, and many still consider it offensive in that context to this day.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boy

[DeadPoolX 9]

almaty, kentucky, not ohio.

and the link works for me... i wonder why it isn't working for you guys

Not sure. I tested it out in Opera, Firefox and Internet Explorer. It worked in all three for me, so it's not a browser incompatibility issue. Unless, of course, someone is using a fairly unusual browser -- Netscape, Seamonkey, Safari, Konqueror, etc. Even so, it should still probably work.

As for Davis... I can't imagine his comment was racially charged. The one reason I think this is he's a politician and if he has two brain cells to rub together, he'd know the media would report anything the least bit negative he'd say about a presidential candidate (especially something regarding race).

Perhaps I'm wrong and his mouth worked faster than his brain. It certainly happens. But if that's the case, then he really needs to learn to "think before he speaks." Not just because it's the polite thing to do in most cases, but so it'll save him from some potentially embarrassing (and troublesome) situations.

[nane1104 146]

This is what Wikipedia has to say about it. This pretty much aligns with what I've always believed about the term:

Historically, in countries such as the U.S. and South Africa, "boy" was not only a 'neutral' term for domestics but also used as a disparaging racist insult towards non-white males (especially of African descent), recalling their subservient status even after the 20th century legal emancipation (from slavery, evolved to race segregation, viz. Apartheid) and alleged infantility, and many still consider it offensive in that context to this day.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boy

Yepp. THat's why I don't believe this was "misspoken". People find too many excuses and explanations when they say something stupid like that...instead of thinking before they open their mouths.

I mean, if you are that high up in politics and what you say will be all over in the news, don't make remarks like that.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Hard to say with certainty what his meaning was, though as mentioned even without a racial connotation, the term is extremely condescending and there may well be people who would interpret the comments in a racially charged manner. Of course - those people probably wouldn't vote for Obama in 1000 years.

Given the state, the history surrounding the term in the South - another choice of words would have been more appropriate.