Justice Department Seeks Ebonics Experts

[IncorrectPolitics 26]

It would be hard to find an "expert" at ebonics and impossible to teach a class or write a book on it. Ghetto slang changes by neighborhoods, cities, counties, and states......it is very regional. On top of that new slang words are added and dropped daily so within 6 months it should look like a entirely different dialect of english. Should be interesting though, I wish the DEA good luck and hope it works for them.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

It addressed another dialect of English common in Asia. I forget which one.

Taglish? Pidgin?

[HAL 9000 96]

This thread looks familiar.

http://www.visajourn...bonics-experts/

Had your back on that one Dave.

[^_^ 5,021]

Taglish? Pidgin?

I don't recall. It was towards the end of the semester, the part where I stop paying attention.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Nice list you got there Steven, back in the day we just called it bad English. My wife is a Filipina and her English is proper. She didnt go to school to learn some sort of special Filipina version of it, she paid attention in class and took in what the teacher was teaching.

So if there happened to be a lot of drug smuggling into the U.S. from the Philippines, do you think the DEA would be wasting money in learning Philippine English dialect?

[HAL 9000 96]

Do you understand the point of linguistics?

I'm sure he does... IMO the linguistic aspect is independent of the drive to separate into almost full-fledged language structure for Ebonics and any other vernacular English. As far as I understand, linguistics deals more with the more subtle things about how language varies, among other aspects.

[HAL 9000 96]

More than just studying Ebonics, well thats a little better. Does this class address other bad English like spanglish?

Spnaglish is more Spanish than English, so it would be bad Spanish instead.

God I remember the first time some guy at a hot dog place offered my food to me in a *basketa* (basket + canasta). I shivered.

I can certainly understand and TOLERATE people's identities being conducted in these new ways of expressing their ideas, as functions of their particular realities... and since they don't affect me more than making me cringe with I am faced with them sometimes (not always), I am fine with the government taking a look at understanding how the citizenship in its country is communicating.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

I don't recall. It was towards the end of the semester, the part where I stop paying attention.

Taglish is a mix of English and Tagalog with an English grammar. Pidgin (English) is a hodgepodge of various languages that varies from place to place.

[HAL 9000 96]

I guess my issue is that I dont think Ebonics should be taken seriously. Considering all the bad English out there why are we taking this one seriously. Is it just a result of the white guilt nonsense.

Or pure interest, without the fake stigma you're adding.

So then they study rednecks abusive nature towards the English language to.

By all means, have a go at it.

Point being is that when Jeff Foxworthy talks about the redneck dictionary it for comical reasons but Ebonics is being taken seriously by way to many people.

'too'

Just thought I'd point that out since we're being strict about good vs bad English...

[Peikko 1,575]

Not the point. I was addressing how one is being taken as a serious dialect and the other is being laughed off. They should both be laughed off.

If in our schools we can get kids to see how using the language improperly make them look stupid then we might just end the spread of things like Ebonics.

Laughed off by whom? You do know that people change how the speak dependent on the context as well right? Someone who can use certain types of vernacular with their mates does not necessarily use that in a more formal context - the use of vernacular is not stupid unless it is used inappropriately.

[HAL 9000 96]

Linguists are not teaching Ebonics, they study that and all the other variations - learning about these things is to further the understanding of the evolution of language, and it has practical applications as well, hence when the need arises for someone to translate the vernacular accurately there are people who have the ability to do so - which helps when catching criminals. Who thought the liberal arts were for pansies?

Vernacular is not something one can or does 'encourage'.

+1 on context

[one...two...tree 2,762]

[_Simpson_ 250]

OMG I shouldn't laugh at that last line.

This whole Ebonics thing was complete BS, as is suggesting any other bad English vernacular should be elevated to anything more than vernacular talk.

I agree.

[HAL 9000 96]

I agree.

Yet remember, a government that doesn't know how its citizens communicate, is a deaf government.

[^_^ 5,021]

And a government that doesn't understand recorded conversations because it's not willing to pay minimum wage to any kid off the streets who can translate them... is a stupid government.