Quote ="wakeyrule"So did many Wakey fans - Pennys, that is (some still do!). Penny took a modern slang word out of context, preferring an older perjorative meaning of the word. The fact that this word was used by a foreigner who probably did not understand the horrors associated with that word by many people is, to my mind, ironic. Somebody complaining about the non-rascist use of a word with a rascist history by a foreigner who possibly did not know it had rascist connotations - is that rascist?'"
Interestingly I thought that at the time... now I live in Sydney, indeed in the area that Leo Latu lived and worked, and I understand the multi racial, pseudo gangland sub culture that many ethnic australian groups subscribe to, I am more convinced that it was a cultural misunderstanding of common slang in one culture not transferring into another culture.
We all have our views on the political correctness of humour... I have found many such topical jokes very funny indeed, but only if I depersonalise the situation. The fact I have found a structured group of words moulded around an unpleasant set of circumstances funny, does not mean that, in truth I do not care deeply about the situation, the affected peoples and wish to help with the solution or interim action.
I feel that most of us depersonalise ourselves from the reality of the world in order to simply survive the trauma in which we constantly live.
I only get offended by humour when it is clear that the humour was meant to be offensive.
Bailey's crime was "passing on" a funny, and I am sure he meant no offence or harm, a funny if told over a pint would bring raucous laghter, but when written down becomes as an act of treason.
