Wild About Harry: British Racists in Glass Houses
Harry certainly isn’t the first royal to make unfortunate remarks about people of other races — his grandfather, Prince Philip, has practically made a career out of racially-themed gaffes. On a state visit to China in 1986, he told a group of British students, “If you stay here much longer, you’ll all be slitty-eyed”; in 1998, he enquired of a British student who had been trekking in Papua New Guinea, “You managed not to get eaten then?”; and in 1999, touring a high-tech factory in Scotland, he joked that an old-fashioned fuse box looked like it had been “put in by an Indian.” (You’ll find a comprehensive list of Philipisms here .)
However, the Prince Philip’s slips of the tongue generally cause no more than fleeting embarrassment for the royals — he lacks diplomatic skills at the best of times, and allowances are made for his age and for the fact that he comes from a generation unaccustomed to negotiating the minefields of multiculturalism. No such allowances should be made for Harry, though. He’s been (it’s hoped) well-brought-up and well-educated, and he’s certainly well-traveled. He’s supposed to be an ambassador for his country, and he should know better.
That said, the outcry over his remarks has been over the top. This is in part because the British media, like its U.S. counterparts, is increasingly in the business of entertainment rather than news gathering. The royal family are celebrities, and Britons bow to no one in their obsession with the foibles of the rich and famous. More disturbingly, it’s the media, along with assorted minority and special interest groups and human rights organizations, who decide precisely how offensive a particular instance of behavior is, and to whom.
Back in 2005, Harry got into into trouble for dressing up as a German soldier, complete with swastika armband, for a fancy dress party. There was an outcry, but it wasn’t on the scale of the controversy that has raged in recent days, because the hurt feelings of British Asians trump the hurt feelings of British war veterans and Holocaust survivors. And when Harry was pictured wearing a Che Guevara T-shirt a couple of years ago there was barely a murmur outside of a few conservative blogs. Guevara was responsible for the murder, torture, and imprisonment of thousands of innocent Cubans, but the left dominates the media and runs the grievance industry, and it decides which mass-murderers will be reviled and which will be hero-worshipped.
It’s also worth noting that some of the self-appointed spokesmen who lined up to lambaste Harry for his remarks are throwing stones from inside the glass houses of extremism. The BBC’s round up of reactions to the prince’s remarks, for example, includes quotes from the musician and “activist” Aki Nawas, who called for Harry to be thrown out of the army. This is the same Aki Nawas who, a couple of years back, released an album glorifying suicide bombers (the lyrics to one song practically constitute a bomb-making manual), praising Osama bin Laden (he also likens the al-Qaeda leader to Guevara, which actually makes perfect sense to me but upset some commentators on the left), and attacking the “immorality” of the West.
But taking the biscuit for manufactured outrage is Mohammed Shafiq, spokesman for the Ramadan Foundation, which purports to represent Britain’s young Muslims. Shafiq likes to portray his organization as the “reasonable” face of Islam in the UK, but the mask has slipped on several occasions. He attacked Tony Blair for suggesting that some British Muslims should do more to integrate and the Pope for quoting a 14th-century emperor who was critical of Islam. He also criticized the decision to award a knighthood to Satanic Verses author Salman Rushdie, on the grounds that Rushdie’s exercising of his right to free speech was offensive to Muslims, and he has condemned the publication of The Jewel of Medina, a “racy” book about the Prophet Mohammed by U.S. author Sherry Jones (I wrote about that row here). Before the Harry story broke Shafiq was keeping busy accusing the Israelis of behaving like Nazis in their assault on Hamas terrorists in Gaza.
The voice of reason indeed. Yet Shafiq has been omnipresent in the British media in recent days, describing Harry’s “Paki” remark as “sickening.” In some interviews, including the BBC piece linked above, he went further, calling Harry a “thug” — and now, irony of ironies, he’s been forced to apologize.
Like Harry, he’s finding out that when you open your mouth without first engaging your brain, it’s all too easy to cause offense.
“The word “Paki” is extremely offensive to British Asians”
So what? These people need to grow up and start acting like adults. At the end of day, it’s really a matter of how one employs a slang term. Do they mean it in a relatively vicious manner? If not, one should cut some slack. I think we can also take it for granted that many British Asians perceive themselves as victims and go out of their way to seek injustices.
Hysterical rubbish. It’s a natural contraction and you’re over-reacting.
The following sentences were used by the National Front in “Paki go Home” and “Paki Bashing”, due to that it was developed into an offensive word by the race industry. Many Brits of the plain speaking sort like me refuse to accept it as an offensive word, certainly nothing like the N word. So when Harry was attacked for using this word many of us thought it was another example of PC stupidity and refuse to accept that he did anything wrong and do not feel that he should apologise.
That the race industry, PC conditioned idiots and Pakistanis get all heated up about the use of that word does not bother me in the slightest, just adds to my contempt for them and like I said I stopped using that word years ago, because to cause unnecessary offense is the domain of fools.
David T and Tom
A couple of points. First, I’m British, and I grew up in the period I refer to, and which Murad Ahmed writes about in the Times. I’m guessing that both of you are American – if either of you are British then you’re simply being dishonest, and we can leave it there.
But I’m assuming you are American, and if so, then with the greatest respect you don’t know what you’re talking about do you? Did either of you read the Ahmed piece I linked? If not I would urge you to click the link and read it. Do either of you use the ‘N’ word in company?
Tom: I pointed out that ‘Paki’ is used as a contraction in the States, but not in Britain. David T: I cut Harry a considerable amount of slack – I’m on his side. Did either of you read past the first couple of paragraphs?
Once again, the word is offensive, but the point of the article wasn’t to rehash that argument, but to point out the double-standards of the media, the left and some British Asians.
David H:
You wrote “Many Brits of the plain speaking sort like me refuse to accept it as an offensive word…”
Then “I stopped using that word years ago, because to cause unnecessary offense is the domain of fools.”
Aren’t you contradicting yourself?
I bow to no-one in my contempt for the UK’s ‘race industry’, but this word was turned into a term of abuse by racists, not by Asians.
And again, see my defence of Harry.
Conspicuously absent in this discussion is the Urdu and farsi term “Pak” is meant to be insulting by default to those “not Pak” – because in Urdu “Naa Paak” means unclean, contaminating.
Mike McNally might have a point about certain Brits saying Paki is abominable because Pakistanis have conniptions, riots, and shitfits over the insult…but let us not forget the original insult is them naming their whole f*cking country The Land of The Pure, which separated from others on the subcontinent and vile Shiites and Christians too – to become uncontaminated by The Unclean outsider..
A similar situation would be if Germans renamed their place Herrenvolksland, land of the Master People…and then screamed about the outrage they feel, the violence and riots they must cause in response to Herdenvolk calling them “Harrys” or some such other dire insult. By proclaiming themselves the Master People, the Germans would effectively be delivering the initial, major, and constant insult. And PC people and Jewish human rights lawyers on the Left and “Aggrieved Master People” would seek lawsuits and other means of cudgeling those offending people using “Harry!” on the Herrens – to silence or intimidate them from slurring the Master Race – by fear of their jobs, of violence, and being financially ruined in court for “hate crimes”.
And succeed if they get fearful officials (fearful of knife wielding Pakis, lawyers for the various Jewish-run “human rights lawyer Fronts, PC media and MPs) in Britain and elsewhere to say Pakistanis and Superior Aryans may offend by the intent of the very names they gave themselves – but the State and the Law will come down hard on the unclean filth using the term “Paki” or the inferior, weaker herd-dwelling humans with the temerity to traumatize and anger Herrenvolk by calling them “harry”
The Pakis have tried covering this insult up a bit with claims that Pakistan really is just an acronym for some of their ethnicities, derived in english for some reason, that ignores major regions and ethnicities in Pakistan and somehow includes Afghans in the “A” in “Pak”.
The acronym they claimed just accidentally formed Pak-Nation conspicuously omitted the 3 major ethnic groups besides the Punjabis – the Bengalis, the Sindhis, and the emigrees from deep inside India after Partition.
And, BTW, when the Pakis feel they are defiled by the unclean, the Naa Paak, they get deadly angry and besides violence, require elaborate purification rituals for things made filthy and unclean by the touch of an unbeliever, an inferior Muslim like a Bengali or Shiite, a menstruating woman, an unclean animal. In a religious context, it is Najis..(ironically also carried out for different “contaminating, defiling” offenses by radical religious shiites – who have their own “najis” rules.
That is why Qurans at Gitmo are handled only with gloves by infidel guards. The touch of the bare hand would effectively give the Quran “cooties” and the book must then be properly burned or cleansed in lengthly prayer by a religious leader. Various rules make it worse – wet hands transfer najis, or “not pak!” cooties far worse than dry hands…And woman, Jews, and pagans like the Hindis are more unclean than other infidels, far mor unclean, on a level of pigs and monkeys in cootie transmitting contamination…And should never be allowed to touch food, religious objects, or order a Muslim man about. Unless they serve that Muslim male in the capacity of slaves or agreed-to inferiors.
Totally ridiculous. As the great Monica Crowley said days ago, When people are at war, terms are slung around. During the WW’s it was Krauts,and Japs, and during Vietnam, it was gook, chink, etc. This is what happens in battle. BFD. The whole world has gone PC crazy. Grow up, people will call you names, live with it. Make it make you stronger, not a whiny whiner. As for him being a Royal? If he is doing as the other soldiers, then he is fitting in, otherwise he shouldn’t be there.
I guess Manny Pacquiao (Pronounced Paki-ow)won’t be fighting in the UK.
I’d be curious to hear a PC Brit pronounce Manny’s name in front of other Asians.
happy1ga:
Your point is valid regarding the word ‘raghead’, which Harry also used in the video – that’s a derogatory term for the Taliban, who Harry and his colleagues have been fighting, and there’s not much wrong with insulting people who are trying to kill you, and who you’re trying to kill.
But again, when the word ‘Paki’ is ‘slung around’ in public life in Britain, it’s usually meant as an insult. And we in the UK are not at war with British Asians, although there are plenty of British Muslims, who are also Asian, who believe they’re at war with us.
I am not contradicting myself, I do not see it as an offensive word and if another Brit used it to me I would use it back with no negative thoughts towards the person who used it, however I would not use the word in conversation without the other person using it first.
In terms of using the word to cause offense, I find simple name calling inherently stupid, in a time when we need to stand up and say unpalatable truths to many, using words that give offense and give people an excuse not to listen is hardly a wise thing to do and that is what I meant, I have had many debates with Muslims and I never used words like Paki, raghead etc., because it destroys what I am trying to say. I have since given up debating Muslims, as it is quite frankly a waste of time until those in the West have the same lesson that the Sunni’s got in Iraq and that the Gazans are having from Hamas.
The racists used it like this, “Paki go Home”, “Paki Bashing”, or Paki with a contemptious sneer to it, as it was becoming an easy word to use to define a group of the other so to speak it was demonised, or made a racist smear. The Race/PC industry and the Muslims of course turned it into a non-word, and even if I do not like that I will limit my use so as to not give them their easy victory.
I think your totally right to defend Harry, there was no intent to use it as an insult by Harry from what I could see, he was little (some people thought that was an issue) and he was a Pakistani, perhaps Harry should have said PAK, but anyway there was no malice in him from listening to it, just a bit of fun with fellow soldiers, I expect that Harry thought it was a storm in a teacup and laughed it off, however the demonising of words like that is part of the issue impacting freedom of expression, normally I would not have bothered commenting about it, but I wanted to make American people aware on this site that there are many Brits like me who do not see it as a racist word and I hope I explained why and I see that you agreed with my comment about the Pakishop, when I used that word as a child there was no intent to offend, but anyway I tend to use Pakistani to describe people from Pakistan, or Muslims or Islamists.
I totally agree with #1, we as a society need to grow up. As a Jew, I don’t get all hyper when colleauges and friends make jokes about Jews. I laugh with them….but I know when to fight and when not to. Where was the outrage when British Muslims were protesting Israelis and calling them Nazis and fascists? (and those were the nice comments)Hypocrites, all of them.
“So what? These people need to grow up and start acting like adults. ”
dream on. muslims in the uk are a protected specie.
Notice that many british on this thread call the muslims “asians”
If I were a chinese or vietnamese or a japanese (who aren’t part of the protected species of course) I’d be greatly offended.
Imagine north africans commit crimes, imagine the uk PC police stopping referring to them as north africans but as “mediterraneans”. Should spaniards, italians and greeks be happy to be put together?
The old saying: strong with the weak and weak with the strong, that’s the uk nowadays. Violence always pay.
We should also not forget that a number of black people within the United States will occasionally refer to each other in a friendly manner as n***er. Ever heard of a guy named Chris Rock? I suspect that some ethnic Asians often humorously call each other “Paki.” Am I right about this? If so, this even further complicates the Issue of Prince Harry’s playful banter.
Mike,
Point taken, however, I don’t care what country you live in, what part of that country, people are riduculously over-sensitive to words. This is counter-productive. In this life, the most successful of us all, will get over silly names, and grow thicker skin. I have been called horrible names before, and frankly I actually find it amusing. I consider it a badge.
It is common within a group of soldiers have less than flattering names for each other. This is merely not understanding that culture.
Why is it always the ‘correct’ crowd are always less concerned with the vile hatred and death threats these animals spew, than the occasional slip of the tongue such as Harry’s.
Journalists equate Harry’s comment with Islamists wanting to roast Jewish babies.
David @ 13, happy1ga @ 14:
I think we all agree it’s a minefield, and that ‘offence’ is a highly subjective thing – people can take offence when it’s not intended, and not take offensive when it is intended. I’m familiar with blacks using the ‘N’ word in the US, and I’m sure some British Asians do the same. But take it from me, when whites in the UK use the word Paki it’s usually meant as an insult.
Susan @ 12: we’re using the term ‘Asians’ here because that’s who we’re talking about in the context of Harry’s remarks – Asians, not Muslims. The word Paki was used as an insult against all Asians long before Britons had ever heard of bin Laden or suicide bombers. You’re right that the term ‘Asian’ is often employed (eg by the BBC) instead of ‘Muslim’ to avoid causing offence, which rightly angers Hindus, Sikhs etc.
An unfortunate side-effect of the current row is that it enables troublemakers like Mohammed Shafiq to claim to be speaking on behalf of British Asians, when in fact they only represent Muslims, and the more extreme Muslims at that – it gives them a veneer of respectability, which is dangerous.
little prince harry, while he is the boy who would not be king, still has a duty to uphold some semblance of leadership as a birth member of the royals. regardless of where he is, and that includes afghanistan, he does not serve his country well by having toads hop out his mouth. he evidently enjoys a racist bit now and again, certainly in public. lest it is forgotten, he wore a nazi uniform with a swastika to a costume party. and, at both unfunny junctures he knew there was a video camera about. the prince is a twit. or a racist. or both.
Prince Harry ( as his siblings, his father, his gran-father, etc. ) is genetically descended from a “morganatic marriage” between a “Lady-in-Waiting” , Julia von Hauke and “Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine”, on 28 October 1851 in Breslau in Prussian Silesia.
Julia was considered unfit to have children qualified for the succession of the throne of Hesse and by Rhine (Hesse-Darmstadt) . Her husband’s brother — Grand Duke Ludwig III of Hesse-Darmstadt — created her Countess of Battenberg in 1851, with the style of “Illustrious Highness” (a non royal title), and in 1858 elevated her to Hereditary Princess of Battenberg, with the style of “Serene Highness” (a non royal title).
Battenberg was later change to Mountbatten for stupid reasons.
Intrigues and conspiracies were in vogue even then.
Julia, at best, seems to be descended of a mysterious and spooky genealogical line.
As Julia was unfit to be anything royal, so is prince Harris ( as his siblings, his father, his gran-father, etc. ).
Now, why bother about what Harris says and/or does, pray tell?
VALE BENE. CURA UT VALEAS.
Rodolfo
PS — Only Queen Elisabeth II and her siblings are of pure royal genetics.
Anyone familiar with Islam is aware that “language police” are also “thought police”. Political correctness is the inverse of freedom.
“But take it from me, when whites in the UK use the word Paki it’s usually meant as an insult.”
It’s usually meant as an insult—and sometimes it isn’t! This is the key distinction that should not be ignored.
“An unfortunate side-effect of the current row is that it enables troublemakers like Mohammed Shafiq to claim to be speaking on behalf of British Asians”
There is only one way to handle such race hustlers: we must tell them to go to hell! Giving in to their intimidation tactics will only make matters worse.
Anyway the whole thing seemed to blow up just when a load of Islamists rioted in Kensington and called for the death of all Jews living in the UK, co-incidence, I think not?
I suppose that 22. is where I am, but I hate the fact that what is really an abbreviation of Pakistan to denote the people coming from that country, incorrectly used to define Asians as a whole, then used to express hostility is turned into something like the N word, it just grates and I guess I am railing at that, I better let it rest.
Mohammed Shafiq had to apologise for his comments by the way.
People call me a Yid all the time. Or Cheap Jew or all sorts of other names that are probably supposed to offend me as a Jew.
I of course laugh derisively at them and walk away.
I suggest others do the same.
David H @ 23
I linked to Shafiq’s apology at the end of my piece – it was the punchline… This is why I suspect people sometimes wade into the comments without reading the whole article!
No harm in railing though!
Prince Harry, The House of Lords, these are the only English who understand what it means to be a British subject. Not ,as it seems, the Labour Partys happy-faced military personnel who surrendered to an Iranian moterboat.
Mike, I read your whole article and saw that and found it rather amusing, I then went and looked at the details on that apology, I was just reminding 22. in case he missed it that he had to apologise for his comments, so he was told to go to hell in a British way of course…
Thanks for the article by the way and I hope I did not muddy the waters too much…
I earned a lecture from a few supporters of Politically Correct fascism for featuring this story on a satirical blog.
“Have you not heard of cultural integration”? they asked.
Well yes I have, to the extent of understanding that an incoming minority usually integrates with the dominant culture while the dominant culture might absorb some aspects of the incomers’ culture.
What pisses off a lot of British people is that we are constantly required to adapt our native culture to accommodate the prejudices of incoming minorities.
I see ceadarford has been pillaging Wikipedia again. Fortunately I have a more reliable source for urdu or hindi translation – my girlfriend Varsha who tells me that urdu and hindi being the same language with though urdu is written in Arabic text therefore the following translations apply:
pure = saaf
impure = na khalis
clean = saaf karnaa
unclean = maila
Not a Pak in sight.
Varsha is English of Hindi speaking parents from the Northern Indian province of Hindustan. the word Pak may well mean pure in Fars (or Persian) but as Urdu is the official language of Pakistan, the language of Iran is hardly relevant. She did suggest however that there may be some purely Muslim reference to a “purely Muslim land” although she is not aware of any.
It was actually the British who named Pakistan though the name is thought by some sources to have been coined by an academic and Muslim nationalist from an acronym of the main ethnic groups. This does not really hold water as there is no B or S present in the first syllable for Baluchi or Sindhi, two of the major ethnic groups. Stan, throughout the middle east means “the land of.”
BTW ceadarford, the town where I live in northern England has a Pakistani Muslim community. While the men are very keen that their women are not contaminated by white guys they have no qualms about touching or being touched by “impure” but available white women.
Interesting that the media in the UK is so offended,they don’t seem to mind local Muslim mobs screaming about sending Jews to gas chambers.I guess you have to be a Brit to appreciate the very sharp distinction
The ultimate left-wing conundrum. How do you treat a rich, privileged man who is doing his best to make himself like just one of the common man, and in the process says some things which offend minorities. Economic equalitarianism versus racial politics. I love it.
“But in mitigation it should be remembered that the incident occurred three years ago, when Harry was 21. ”
Then why is anyone even wasting time talking about it? Particularly, when there are far more urgent topics then a 21 year boy old fooling around with his friends – which, really, isn’t anyone’s business.
If I have no feelings one way or another about statements issued by the royal family of England – and I’m Canadian – I have a difficult time understanding why Americans would have even a passing interest in this unimportant event that happened in private, among a group of goofy boys – one of whom was a member of the royal family.
Who cares????? And that includes all of you who posted – you think this is important?
My neighbour, a Chilean “refugee” is a raging communist anti-semite. Want to to hear what he calls Jews? Shall I write an essay about it? I thought not. Well, Harry’s statements have just about as much relevance – less, actually since my neighbour, although not in the public arena, is an adult and Harry is a kid — how many dumb things did you all say when you were 21?
The royal family are entertainment and British history – no one actually listens to, or cares about, anything any of them say, with the possible exception of the Queen.
Get a life!!!
Mike, being called a “Yank” by you British isn’t that much offensive to us Americans, though, I don’t know about others being minded about “Yank” term. I heard young non-white kids swearing racist words more offensive than what Prince Harry had said and no one bats an eye.
Dana, as far as I a Brit am concerned there is no coincidence that this Harry gaffe was released at the most appropriate time to mask the call by Muslims for Muslims to place Jews living in various European countries and in the USA into gas chambers. Personally I am livid that they have got away with it so far and blame the MSM for it.
The Brits should stop calling asians “pakis” when the muslims stop calling non-muslims :”ifidels”.
Susan, I live in a multicultural country. In fact, Canada, under Pierre Trudeau, invented the concept of multiculturalism in response to the American “melting pot” philosophy. Canada encourages acculturation rather than assimiliation.
This philosophy was then picked up and distorted to the point of perversion by the British and the Europeans.
Canada encourages acculturation rather than assimiliation. Canadians (Candadian born and immigrants) have always enjoyed sharing storeies about where they “came from” – perhaps, because we were not so desperate to cut links to our former homelands and disappear into the dominant culture. Everyone I know has been interested in where their families had originated, but no one doubted for a second that they were Canadians; first and foremost.
We were the first to recognize the social value of hyphenated citizenship ie. Jewish-Canadian, Chinese-Canadian, German-Canadian, Indo-Canadian, etc., etc., etc. Although, in all honesty, I have enountered a number of co-workers who dislike the hyphenated form and refer to themselves only as Canadian and not, for example, Chinese-Canadian.
The majority of my family who were not born here – and there are many of them – from China, El Salvador, Japan, Africa, India, Iran,the Caribbean, Australia, Israel, Rumania – and many of my friends whose families originated from around the globe, find all this political correctness (Asian, Oriental, Southeast Asian, Western Asia) hilarious. They really don’t care that much, but my “Asian” friends do wish people would at least get out a map and find out where Asia is located and how it is divided.
First Nations people on the West Coast of Canada almost exclusively refer to themselves as Indians – as in – “let’s take the Seabus and see if their’s any cute Indian boys.” In print, however, the preferred form is First Nations (old term Indians) or, Inuit (old term “eskimoes”, or, combining First Nations and Inuit: Aboriginal Peoples. Among themselves they might introduce themselves through their tribal and clan lineages which naturally have enormous significance among the nations of the West Coast.
My Sikh Indian colleague, however, laughs and says she’s the Indian, not them.
In the end we all agree — Actions speak much louder – and have far more impact – than words.
David H. — good observation and, in all likelihood, very close to the truth – particularly since it happened 3 years ago!
Lilith – you (and everyone else) might find this interesting if you haven’t already seen it:
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fullcomment/archive/2008/04/08/barbara-kay-multiculturalism-was-canada-s-biggest-mistake.aspx
“Susan, I live in a multicultural country. In fact, Canada, under Pierre Trudeau, invented the concept of multiculturalism in response to the American “melting pot” philosophy. Canada encourages acculturation rather than assimiliation.”
I am in a nation of emigrants, not immigrants and we are experiencing the damages of immigration only now that some kind of immigrants showed up at our door.
For years we had chinese communities in big cities that were very much separated from the mainstream, that doesn’t mean they were criminals or kids were illiterate.
I have NO problem with people wanting to keep their customs unless those customs are against the law. I am not offended if a Filipino that’s been in my country for 40 years still consider himself Filipino.
However I do not grant the same luxury to people who spit on local communities, crush our rights and demand extempts from the law.
Pointless to say that the common denominator of the immigrants who create the biggest part of the problem starts with I and ends with M.
I do not believe assimilation and acculturation are the answers. It’s not necessary to hate “canada” to create problem, because those people think that soon canada will become muslim and it’s already land of allah, the problem is non-muslims, not canadians. They don’t see us as italians, greeks or canadians, they see us as “infidels”.
See what i mean?
It’s not only pakistanis that pretends to be over-offended, it’s muslims.
It’s dar al islam (land of islam) against dar al harm (land of the infidel). They don’t really care about sub-national divisions. Only turkey has got a big sense of nationality that is still anyway subordinate to islam, because christians are not real turks.
They dream about caliphate and the caliphate has got no borders.
All these pundits writing on incidents like Harry’s use of Paki speak out of both sides of their mouths. First, they’re careful to say how wrong, how utterly offensive, immature, such speech is, but then go on to say too big of deal is being made of it. The fact is this: people need to not be so f***ing thin-skinned, and to let others express themselves how they will, getting whatever meaning from their words they find there. Recently, I used the word jap in describing a car (not disparagingly) and offended the thin-skinned liberal I was speaking to, who wanted to control my speech as desperately as I wanted to resist his efforts. I see all this PC nonsense is a kind of neo-pharisee-ism. People are different. That’s what truly offends. We need to hide this fact even from ourselves, we benighted race of thin-skinned, head-in-the-sand, weaklings, who supposedly celebrate the differences we hide from. To say Brit and Scot is ok, but Jap and Paki are pejorative. Why? because their difference is more obvious. For this reason try harder to hide it. Squeamishness and sanctimony, wear the mask of liberality and concern. It all makes me tired.
Please. Why can’t you acknowledge that the claim that “Paki” is as hateful in the UK as “the N-word” is in the US is just your opinion, and not a natural fact? If your opinion were fact, you would have been required by the very convention you claim exists to type “the P-word” rather than “Paki.” Or am I wrong, and you refused to type the word “nigger” for some other reason? Or can you type the word “Paki” because this blog unreachable in the UK? I mean, what are you saying?
“there is no coincidence that this Harry gaffe was released at the most appropriate time to mask the call by Muslims for Muslims to place Jews living in various European countries and in the USA into gas chambers.” – David H
I agree completely.
I’m glad my daughter got to see England this year. Very, very soon, all of Great Britain as a nation will simply cease to exist, to be replaced with a scattering of mini islamic regions at first. These mini ummas will soon form the islamic confederation, and the conquest of Britain will be complete, with the insane liberals bleating to the end, “it’s their right”. A British patriot such as Harry, may form a resistance and save the country, but he will have to oppose his ass kissing father, and the bumbling, treasonous twits of the elite. I truly think their society is old, has been exhausted since 1917, and doesn’t give a damn for British history, tradition, culture or future. Toast, man, TOAST.
“A couple of points. First, I’m British, and I grew up in the period I refer to, and which Murad Ahmed writes about in the Times. I’m guessing that both of you are American – if either of you are British then you’re simply being dishonest, and we can leave it there.”
So your precis summed up: if I hold this view I am either an American or a liar. Or to put it in the words of the old blues tune, “When I’m wrong I’m wrong. When I’m right I’m wrong, right on.”
“Debate” on the internet in a nutshell.
43: The 1914-1918 war was something that destroyed national pride in most big European nations, anyway I expect we will find out over the next few years just what will be the direction Europe takes. I am expecting a continent engulfed in a civil war…
Are you serious? Paki is in the same league as nigger? I doubt it. Just drop the word nigger into Harry’s sentence and see how ugly it sounds. ‘Paki’ may be mildly offensive and a little racist but it sure isn’t in the same class as ‘nigger’ which is always a derogatory term implying some kind of sub-human class. We play cricket against a team we harmlessly call the ‘The Paki’s’. I don’t think I’ll ever seeing us playing against a team we harmlessly call ‘The Niggers’ even if it was composed fully of black Americans.
“Notice that many british on this thread call the muslims “asians”
If I were a chinese or vietnamese or a japanese (who aren’t part of the protected species of course) I’d be greatly offended.
Imagine north africans commit crimes, imagine the uk PC police stopping referring to them as north africans but as “mediterraneans”. Should spaniards, italians and greeks be happy to be put together?”
Susan, ‘Asian’ is not a euphemism for ‘muslim’, in general British usage it can refer to anybody of South Asian origin whether they are Muslim, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Christian or Athiest.
Just as in the US, it general refers to people of East Asian origin, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese etc.
The simple reason for this difference is that most immigrants from Asia in the US come from East Asia and immigrants from Asia in the UK come from South Asia.
You would never though hear a Morrocan or Somali muslim being called ‘Asian’ in the UK, some ‘Asians’ are muslim, some muslims are ‘Asian’, but the two are not the same.
Just like many Americans might lump together Peruvians and Nicaraguans as ‘Hispanics’ or ‘Latinos’ or an Italian might lump together a Zambian and a Senegalese as ‘Africans’.
I live and work in the Middle East. Here are some common terms in daily use in this area:
PAKI………refers to a Pakistani or anyone from the Indian subcontinent. Few Westerners are able to distinguish between the 2. Could also refer to an AFGHANI altho there are few of them here.
RAGHEAD……Anyone wearing a raglike accessory on his head….mostly from the Gulf region but also can refer to IRAQIS or even PALESTINIANS. It’s not the nationality that’s important, it’s the actual wearing of the offensive piece of cloth. (Prince Harry also used this term in his “offensive” remarks.)
FLIPO……..someone from the Phillipines
GYPO……..an Egypttian
LEBO……..a Lebanese
MUZI……..any moslem
BANGLI……someone from Bangladesh
SOCIALIST…usually a British ex-patriate that despises Americans just because.
“AN ARAB” (said while rolling the eyes)….any Arab
PARASITE…..ex-patriates, usually Brits, who have been in the Gulf Region for decades.
LOSER……the vast majority of ex-patriates living in the Gulf region altho huge numbers are now also found in Thailand (and Indonesia). The flotsom and jetsom of Western civilization who have flocked to this area. Mostly sociopaths, never file taxes, have absurd stories of their past lives and so on. Totally repulsive.
CONVERT…..a Brit or American who has not only purportedly “accepted” Islam but who has gone 150% to the “other side”, wearing the local garb, sporting a beard, sandals, the whole bit.
A master sycophant. Arrogant, a total loser. Pretending to be Sir Richard Burton but almost always completely ignorant of local languages. A misfit and outcast in his own society. Usually regarded with contempt and scorn by “real” locals.
The Spanish have a phrase for this type that fits perfectly: “MAS CATOLICO QUE EL PAPA”… (more Catholic than the Pope).
I could go on and on. Believe me, there is no Political Correctness here, one of the charming aspects of this part of the world. You call it like it is.
Whats this “British Asians” stuff can’t you just say British Muslim?? One can say British Catholics or British Jews so why all the fuss. Pakis call each other Pakis but others can’t? If they don’t want the wird used they shold refranin from using it too
Well I for one believe that Britain still maintains a slim chance of survival with King Harry on the throne.
A warrior King, unbowed by this PC poofery.
His witticisms, whilst on the phone to the Queen, “Yeah, bye, God save you” show he has a good sense of humour.
His orders group shows he has a good grasp for warfighting.
As a former Aussie soldier, I’d have him on the battlefield as my commander any day.
He may well be Englands only hope when the jihadis make their move on old Blighty.
God save him from the PC knobbers.
God save England from Harry’s dad. Prince Charles is up for the throne before Harry is, and rumor has it he’s converted to Islam. Even if he hasn’t, he’s definitely a PC knobber.
years ago, when I was just a 12yr old lass, i was walking down the street, minding my own business-when a man-I think he was black-walked passed me and called me paki. I was stunned, confused, saddened. i walked home quietly.
Talkinkamel,
I had allowed for Charlie being dethroned by a righteous Harry at the vanguard of a large mob, and his empty head placed on a pike staff outside Buck Palace.
Semi-seriously though, Charlie’s behaviour has caused people to devalue the Monarchy and its historic role.
Harry would need to be a modern version of the other famous Harry and warrior King, Henry V.
Perhaps he shall yet have his Crispin’s Day leading the Brits against the homegrown jihadis and quislings and restore some pride and prestige to the Throne and to a once mighty Empire.
Well… we can dream.
Charles is a muslim? you’ll be telling me that Obama’s a muslim next, lol.
Dhimmi Jonesy, Chas and Baz both are dhimmis.