Dwarfs/Dwarves

this is what gets me about all the *new* terms that one is *supposed* to use. i mean ffs, if someone has a club foot, then they have a club foot. its not like its hidden is it? inf act are you even allowed to say club foot anymore? like the extras scene ?. i must say that everyone i ve ever known who has something wrong with them has prefered to chat openly about it as opposed to not say, because if someone does have someting that makes them more unusual, people will look and when i ve been there and thats happened, my god now that IS uncomfortable

i get it. H is away so youre whiling away time here eh? well bollocks to you, you fair weather poster, you.

So jester, how is your boss eye? ?

exactly nick, thats what i hate. because of all this "cant say this, cant say that" people put their club foot in their mouths often because we use what was once an acceptable term.

gotta love the aussies though, there is none of that over here. a club foot is a club foot. it took a long time to get used to but its quite normal over here for people to be what the english would call racist etc. although i did draw the line at mothers group yesterday when one of them said "chloe was playing with a chocolate one yesterday" i was so stunned but rather amused at the aussie easyness of everything, because im sure even thats not acceptable really..she wasnt at all embarrassed where i was cringing in my special club foot boots

A chocolate one? ? god thats so bad ?

i was tempted to tell the story of how a friend of mine called someone a spacker recently but i figured that the number of right on pc brigade who frequent this site wouldnt have found it amusing ?

As someone who works in local government I'm contractually obliged to say that I find this all unacceptable, and that given the chance I'd like to help you explore your feelings about differently abled people.

and there in lies my main issue with stuff like this

contractually obliged! bah!

It's like those 'awareness training' things they used to send people who made racist comments on, it doesn't resolve anything, just pushes it all out of sight

i know, even if she had said black one (which i know is PC) but its just the chocolate. I wanted to ask her why she felt the need to mention it but i was too busy being stunned and wetting myself in my head.

wog is used ALL the time over here. when i first heard it loads and couldnt belive it, but its a term for greeks and not the english translation !

the news and politics are hilarious. i remember an ad campaign when the elections were on, it had a polittion on it walking through a crowd of people who were booing him and a speech bubble kept flashing on the screen from the polititions mouth saying to individuals in the crowd "get a job, get a job" it was brilliant.

You think aus is bad. on the sth island in NZ it seems to be extremely common to refer to maoris as niggers, wogs and black arses, openly and in mixed company, in public etc. not much shocks me, but i must admit that did. we r enot just talking one example either, i overheard those terms many times when i was last there. oh, and rug muncher is another one. it seems like half the population refers to the PM as "that bladdy rug muncher"

? at contractually obliged. thats ridiculous. i bet there is no office banter in your office, is there?

nick, i want to hear the story. lots of the mothers group say their babies threw a spazza. if they have been particulaly crying or difficult or tantrumy. its jsut the norm here. rightly or wrongly. or maybe im jsut in a really UNPC mothers group YIPPEEE ?

No, i cant tell it on here, theres no way ?. i ll have to email you. are you still pans@ etc?

Oh that reminds me! the other day i was driving and had stopped at a set of lights by a really grotty pub. outside, sitting on the pavement, was a girl who looked about 18, with baby in pram. it was raining, and she was huddled close to the pram, and was smoking like a chimney. i thought of you pans ?

? at rug muncher. brilliant. I know, not much shocks me either and i was constatnyl stunned and uneasy when we first moved here. i mean, yours it rather extreme and shocking, but it makes me realise how stiff lipped the english are. at work i used to cringe when people said things, i remember the caretaker saying he went for dinner with some pakis, i was horrified and squealed "you cant call them that" and he said "why, they are my mates, they are from pakistan and therefore pakis" they were so amused at how straight i was about everything.

"they are from pakistan and therefore are pakis" ?

i must admit i was surprised when somene was utterly hauled over the coals on WP for saying "we went for a chinky"

and answer my question.

? yep - still at the same,. email me

piss off mrs jess, you are the evil cow ?

why have people got marrows up their arses, they really need to relax a little. its like people are waiting for you to say something that could be changed into being racist and then they can pounce.

feck off, there is no smoking from me these days and it doesnt rain in australia. i'll be the fat one in the bikini round the pool drinking wine out of a plastic cup with a sunburnt baby. if only i had an 18 year old tits though ?

can you say tits on here? if not, it meant to read boobs.

Right, there ou go ?

Well, you are a tit, so tits is definitely allowed. pmsl at sunburnt baby. you want to put some lotion on that, might smart a bit.

Wwwwwwwwwwwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh brilliant briallint story. that is hilarious, you have to put it on hitched. its not the unpcness of it. its the stupidity of the manager. thats the best part.

suncreams for australians,. british use oil ?

(can i jsut say that N doesnt go n the sun although he was slightly tanned in summer as its hard not to be when you are outside all the time, no matter how much cream i used. <pans tries to justify her bad mothering>

No chance ?

i bet you put one of those mirrored sun traps around him so you have a tanned baby to match your orange-ness ?

dont be silly, i just got him one of these in silver thats reflects the sun to match mine:-

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NEW-Inflatable-Luxury-Lilo-Chair-Swimming-Pool-Fun_W0QQitemZ280241392380QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item280241392380&_trksid=p3286.m14.l1318

poo story 😢

Would you really... What would you say if the person was just short?

As the mother of a 3 year old boy with achondroplasia, I felt i wanted to reply to this thread.

He's too young to understand/recognise his condition, so, at the moment it down to me and my H to explain his condition to people (We have no problems with people asking us, as far as we're concerned it's just who he is, and we'd prefer people to understand rather than stare)

I usually say that H has achondroplasia, the most common form of dwarfism. I don't refer to him as a dwarf, little person etc. He is Harrison who has achondroplasia, just as other people might say "I am John, and I have cancer" or "I am Sarah, and I have a club foot"

I also explain that, yes, he'll be short but, he's a perfectly healthy (And very happy) little boy. He'll have challenges in life, of course, but he'll go to mainstream school, he's above average intelligence so should get a good job.

SO, in answer to the original question I would say (And this is only from my experience and my contact with other people who have achondroplasia)if the situation comes up ask about the contition, but not "What shall I call you?" He'll have a name of his own. Address him as that.

I honestly don't think Nick was planning to say: "Shall I call you Simon? Or would you prefer to be addressed as Sneezy? Doc? Short shit? <slaps thighs>", but rather, if the person's condition came up in conversation, whether it was okay to refer to him as a dwarf ?

Anyway, pmsl at this thread. Nick, please email me the story too.

I was gobsmacked by someone on here saying that it was absolutely not okay to refer to BB Darnell as an albino. The term is apparently "person with albinism". I'll get my coat...

I have a terrible story from my drunken OH when he made a tit of himself in a very unPC way but I'm too ashamed to give the details. My mum was trying to be very PC the other day when trying to get the name of someone on TV. Describing him as "a bit tanned". When I eventually worked out who it was I said why didn't you just say he was black or something and she said she didn't want to call him a coloured ?

FWIW my sister has a disability and she doesn't mind what term is used for her as long as it isn't done in a malicious way IYSWIM.

Nah, I think he was just trying to find a way to get the "feeling happy" gag into the conversation...

?

I was trying to answer openly to this thread.

Sophie, I fin your "slap thighs" comments very shallow. Believe me I'm not riled (And thank you for showing me what bigoted comments we're going to be open to) but, amazingly enough people born with Achondoplasia do go on to do other things than act in pantomines. They aren't all called sleepy, happy, etc (although my boy is VERY happy thank you very much)

Sorry if I seem to be on the attack, but perhaps I am. It's because of these type of comments that I fear for my son as he grows up. He's an intelligent lad, happy, trusting in the world. He's not one of Snow Whites housemates. He's Harrison,a human being. I, but just recognise that he might have some physical difficulties that others don't.

Sorry if we're not all perfect

You have completely misunderstood my post, as you completely misunderstood Nick's. I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume the misunderstanding wasn't deliberate - although I find it odd that you're the only person who failed to "get" what I was saying.

Nick - mass email with the story please ?

Only if you foward it MrBack

So, please give me the chance to understand what you was trying to say?

Whilst I understand Nicks original question (and have no problem with that) I found the 7 dwarf jokes, the umpper lummpa jokes, yes, unpolitically correst. I don't make racist comments/comments about other disabled people etc...and,perhaps I feel more educated in "live and let live" since having Harrison

But Sophie mentioned those jokes as examples of things that Nick wouldn't say- she wasn't cracking gags herself.

Even though SophieM wasn't saying those jokes from her as such, I think I understand why you're upset (I think?)...

Why is it OK to say jokes in bad taste, just because we include the "This is what I wouldn't say" at the beginning/end... ?

I'm guessing that's why you're upset at this thread? Not at the actual content as such?

Or... I could have got your point completely wrong. In which case I'll get my coat... ?