I think being called a "white" slur isn't nearly as bad since we weren't on the receiving end of abuse for 250 years. it has a much stronger connotation than honky.
True, although there are subsets of whites who get singled out and harassed badly. The Amish for example. If you've seen the film Witness you get a good sense of what they have had to deal with.
Hitler abused whites, although to the nationalists, they weren’t pure enough.
I think being called a "white" slur isn't nearly as bad since we weren't on the receiving end of abuse for 250 years. it has a much stronger connotation than honky.
True, although there are subsets of whites who get singled out and harassed badly. The Amish for example. If you've seen the film Witness you get a good sense of what they have had to deal with.
Hitler abused whites, although to the nationalists, they weren’t pure enough.
I think being called a "white" slur isn't nearly as bad since we weren't on the receiving end of abuse for 250 years. it has a much stronger connotation than honky.
True, although there are subsets of whites who get singled out and harassed badly. The Amish for example. If you've seen the film Witness you get a good sense of what they have had to deal with.
Who bothers the Amish? They make great stuff!
I haven't been back to my paternal home state for a good while, so maybe it's not a problem anymore. But it used to be.
More recently though, because a couple of Amish families had puppy farms, all of the sudden all Amish people supposedly practice cruelty to animals. And they get joked about on places like Face Book. Not gonna repeat the joke here (because I don't want it spread), but just a few days ago I saw what is akin to an Amish "racist" joke on FB. I damn near unfriended the guy who posted it, but he's a nice guy, just kind of naive about the culture.
And I've seen some of that shit here in past years. Really bugs the shit out of me.
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man [or woman] who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”
I think being called a "white" slur isn't nearly as bad since we weren't on the receiving end of abuse for 250 years. it has a much stronger connotation than honky.
True, although there are subsets of whites who get singled out and harassed badly. The Amish for example. If you've seen the film Witness you get a good sense of what they have had to deal with.
I am sure they deal with a lot of unfair treatment. But it's not really because they're white.
White, black, green, not the point. Different/minority. That's the point
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man [or woman] who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”
I think being called a "white" slur isn't nearly as bad since we weren't on the receiving end of abuse for 250 years. it has a much stronger connotation than honky.
True, although there are subsets of whites who get singled out and harassed badly. The Amish for example. If you've seen the film Witness you get a good sense of what they have had to deal with.
Who bothers the Amish? They make great stuff!
I haven't been back to my paternal home state for a good while, so maybe it's not a problem anymore. But it used to be.
More recently though, because a couple of Amish families had puppy farms, all of the sudden all Amish people supposedly practice cruelty to animals. And they get joked about on places like Face Book. Not gonna repeat the joke here (because I don't want it spread), but just a few days ago I saw what is akin to an Amish "racist" joke on FB. I damn near unfriended the guy who posted it, but he's a nice guy, just kind of naive about the culture.
And I've seen some of that shit here in past years. Really bugs the shit out of me.
I will forever be grateful for their "Rumspringa".It is too cool not to like.
I think being called a "white" slur isn't nearly as bad since we weren't on the receiving end of abuse for 250 years. it has a much stronger connotation than honky.
True, although there are subsets of whites who get singled out and harassed badly. The Amish for example. If you've seen the film Witness you get a good sense of what they have had to deal with.
Who bothers the Amish? They make great stuff!
I haven't been back to my paternal home state for a good while, so maybe it's not a problem anymore. But it used to be.
More recently though, because a couple of Amish families had puppy farms, all of the sudden all Amish people supposedly practice cruelty to animals. And they get joked about on places like Face Book. Not gonna repeat the joke here (because I don't want it spread), but just a few days ago I saw what is akin to an Amish "racist" joke on FB. I damn near unfriended the guy who posted it, but he's a nice guy, just kind of naive about the culture.
And I've seen some of that shit here in past years. Really bugs the shit out of me.
I will forever be grateful for their "Rumspringa".It is too cool not to like.
For sure! And honestly, much as I honor and respect the Amish half of my heritage, I can see why a lot of teens don't rejoin the fold. I would like to think I would, but that would be difficult.
For those who don't know the term:Rumspringa is "a period when some Amish youth, boys more than
girls, experience greater freedom. They are no longer under the control
of their parents on weekends and, because they are not baptized, they
are not yet under the authority of the church. During this time, many
Amish youth adhere to traditional Amish behavior. Others experiment with
“worldly” activities—buying a car, going to movies, wearing non-Amish
clothes, buying a television. In larger Amish settlements, an
adolescent’s behavior often depends on the peer group he or she chooses
to join. Amish parents may worry about which group their child will join
because the choice will influence the teen’s behavior."
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man [or woman] who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.”
Here is something interesting regarding Sweden in all of this. Into the, I would say mid 90s, society was very liberal with the word. One of our most famous pastries to quickly whip together was named "N-word ball" and we had a candy called "N-word kiss". "We" obviously do not have the same traumatic relationship with the word and history as the US. But in the mid 90s "N-word ball" was changed into "chocolate ball", with protests of the "So silly, it has always been called that. It's not racist. Why change it?!"-variety.
We also have the example of Pippi Longstockings father being a "n-word king" somewhere on the other side of the world. This has also been changed. When discussing this change years ago with a friend, it was the first time I realized that we as a society, like the US had changed or started to change from saying the actual word to say "n-word" even in contexts of using it objectively and/or discussing said word. At least among some people. Perhaps younger, more progressive. Which my friend is.
But now to the point of this post. Today, I read in the news about a politician on the right (ofc) that has been exposed to be racist and praising Hitler etc. And our biggest Newspaper "Aftonbladet", has masked what the politician said by using "n-word" ("n-ordet" in swedish) when describing her horrible opinions.
Swedish newspaper "Aftonbladet":
While "Expressen". The second biggest newspaper. And the competitor to Aftonbladet - is not using "N-word" but the actual word with quotationmarks when quoting the politician.
Swedish newspaper "Expressen":
(Word pixelated by me)
Also on the video at the bottom, Expressen is using the full uncencored word when talking about it.
Which I found kind of interesting. At least it stood out to me, and made me think of this thread. In Sweden, I take it - how to relate to the spelling and use of the word is not set in stone. And using the word has not been voldemorted yet, or not voldemorted fully. With the two big newspapers choosing two different approaches.
Post edited by Spiritual_Chaos on
"Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
Here is something interesting regarding Sweden in all of this. Into the, I would say mid 90s, society was very liberal with the word. One of our most famous pastries to quickly whip together was named "N-word ball" and we had a candy called "N-word kiss". "We" obviously do not have the same traumatic relationship with the word and history as the US. But in the mid 90s "N-word ball" was changed into "chocolate ball", with protests of the "So silly, it has always been called that. It's not racist. Why change it?!"-variety.
We also have the example of Pippi Longstockings father being a "n-word king" somewhere on the other side of the world. This has also been changed. When discussing this change years ago with a friend, it was the first time I realized that we as a society, like the US had changed or started to change from saying the actual word to say "n-word" even in contexts of using it objectively and/or discussing said word. At least among some people. Perhaps younger, more progressive. Which my friend is.
But now to the point of this post. Today, I read in the news about a politician on the right (ofc) that has been exposed to be racist and praising Hitler etc. And our biggest Newspaper "Aftonbladet", has masked what the politician said by using "n-word" ("n-ordet" in swedish) when describing her horrible opinions.
Swedish newspaper "Aftonbladet":
While "Expressen". The second biggest newspaper. And the competitor to Aftonbladet - is not using "N-word" but the actual word with quotationmarks when quoting the politician.
Swedish newspaper "Expressen":
(Word pixelated by me)
Also on the video at the bottom, Expressen is using the full uncencored word when talking about it.
Which I found kind of interesting. At least it stood out to me, and made me think of this thread. In Sweden, I take it - how to relate to the spelling and use of the word is not set in stone. And using the word has not been voldemorted yet, or not voldemorted fully. With the two big newspapers choosing two different approaches.
So a few things that stick out. in Barbados they have a hot pepper called a N-pepper. I thought that was horrible and one of the locals says to me, "that's what it's called, what else are we going to call it?!?" she was black and thought nothing of it. That was 2008.
1997 in Alaska there is a capstan/winch that was nicknamed the N-head. I asked the deckhand what's the other name for it, and found out it was called the capstan. I called it the capstan.
In journalism if you use the word that someone else says you can get a pass. You can't directly use it yourself though. Those days are over.
You can't directly use it yourself though. Those days are over.
That is an American thing should be noted (I presume). You also use "beeps" on swearwords on TV and have Jimmy Fallon blush like if his show is aired live, etc. Might be a cultural correlation regarding "words" and the use of them, that differ from other places on earth.
I am not using the word over here. But in Sweden as a whole today, I assume it is said in full when the word is mentioned more often than not. Here it is a "horrible word" and not to be used in a racist/horrible manner towards black people. But it is still not a word uniquely removed from all other words in the dictionary, like it has been culturally decided to be in the US.
And not using the word comes from (I assume) an American influence and not from there having been a discussion and a consensus reached here in Sweden about not saying it. I have never heard of a word in itself, being forbidden to utter here.
But could be a discussion has been had that I have missed. Or that it is just gliding towards accepting the American treatment of the word by itself. or there will be a divide, like with how Aftonbladet and Expressen chooses to treat it.
Would be interesting to hear how it is in other parts of the world and other countries in Europe.
Post edited by Spiritual_Chaos on
"Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
OP-ed from this year, in Sweden's second biggest morningpaper:
The Swedish n-ord is borrowed from the English n-word, a word that has been in use in the United States since the 1990s. There are several examples from the US where academic teachers in discussions of prejudice have used the word "the n-word" as an example and have endured vicious criticism for this.
A decade or so later, the same feelings and attitudes appear in Sweden. We have borrowed not only the n-word but also the feelings of offence that developed in the United State
There are also several cases in Sweden where teachers have been reported and opposed for saying "the n-word" instead of n-word when they talk about discrimination and racism. On a television broadcast, I heard a young student say that she did not feel safe because a teacher had mentioned the n-word.
The Swedish Academy's glossary (SAOL) has not yet included the word "n-word", but it is likely to be included soon. The word "the n-word", on the other hand, is included and given the following description: "(disparaged.) male person with dark skin. Rather use black (person)."
In similarly sober ways, SAOL describes words like "gypsy" (rom) and "lapp" (sami). The words can be used offensively, but they are a part of the language, and we need to be able to speak about them.
Mentioning a certain word is not the same as using said word about other people.
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
One in a Million is my favorite song by them. There are a few too many slurs in this song that got them in trouble though.
Just looked up the lyrics to this song
One, two, one, two, three, four Guess I needed some time to get away I needed some peace of mind Some peace of mind that'll stay So I thumbed it down to sixth in L.A. Maybe a Greyhound could be my way
Police and niggers, that's right Get outta my way Don't need to buy none of your Gold chains today Now don't need no bracelets Clamped in front of my back Just need my ticket, 'til then Won't you cut me some slack
You're one in a million Yeah that's what you are You're one in a million babe You're a shooting star Maybe some day we'll see you Before you make us cry You know we tried to reach you But you were much to high Much too high Much too high Much too high
Immigrants and faggots They make no sense to me They come to our country And think they'll do as they please Like start some mini-Iran Or spread some fucking disease And they talk so many goddamn ways It's all Greek to me
Well some say I'm lazy And others say that's just me Some say I'm crazy I guess I'll always be But it's been such a long time Since I knew right from wrong It's all the means to and end and I keep it moving along Hey, hey, hey, yeah
You're one in a million You're a shooting star You're one in a million babe You know that you are Maybe someday we'll see you Before you make us cry You know we tried to reach you But you were much too high Much too high Much too high Much too high
Radicals and racists Don't point your finger at me I'm a small town white boy Just tryin' to make ends meet Don't need your religion Don't watch that much TV Just makin' my livin' baby Well that's enough for me
You're one in a million Yeah that's what you are You're one in a million babe You're a shooting star Maybe some day we'll see you Before you make us cry You know we tried to reach you But you were much too high Much too high yeah, yeah, yeah Much too high Much too high Much too high yeah, yeah, yeah Much too high Much too high
The worst of times..they don't phase me, even if I look and act really crazy.
One in a Million is my favorite song by them. There are a few too many slurs in this song that got them in trouble though.
Just looked up the lyrics to this song
One, two, one, two, three, four Guess I needed some time to get away I needed some peace of mind Some peace of mind that'll stay So I thumbed it down to sixth in L.A. Maybe a Greyhound could be my way
Police and niggers, that's right Get outta my way Don't need to buy none of your Gold chains today Now don't need no bracelets Clamped in front of my back Just need my ticket, 'til then Won't you cut me some slack
You're one in a million Yeah that's what you are You're one in a million babe You're a shooting star Maybe some day we'll see you Before you make us cry You know we tried to reach you But you were much to high Much too high Much too high Much too high
Immigrants and faggots They make no sense to me They come to our country And think they'll do as they please Like start some mini-Iran Or spread some fucking disease And they talk so many goddamn ways It's all Greek to me
Well some say I'm lazy And others say that's just me Some say I'm crazy I guess I'll always be But it's been such a long time Since I knew right from wrong It's all the means to and end and I keep it moving along Hey, hey, hey, yeah
You're one in a million You're a shooting star You're one in a million babe You know that you are Maybe someday we'll see you Before you make us cry You know we tried to reach you But you were much too high Much too high Much too high Much too high
Radicals and racists Don't point your finger at me I'm a small town white boy Just tryin' to make ends meet Don't need your religion Don't watch that much TV Just makin' my livin' baby Well that's enough for me
You're one in a million Yeah that's what you are You're one in a million babe You're a shooting star Maybe some day we'll see you Before you make us cry You know we tried to reach you But you were much too high Much too high yeah, yeah, yeah Much too high Much too high Much too high yeah, yeah, yeah Much too high Much too high
Rose in 1989:
I used words like police and [n-word] because you're not allowed to use the word '[n-word].' Why can black people go up to each other and say, '[n-word],' but when a white guy does it all of a sudden it's a big putdown? I don't like boundaries of any kind. I don't like being told what I can and what I can't say. I used the word '[n-word]' because it's a word to describe somebody that is basically a pain in your life, a problem. The word '[-n-word]' doesn't necessarily mean black. Doesn't John Lennon have a song "Woman Is the [n-word] of the World"? There's a rap group, N.W.A. – Niggers With Attitude. I mean, they're proud of that word. More power to them. Guns n' Roses ain't bad . . . N.W.A. is baaad! Mr. Bob Goldthwait said the only reason we put these lyrics on the record was because it would cause controversy and we'd sell a million albums. Fuck him! Why'd he put us in his skit? We don't just do something to get the controversy, the press.
---
By 1992, however, Rose seemed to have gained new perspective on the song and its lyrics. "I was pissed off about some black people that were trying to rob me," he said. "I wanted to insult those particular black people."[10] In his final public comments about "One in a Million" in 1992, Rose stated, "It was a way for me to express my anger at how vulnerable I felt in certain situations that had gone down in my life."
---
Before the release of Lies, the other members of the band tried in vain to make Rose drop the track from the record.[16] Steven Adler exclaimed "What the fuck? Is this necessary?", to which Rose responded "Yeah, it's necessary. I'm letting my feelings out."[16] Slash, whose mother is black, noted that he did not condone the song but did not condemn his bandmate, commenting in 1991 Rolling Stone interview: "When Axl first came up with the song and really wanted to do it, I said I didn't think it was very cool... I don't regret doing 'One in a Million', I just regret what we've been through because of it and the way people have perceived our personal feelings."[17]
In a 2019 interview, Duff McKagan said: "One thing about Axl is if you’re going to try to compete with him intellectually, you’ve lost, because he’s a super smart guy... He’s a super sensitive dude who does his studies. When we did that song, I was still drinking but he was way ahead of us with his vision of, ‘Something’s gotta be said.’ That was the most hardcore way to say it. So flash-forward to now. So many people have misinterpreted that song that we removed it ... Nobody got it.”[19]
---
"One in a Million" was not included on a 2018 box-set reissue of Appetite for Destruction, which featured the remaining G N' R Lies songs on a bonus disc.[14]Slash explained it had been a collective decision, which didn't require a "big roundtable thing".[15]
"Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
Not to slag off a Seattle person - but Duff saying that "nobody got it" sounds like history revisionism if you read Axls 1989 and 1992 comment about the song.
Also, was it right to remove it or should it have been included on the Appetite deluxe box re-release?
Post edited by Spiritual_Chaos on
"Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
Not to slag off a Seattle person - but Duff saying that "nobody got it" sounds like history revisionism if you read Axls 1989 and 1992 comment about the song.
Also, was it right to remove it or should it have been included on the Appetite deluxe box re-release?
I would be in a small group to say "leave it on". But, you would have too many new listeners asking the same questions and in the end GNR is going to lose.
GNR has always gotten a pass for that song and I never quite understood why. I don't really think there was a super-sophisticated message. I just think it was about a small town white boy (his words) not liking all the diversity in the big city.
1995 Milwaukee 1998 Alpine, Alpine 2003 Albany, Boston, Boston, Boston 2004 Boston, Boston 2006 Hartford, St. Paul (Petty), St. Paul (Petty) 2011 Alpine, Alpine 2013 Wrigley 2014 St. Paul 2016 Fenway, Fenway, Wrigley, Wrigley 2018 Missoula, Wrigley, Wrigley 2021 Asbury Park 2022 St Louis 2023 Austin, Austin
Always thought it sarcastically sung in character as a small minded white male American. "One in a million" being what the character wants to be perceived as. But he's just another racist, small minded piece of shit from some small town. Axl being on the opposite side of that.
But seems from comments that it's sung from Axl's own perspective.... yikes...
"Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
Always thought it sarcastically sung in character as a small minded white male American. "One in a million" being what the character wants to be perceived as. But he's just another racist, small minded piece of shit from some small town. Axl being on the opposite side of that.
But seems from comments that it's sung from Axl's own perspective.... yikes...
At best, artists need to be very careful when they think they're being brilliantly clever/artistic. This was true in the 1980s when songs like Whores (Janes Addiction) and this came out. It's not even true anymore; now context doesn't really matter...just don't use it. Unless you want to do so and just call all your detractors "woke," I suppose.
I'm old enough that I bought that album (EP?) soon after it came out and put the CD in my CD player / boombox. After the first seven songs, I found it to be a bit of a letdown (with the live Mama Kin cover and Patience being terrific exceptions). I remember just being blown away when I heard that song at age 15 or whatever. I was pretty disappointed and it's always informed my feelings on the band...(though to be frank, I feel they were disappointing in several ways...though they have a handful of really good songs, they have a lot of filler and a lot of drama). Now, that said, I bought the Use Your Illusion albums so I am either not entirely principled (bad) or not entirely woke (good).
One great "story" song is "Hurricane" by Bob Dylan. And Dylan's history saves him a bit but I do not understand why he used the word...it seems gratuitous. I've always struggled with that one.
1995 Milwaukee 1998 Alpine, Alpine 2003 Albany, Boston, Boston, Boston 2004 Boston, Boston 2006 Hartford, St. Paul (Petty), St. Paul (Petty) 2011 Alpine, Alpine 2013 Wrigley 2014 St. Paul 2016 Fenway, Fenway, Wrigley, Wrigley 2018 Missoula, Wrigley, Wrigley 2021 Asbury Park 2022 St Louis 2023 Austin, Austin
GNR has always gotten a pass for that song and I never quite understood why. I don't really think there was a super-sophisticated message. I just think it was about a small town white boy (his words) not liking all the diversity in the big city.
No, they've NEVER gotten a pass for that song. They agreed to stop singing it because they had protests every where they went. People were pissed about it and GNR listened.
When they stopped singing it, the anger about it quelled. Most teens right now aren't finding this on their radar right now so it won't be brought back up and they did leave it off the reissue.
One great "story" song is "Hurricane" by Bob Dylan. And Dylan's history saves him a bit but I do not understand why he used the word...it seems gratuitous. I've always struggled with that one.
But in Hurricane. Isn't it used to show that even the black community fell in line with the white man's view of him, and sadly the view of their own worth? That not even the black community had his back, or their own backs as a community in a world run by the white man? As in - they became Samuel L Jackson in Django Unchained - a black man succumbing to be viewed as shit by the white to be more accepted into their word, instead of fighting that view and standing up for oneself?
All of Rubin's cards were marked in advance
The trial was a pig-circus, he never had a chance
The judge made Rubin's witnesses drunkards from the slums
To the white folks who watched he was a revolutionary bum
And to the black folks he was just a crazy [n-word]
No one doubted that he pulled the trigger
That has always been my interpretation. But hey, I was wrong about One in a Million so...
Post edited by Spiritual_Chaos on
"Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
Always thought it sarcastically sung in character as a small minded white male American. "One in a million" being what the character wants to be perceived as. But he's just another racist, small minded piece of shit from some small town. Axl being on the opposite side of that.
But seems from comments that it's sung from Axl's own perspective.... yikes...
At best, artists need to be very careful when they think they're being brilliantly clever/artistic. This was true in the 1980s when songs like Whores (Janes Addiction) and this came out. It's not even true anymore; now context doesn't really matter...just don't use it. Unless you want to do so and just call all your detractors "woke," I suppose.
I'm old enough that I bought that album (EP?) soon after it came out and put the CD in my CD player / boombox. After the first seven songs, I found it to be a bit of a letdown (with the live Mama Kin cover and Patience being terrific exceptions). I remember just being blown away when I heard that song at age 15 or whatever. I was pretty disappointed and it's always informed my feelings on the band...(though to be frank, I feel they were disappointing in several ways...though they have a handful of really good songs, they have a lot of filler and a lot of drama). Now, that said, I bought the Use Your Illusion albums so I am either not entirely principled (bad) or not entirely woke (good).
One great "story" song is "Hurricane" by Bob Dylan. And Dylan's history saves him a bit but I do not understand why he used the word...it seems gratuitous. I've always struggled with that one.
The N word has been engrained in most of us to not be used. When I first heard One in a Million I was blown away by the song. I'd never heard an artist talk like that. Our Health teacher played it and discussed the song with us. It was a pretty powerful song.
I may have liked it because it was so avant-garde?
Now fast forward a few yeas and I became a big House of Pain fan. Their third album I believe, steamy pile, came out and this was when everyone was trying to be really hard. Think Pumps and the bumps by Hammer, anywho, Everlast dropped the N word in a song. I was like what?!?
He got a pass for that as far as I know. It was also the last time he did that. You would never hear the beasties doing that and it was weird to here Everlast do it.
Comments
White, black, green, not the point. Different/minority. That's the point
We also have the example of Pippi Longstockings father being a "n-word king" somewhere on the other side of the world. This has also been changed. When discussing this change years ago with a friend, it was the first time I realized that we as a society, like the US had changed or started to change from saying the actual word to say "n-word" even in contexts of using it objectively and/or discussing said word. At least among some people. Perhaps younger, more progressive. Which my friend is.
But now to the point of this post. Today, I read in the news about a politician on the right (ofc) that has been exposed to be racist and praising Hitler etc. And our biggest Newspaper "Aftonbladet", has masked what the politician said by using "n-word" ("n-ordet" in swedish) when describing her horrible opinions.
Swedish newspaper "Aftonbladet":
While "Expressen". The second biggest newspaper. And the competitor to Aftonbladet - is not using "N-word" but the actual word with quotationmarks when quoting the politician.
Swedish newspaper "Expressen":
(Word pixelated by me)
Also on the video at the bottom, Expressen is using the full uncencored word when talking about it.
Which I found kind of interesting. At least it stood out to me, and made me think of this thread. In Sweden, I take it - how to relate to the spelling and use of the word is not set in stone. And using the word has not been voldemorted yet, or not voldemorted fully. With the two big newspapers choosing two different approaches.
1997 in Alaska there is a capstan/winch that was nicknamed the N-head. I asked the deckhand what's the other name for it, and found out it was called the capstan. I called it the capstan.
In journalism if you use the word that someone else says you can get a pass. You can't directly use it yourself though. Those days are over.
I am not using the word over here. But in Sweden as a whole today, I assume it is said in full when the word is mentioned more often than not. Here it is a "horrible word" and not to be used in a racist/horrible manner towards black people. But it is still not a word uniquely removed from all other words in the dictionary, like it has been culturally decided to be in the US.
And not using the word comes from (I assume) an American influence and not from there having been a discussion and a consensus reached here in Sweden about not saying it. I have never heard of a word in itself, being forbidden to utter here.
But could be a discussion has been had that I have missed. Or that it is just gliding towards accepting the American treatment of the word by itself. or there will be a divide, like with how Aftonbladet and Expressen chooses to treat it.
Would be interesting to hear how it is in other parts of the world and other countries in Europe.
The Swedish n-ord is borrowed from the English n-word, a word that has been in use in the United States since the 1990s. There are several examples from the US where academic teachers in discussions of prejudice have used the word "the n-word" as an example and have endured vicious criticism for this.
A decade or so later, the same feelings and attitudes appear in Sweden. We have borrowed not only the n-word but also the feelings of offence that developed in the United State
There are also several cases in Sweden where teachers have been reported and opposed for saying "the n-word" instead of n-word when they talk about discrimination and racism. On a television broadcast, I heard a young student say that she did not feel safe because a teacher had mentioned the n-word.
The Swedish Academy's glossary (SAOL) has not yet included the word "n-word", but it is likely to be included soon. The word "the n-word", on the other hand, is included and given the following description: "(disparaged.) male person with dark skin. Rather use black (person)."
In similarly sober ways, SAOL describes words like "gypsy" (rom) and "lapp" (sami). The words can be used offensively, but they are a part of the language, and we need to be able to speak about them.
Mentioning a certain word is not the same as using said word about other people.
Ordet n-ordet är ett noaord | GP
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this song is meant to be called i got shit,itshould be called i got shit tickets-hartford 06 -
even if I look and act really crazy.
wrong subforum and thread
Not today Sir, Probably not tomorrow.............................................. bayfront arena st. pete '94
you're finally here and I'm a mess................................................... nationwide arena columbus '10
memories like fingerprints are slowly raising.................................... first niagara center buffalo '13
another man ..... moved by sleight of hand...................................... joe louis arena detroit '14
Guess I needed some time to get away
I needed some peace of mind
Some peace of mind that'll stay
So I thumbed it down to sixth in L.A.
Maybe a Greyhound could be my way
Get outta my way
Don't need to buy none of your
Gold chains today
Now don't need no bracelets
Clamped in front of my back
Just need my ticket, 'til then
Won't you cut me some slack
Yeah that's what you are
You're one in a million babe
You're a shooting star
Maybe some day we'll see you
Before you make us cry
You know we tried to reach you
But you were much to high
Much too high
Much too high
Much too high
They make no sense to me
They come to our country
And think they'll do as they please
Like start some mini-Iran
Or spread some fucking disease
And they talk so many goddamn ways
It's all Greek to me
And others say that's just me
Some say I'm crazy
I guess I'll always be
But it's been such a long time
Since I knew right from wrong
It's all the means to and end and
I keep it moving along
Hey, hey, hey, yeah
You're a shooting star
You're one in a million babe
You know that you are
Maybe someday we'll see you
Before you make us cry
You know we tried to reach you
But you were much too high
Much too high
Much too high
Much too high
Don't point your finger at me
I'm a small town white boy
Just tryin' to make ends meet
Don't need your religion
Don't watch that much TV
Just makin' my livin' baby
Well that's enough for me
Yeah that's what you are
You're one in a million babe
You're a shooting star
Maybe some day we'll see you
Before you make us cry
You know we tried to reach you
But you were much too high
Much too high yeah, yeah, yeah
Much too high
Much too high
Much too high yeah, yeah, yeah
Much too high
Much too high
even if I look and act really crazy.
I used words like police and [n-word] because you're not allowed to use the word '[n-word].' Why can black people go up to each other and say, '[n-word],' but when a white guy does it all of a sudden it's a big putdown? I don't like boundaries of any kind. I don't like being told what I can and what I can't say. I used the word '[n-word]' because it's a word to describe somebody that is basically a pain in your life, a problem. The word '[-n-word]' doesn't necessarily mean black. Doesn't John Lennon have a song "Woman Is the [n-word] of the World"? There's a rap group, N.W.A. – Niggers With Attitude. I mean, they're proud of that word. More power to them. Guns n' Roses ain't bad . . . N.W.A. is baaad! Mr. Bob Goldthwait said the only reason we put these lyrics on the record was because it would cause controversy and we'd sell a million albums. Fuck him! Why'd he put us in his skit? We don't just do something to get the controversy, the press.
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By 1992, however, Rose seemed to have gained new perspective on the song and its lyrics. "I was pissed off about some black people that were trying to rob me," he said. "I wanted to insult those particular black people."[10] In his final public comments about "One in a Million" in 1992, Rose stated, "It was a way for me to express my anger at how vulnerable I felt in certain situations that had gone down in my life."
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Before the release of Lies, the other members of the band tried in vain to make Rose drop the track from the record.[16] Steven Adler exclaimed "What the fuck? Is this necessary?", to which Rose responded "Yeah, it's necessary. I'm letting my feelings out."[16] Slash, whose mother is black, noted that he did not condone the song but did not condemn his bandmate, commenting in 1991 Rolling Stone interview: "When Axl first came up with the song and really wanted to do it, I said I didn't think it was very cool... I don't regret doing 'One in a Million', I just regret what we've been through because of it and the way people have perceived our personal feelings."[17]
In 1988, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin told rock critic Nick Kent that the lyrics simply reflected the poor race relations of inner city Los Angeles.[18]
In a 2019 interview, Duff McKagan said: "One thing about Axl is if you’re going to try to compete with him intellectually, you’ve lost, because he’s a super smart guy... He’s a super sensitive dude who does his studies. When we did that song, I was still drinking but he was way ahead of us with his vision of, ‘Something’s gotta be said.’ That was the most hardcore way to say it. So flash-forward to now. So many people have misinterpreted that song that we removed it ... Nobody got it.”[19]
---
"One in a Million" was not included on a 2018 box-set reissue of Appetite for Destruction, which featured the remaining G N' R Lies songs on a bonus disc.[14] Slash explained it had been a collective decision, which didn't require a "big roundtable thing".[15]
Also, was it right to remove it or should it have been included on the Appetite deluxe box re-release?
This song won't work in todays climate.
2013 Wrigley 2014 St. Paul 2016 Fenway, Fenway, Wrigley, Wrigley 2018 Missoula, Wrigley, Wrigley 2021 Asbury Park 2022 St Louis 2023 Austin, Austin
But seems from comments that it's sung from Axl's own perspective.... yikes...
I'm old enough that I bought that album (EP?) soon after it came out and put the CD in my CD player / boombox. After the first seven songs, I found it to be a bit of a letdown (with the live Mama Kin cover and Patience being terrific exceptions). I remember just being blown away when I heard that song at age 15 or whatever. I was pretty disappointed and it's always informed my feelings on the band...(though to be frank, I feel they were disappointing in several ways...though they have a handful of really good songs, they have a lot of filler and a lot of drama). Now, that said, I bought the Use Your Illusion albums so I am either not entirely principled (bad) or not entirely woke (good).
One great "story" song is "Hurricane" by Bob Dylan. And Dylan's history saves him a bit but I do not understand why he used the word...it seems gratuitous. I've always struggled with that one.
2013 Wrigley 2014 St. Paul 2016 Fenway, Fenway, Wrigley, Wrigley 2018 Missoula, Wrigley, Wrigley 2021 Asbury Park 2022 St Louis 2023 Austin, Austin
When they stopped singing it, the anger about it quelled. Most teens right now aren't finding this on their radar right now so it won't be brought back up and they did leave it off the reissue.
That has always been my interpretation. But hey, I was wrong about One in a Million so...
I may have liked it because it was so avant-garde?
Now fast forward a few yeas and I became a big House of Pain fan. Their third album I believe, steamy pile, came out and this was when everyone was trying to be really hard. Think Pumps and the bumps by Hammer, anywho, Everlast dropped the N word in a song. I was like what?!?
He got a pass for that as far as I know. It was also the last time he did that. You would never hear the beasties doing that and it was weird to here Everlast do it.