3 ms·

National slur? That's a pretty big accusation. It was a half-joking, self-depreciating comment. Sheesh. I know you're a reasonable guy, dang, but I really don't

National slur? That's a pretty big accusation. It was a half-joking, self-depreciating comment. Sheesh. I know you're a reasonable guy, dang, but I really don't appreciate my comment being labeled that way. In any case, message received.

dang 6y ago
It just means a disparaging remark or a slight. I don't care about the noun, so if you want to suggest a more accurate one I'm happy to edit my comment above. What I care about is that you (or anyone) not post putdowns like that, because it leads at best to crappier discussion and at worst to hellish flamewar. Being a member of the disparaged group doesn't help, at least not on the internet, where such nuances get lost immediately. Re "half-joking, self-depreciating", I believe you, but such things don't communicate themselves, as this thread already demonstrates. The burden is on the commenter to disambiguate intent. https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=false&sort=byDate&type=comment&query=disambiguate%20burden%20by:dang https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=false&so...
- ceilingcorner 6y ago
  Slur always meant a pretty offensive remark to me, typically referring to a race or ethnic group. If a news headline said, "Mr. Smith Uses Slur Against [Group] on Live Television", I would assume it was a racist remark. Which is, of course, a pretty serious thing. Mr. Smith would likely lose his job and his reputation, purely based on the inclusion of the word slur in the headline. Putdown or disparaging remark seems like a better word to describe it.
  - dang 6y ago
    I just use 'slur' in the dictionary sense: "a disparaging remark or a slight" (https://www.dictionary.com/browse/slur https://www.dictionary.com/browse/slur). But ok, I've replaced it with 'putdown' in my GP comment. There's a pretty wide variation in how these words get understood across different parts of the world.

dang 6y ago

It just means a disparaging remark or a slight. I don't care about the noun, so if you want to suggest a more accurate one I'm happy to edit my comment above. What I care about is that you (or anyone) not post putdowns like that, because it leads at best to crappier discussion and at worst to hellish flamewar. Being a member of the disparaged group doesn't help, at least not on the internet, where such nuances get lost immediately. Re "half-joking, self-depreciating", I believe you, but such things don't communicate themselves, as this thread already demonstrates. The burden is on the commenter to disambiguate intent. https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=false&sort=byDate&type=comment&query=disambiguate%20burden%20by:dang https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=false&so...

ceilingcorner 6y ago
Slur always meant a pretty offensive remark to me, typically referring to a race or ethnic group. If a news headline said, "Mr. Smith Uses Slur Against [Group] on Live Television", I would assume it was a racist remark. Which is, of course, a pretty serious thing. Mr. Smith would likely lose his job and his reputation, purely based on the inclusion of the word slur in the headline. Putdown or disparaging remark seems like a better word to describe it.
- dang 6y ago
  I just use 'slur' in the dictionary sense: "a disparaging remark or a slight" (https://www.dictionary.com/browse/slur https://www.dictionary.com/browse/slur). But ok, I've replaced it with 'putdown' in my GP comment. There's a pretty wide variation in how these words get understood across different parts of the world.