• Quick note - the problem with Youtube videos not embedding on the forum appears to have been fixed, thanks to ZiprHead. If you do still see problems let me know.

Monkey See. Monkey Do. Oops $12 million.

PhantomWolf said:
I am guessing then if I got a photo of you and posted it to the internet with the words "Pedo-Guy" on it, then as long as it was just a joke and no harm meant, you'd be all fine with it?
Click to expand...

psionl0 said:
What a malicious thing to make up!
Click to expand...

PhantomWolf said:
It's not malicious, it's a joke, just like calling a Black person a monkey, so what's the harm?
Click to expand...

psionl0 said:
I say it's a malicious attempt to defame me with false information and cause me harm.
Click to expand...

I guess "Freedom of Speech"TM is conditional after all
 
PhantomWolf said:
Quashing freedom of speech then, or do you also accept that Blacks put in a photo that refers to them as Monkeys might also consider that "a malicious attempt to defame with false information and cause harm."
Click to expand...
Are you really saying that the photo was intended to make people believe that the teens were monkeys? That's seriously overreaching.

smartcooky said:
I guess "Freedom of Speech"TM is conditional after all
Click to expand...
Yes but not because of PhantomWolf's silly example.
 
Last edited:
psionl0 said:
Are you really saying that the photo was intended to make people believe that the teens were monkeys? That's seriously overreaching.


Yes but not because of PhantomWolf's silly example.
Click to expand...

Sounds a bit silly, doesn’t it. So probably not that.
 
psionl0 said:
Are you really saying that the photo was intended to make people believe that the teens were monkeys? That's seriously overreaching.


Yes but not because of PhantomWolf's silly example.
Click to expand...
I'm interested in what you think the photo manipulation was intended to do.
 
As someone said earlier “monkey see, monkey do” is an insult in its own right. But the stubborn insistence for some to complete ignore the context (ie, that the kids are black) is what makes the defence of this teacher literally unbelievable.

Tell you what, how about some of these defenders go to a black neighbourhood and yell out “monkey see, monkey do, hey it’s only a saying”. Do you seriously think all you would get is nods and amused smiles? Of course you don’t.

So cut out this “it’s just an old saying” ********. There is no context that excuses what this teacher did. Was it intentional? I don’t care. “Didn’t mean it” is no excuse for racism.
 
Here's a radical idea.

Maybe, just maybe, if black people don't want to be called monkeys you just... don't call them monkeys instead of launching an expedition to find an excuse as to why it's not that big of a deal?

Again not everyone's goal in life is to be the biggest jerk possible while still being "Technically not in the wrong."

And that's all in the insane fantasy world world where this isn't an legit problem.
 
Somewhere along the journey of posing four students in a strange way, taking a photo, captioning that photo, and sharing that photo publicly, a teacher ought to ask themselves "Is this really stupid and likely to result in me getting ****-canned?"

The answer here is undoubtedly yes.
 
The issue here is not whether it is okay to do this. It was obviously offensive. The issue is whether this teacher is a racist, and if the school maintained and enabled a culture of racist behavior, and if the damages are in any kind of proportion to the action.

I think the guy was clean, if thoughtless. This should be one of those 'oh god, I didn't think it would be taken like that, I'm so sorry' and the teacher et al explain themselves and apologize. Maybe have an assembly to talk about being hip to innocent playing around that can inadvertently hurt others, and having respect for those around you who are legitimately offended, even though there was no demeaning intent.

Instead, the school is labeled a bunch of racists and a heavy duty shakedown is underway. That's the part that doesn't sit right.
 
SuburbanTurkey said:
Somewhere along the journey of posing four students in a strange way, taking a photo, captioning that photo, and sharing that photo publicly, a teacher ought to ask themselves "Is this really stupid and likely to result in me getting ****-canned?"

The answer here is undoubtedly yes.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure about that. In one sense, it's obviously yes.

But in a social setting where hijinks of this kind have long been acknowledged as harmless fun, and where the teacher has repeatedly gotten feedback that what they're doing is okay and even desirable, it's different.

The prevalent workplace norms have an effect on the people that work there. Stay in one workplace long enough, and you start to lose awareness of any outside context that might act as a counterbalance. What might seem weird or bizarre to an outsider ends up seeming pretty normal to long-time insiders. (This can actually be a problem for people like young college grads who are entering the workforce for the first time, and don't yet know what the norms are. If they land in a dysfunctional organization with their first job, it can poison their understanding of appropriate workplace behavior and cost them better jobs later on.)

So I'd give it a "qualified yes".

Yes, they probably should have stopped and asked themselves at several points along the way. But if they'd been getting enough positive feedback over a long enough period, the instinct to stop and ask may have been dulled to the point of uselessness. I don't think that they can be wholly to blame for such degradation of awareness.
 
theprestige said:
I'm not sure about that. In one sense, it's obviously yes.

But in a social setting where hijinks of this kind have long been acknowledged as harmless fun, and where the teacher has repeatedly gotten feedback that what they're doing is okay and even desirable, it's different.
Click to expand...

And this is why it is not just the teacher's problem, but the district's. Management, leadership, administration, whatever you want to call it, should have seen "jokes at the expense of kids" as the mine field that it is and stopped that chicanery years ago. It was only a matter of time before "harmless joke at the expense of kids" ends up with "parent suing".

I know it is not popular, but the old adage that you should only "punch up" in humor could have saved a lot of grief here.
 
Dr. Keith said:
And this is why it is not just the teacher's problem, but the district's. Management, leadership, administration, whatever you want to call it, should have seen "jokes at the expense of kids" as the mine field that it is and stopped that chicanery years ago. It was only a matter of time before "harmless joke at the expense of kids" ends up with "parent suing".

I know it is not popular, but the old adage that you should only "punch up" in humor could have saved a lot of grief here.
Click to expand...

I tend to agree. But the principle of punching up in comedy is relatively new.

And this kind of sounds like the kind of thing that started innocently, years ago, with (white) students who were in on the joke. Then it became tradition. Then the origins were forgotten and the practice was taken for granted. Then, long after everyone had stopped thinking to ask about whether it was a good idea, a scenario arose where it was a bad idea, and nobody was in the proper frame of mind to realize it anymore.
 
William Parcher said:
They poke fun at students of all races. They don't care about race. So they were doing the same thing they always do but this time they made a big error without realizing it.
Click to expand...

Like the politician George Allen who called a indian campaign aide "macaca". That is of course a traditional slur for french people to refer to blacks by calling them monkeys. He couldn't even use the ethnic slur properly, and how can you respect a politician who does that?
 
Safe-Keeper said:
People like this just brings my piss to a boil. There are people out there experiencing actual traumatic things. I just watched the first two episodes of a Norwegian TV series dramatazing the July 22nd attacks here in Norway. That's an event that scarred people forever. That's traumatic. That's life-ruining. That's something people might never get over, and struggle with 30 years from now.
Click to expand...

And that shows how weak queer people are killing themselves over a little nothing level harassment compared to being in mass shootings. They just need to toughen up a bit. Childhood harrassment for that is totally nothing and should not be regarded as a serious issue to anyone.
 
Thermal said:
My own father called me Sue and made a ton of gay cracks when I was a long haired teen. My own mother said I looked like a punk. I wonder how many millions they owe me? Maybe I should contact this OP lawyer...
Click to expand...

And that was good and toughened you up, that is why we should be glad when say a trans kid who is bullied by their parents kills themselves or something because it means we are all tougher for weeding out the snowflakes like that.

If these kids can not take racist harassment in school how are they going to be adjusted for it in their adult lives? It will be a constant that is a given so we need to make sure they get used to it early.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top Bottom