Mahler the Racist - JP Fitness Forums

Mahler · 11-08-2005, 10:32 AM

http://forums.menshealth.com/groupee...21/m/160104782

Read some of the reaction to my 89th motivator over at Men's Health. This is why this world is so fucked up.

Mahler

ichbinba · 11-08-2005, 10:44 AM

holy crap... so now people who speak according to a dictionary are the wrong ones?? We're supposed to change or speech everytime a new slang word, or in this example, and existing word derives some additional connotation?? That's bullshit, and in an essence why 99% of us stop posting on that board long ago.

Screw him, keep up the great reads

Howard_Rourke · 11-08-2005, 10:54 AM

Yeesh...talk about overly sensitive. It seems some people look for racist undertones in everything. Keep on keeping on, Mr. Mahler.

Howie

Deserve · 11-08-2005, 10:56 AM

Why do you bother at that place? I agree with Howard. He's got a huge a chip on his shoulder.

RedLefty · 11-08-2005, 10:59 AM

At 9:49 am (CST) the guy made a post saying he realized he was wrong, and that the word "thug" should not have been taken as a racist slur.

Until then, Mahler, I was ready to say: "Pearls before swine, my friend... pearls before swine." Of course, for the MH crowd, I would have meant it in the nicest way.

Bond007 · 11-08-2005, 11:04 AM

Well, I couldn't resist adding my own .02 cents. That's just insane!!

Marykaa · 11-08-2005, 11:34 AM

Quote:

At 9:49 am (CST) the guy made a post saying he realized he was wrong, and that the word "thug" should not have been taken as a racist slur.

Words.. so easy to misunderstand.. and sentences even more.. silences are sometimes just as bad.. Mahler, for every ONE misunderstanding there are hundreds of message that appreiciate you and probably thousands of people who right off the bat knew that it was crazy.

Keep up the good work.

ODB · 11-08-2005, 11:45 AM

The funny thing is that I can't even get on the Men's Health Message Board from work. It's totally blocked as inappropriate.

raymond3 · 11-08-2005, 11:45 AM

lol..and the ironic thing is the poster is a white guy...funny s*it.

TrainingGirl · 11-08-2005, 11:47 AM

Ugh...is it time for me to go over there now and kick some ass? No one messes with MY Mahler

Marykaa · 11-08-2005, 11:49 AM

hey TG.. you have GymRat as your's already , can't we say OUR Mahler?

PaPaLoAdS · 11-08-2005, 12:02 PM

"I was just thrown off because by stating "thugs", it seemed that you were talking only about blacks. And I hope you see how people could take that as a somewhat racist remark. I in no way believe you are racist, because you seem like a very logical man, but from my viewpoint I felt you were singling out black athletes without mentioning anything wrong with white/asian/latino/etc athletes."

having friends that are really into hip hop and rap and all that stuff i am very familiar with a lot of slang and its culture. it is because of this that when i read this statement:

"Our children, often unknowingly, look up to people who are little more than spoiled brats dressed as adults or, worse yet, common thugs who happen to be able to handle a ball, be it foot, basket or base. "

i also saw a hint of what he was talking about and it kind of made me pause and think for a second.

i decided to not bring it up because:

a. from my experience of you i got the feeling that you werent ontop of all the current slang out there today, so it was pretty likely that you did not mean it in the way(with my experience of the word) i read it.

b. your'e Mahler

i hope that kind of helped in your understanding of why he said what he said.

FlyinM · 11-08-2005, 12:24 PM

Well, remember that in the PC world, we couldn't refer to the homeless after Hurricane Katrina as 'refugees' because it was also a racist term........

Main Entry: ref·u·gee
Pronunciation: "re-fyu-'jE
Function: noun
: an individual seeking refuge or asylum; especially : an individual who has left his or her native country and is unwilling or unable to return to it because of persecution or fear of persecution (as because of race, religion, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion)

Now if you want to say that is was incorrectly used, I can buy that. But I do not read any racist meaning in the definition.

Perhaps I just need to download the latest slang dictionary before I get myself in real trouble.

mmMatt · 11-08-2005, 12:25 PM

I honestly could care less why he said it. Too much these days is influenced by race.

A week or so back at the gym I was using the squat rack. I'd only done one set and a large fellow comes up and asks if it's his turn yet.

My response, "One sec bud, gunna go for another set then I'll let you have it."

His response, "This is bullshit, if I were white you would have handed it right over."

At this point the best man in my upcoming wedding, who happened to be doing deads right next to us puts his hand over my shoulder and said, "Just wait your turn."

Needless to say the guy walked off... even though I was ready to just give it to the guy. I'm not someone who likes confrontation, especially not when I could just finish my workouts when he was done [img]smile.gif[/img]

Did I forget to mention my best man is one of the largest black guys I've ever seen? [img]tongue.gif[/img] If it wasn't for him, I'd have never started working out. He's the reason I'm driving so hard to get into shape. I've always seen how driven he was, and it really shows. Now it's more of just enjoying the journy with eachother. Even though I'm benching 130 and he's benching 300 [img]tongue.gif[/img]

Race is such a small thing, I hate when it ends up being the biggest factor in idiotic conversations.

raymond3 · 11-08-2005, 12:32 PM

I agree...my father is italian and my mother is hispanic..I cant believe its almost 2006 and there is still racism (on all sides). People should embrace all nationalities...different food, different cultures...different females

Why waste time with worrying who is black, white, spanish, asian, etc...who cares? Some look for the bad in things, instead of the good..pretty sad.

Mahler · 11-08-2005, 12:39 PM

The problem with slang is that it is ephemeral. It has meaning one day and is gone the next. What's worse, it has meaning to a segment of a society or population and is often lost on the rest. Additionally, it is not incumbent upon the rest of society to learn, use or understand said slang. I guess my point is that it is every bit a racist reaction for a minority, or someone coming to the defense of that minority, to assume that the writer or speaker is using a term in the particular context which they created or ascribe to. Believe me, I am not the verbal virgin you make me out to be and have heard the word "thug" used in the way that was alluded to. I simply chose not to use the word in that frame of reference when writing my thoughts. Now should I, too, be offended because someone made the assumption that I did otherwise? This entire discussion brings to light so vividly to me the words of Abraham Lincoln that if you look for the bad in someone, you will surely find it.

Mahler

PS:
"b. your'e Mahler"

I love it. I suddenly feel like I should be on a mountaintop dispensing wisdom.

PaPaLoAdS · 11-08-2005, 12:49 PM

"I agree...my father is italian and my mother is hispanic..I cant believe its almost 2006 and there is still racism (on all sides). People should embrace all nationalities...different food, different cultures...different females

Why waste time with worrying who is black, white, spanish, asian, etc...who cares?"

im with you on that

"Some look for the bad in everything..pretty sad. "
if this is in regards to the MMMM interpretation then,

i and i m sure that other guy on men's health were not looking for the bad in everthing. its just now a days words mean different things.

i think this example will make it clear:

jonny is a very gay guy.

to someone who lived in the 30's 40's or 50's that sentence meant jonny is a very happy guy.

but over time word meanings change and now that sentence would be understood as "jonny is a very homosexual guy"

if it isnt regarding the MMMM interpretation then ignore

Mahler · 11-08-2005, 12:52 PM

Ugh...is it time for me to go over there now and kick some ass? No one messes with MY Mahler

hey TG.. you have GymRat as your's already , can't we say OUR Mahler?

Do you know how difficult it is to even respond to those statements without looking like some big headed loser who is all full of himself?

Thanks.

Mahler

Trainer One · 11-08-2005, 01:26 PM

I KNOW Mahler isn't a racist (I'm African-American for what it's worth) but like it or not, the term thug nowadays (thug life) DOES generally mean black. Just like gay used to mean "happy" it now means homosexual. Times change.

And I don't want to beat a dead horse, but Mahler, Chris and Lou ALL made a derogatory comment about Alywn last week (about Scots people being "tight-fisted" with money).

I know it's a stereotype, and it's not meant as an insult - but that same stereotype existss with the word "thug".

How do we know those comments weren't offensive to Alywn?

It's a form of prejudice just like any other. (I know you meant it as a joke and I think all of you know Alywn personally, but you can't decide when something is offensive and when it isn't just based on YOUR attitude).