Making the news today....

[openspaceman]

Ah!!

 

I scrolled down and found the article.

 

Actually a "nigger" was a sort of saw horse, used when processing fire wood, so the term refers to loosing the tool within the pile of logs. So not racist at all, I'm sure no one will want facts to get in the way of a good bit of hysteria and outrage.

 

I wish I knew that when an old family friend used the term in talking to a subordinate volunteer at our local CAB, she was plainly disruptive but he lost his voluntary position as local chief exec as a result on grounds of racist language.

[Graham]

I don't think anything racist was meant by her use of the phrase. It was a common figure of speech not long ago. Things like that are sometimes spoken without literal intent.

[Steve Bullman]

I don't think anything racist was meant by her use of the phrase. It was a common figure of speech not long ago. Things like that are sometimes spoken without literal intent.

i'm sure, but that won't be an excuse for most people.

[Mark Bolam]

It's the sort of thing my dad would say, without any racist intent whatsoever.

He's definitely not a racist, in his own words he 'likes the darkies'.

 

 

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[muttley9050]

Ah!!

 

I scrolled down and found the article.

 

Actually a "nigger" was a sort of saw horse, used when processing fire wood, so the term refers to loosing the tool within the pile of logs. So not racist at all, I'm sure no one will want facts to get in the way of a good bit of hysteria and outrage.

That's an interesting thought. But the likes of wiki etc disagree about the origin?

[openspaceman]

Ah!!

 

I scrolled down and found the article.

 

Actually a "nigger" was a sort of saw horse, used when processing fire wood, so the term refers to loosing the tool within the pile of logs. So not racist at all, I'm sure no one will want facts to get in the way of a good bit of hysteria and outrage.

 

I've had a brief google and cannot see a cite for that, it seems to refer to hiding escaped slaves.

[skyhuck]

I've had a brief google and cannot see a cite for that, it seems to refer to hiding escaped slaves.

 

Well its what I was told as a boy, made sense to me, maybe I've been mislead??

[Mick Dempsey]

Looks like it.

[difflock]

Since the Yanks bought wood by the cord, the "entrepreneurial" woodcutters would, if possible stack the wood they split around a hollow centre, which left the perfect hiding place for a slave or indeed any lowly paid servant to hide & doze the day away.

Hence the expression, or so I understand.

[Mick Dempsey]

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigger_in_the_woodpile