… cause we must not offend people by using such a divisive term as “Saint”
Faith and begorrah, is nothing sacred?Some folks are trying to transform the name of Tuesday’s holiday from St. Patrick’s Day to “Shamrock Day.â€
Card shops have banners proclaiming the occasion; the Disney Channel is using the term; and some places in this country have changed the name of their community celebrations of Celtic heritage to the “nonoffending†terminology. [...]
“I don’t think that would ever be a success to call it Shamrock Day,†[Monsignor Mark Deering] said.
People the world over, of every culture and race, enjoy being Irish for the day, he added. And he said he’s heard no one take great umbrage before at having a Christian saint’s name attached to the day of merriment. [...]
But the organizers of Shamrock Day celebrations, such as the Habitot Children’s Museum in [Berkeley!] California, cite the need for “cultural diversity to our audience without broaching religious boundaries.â€
Oh, my, what fun the Cultural Diversity(tm) crowd should have with renaming California counties and cities since “Saint” is such an offending word. Right across the bay from Habitot is San Francisco, of course.
Anyone still unclear on why the struggle over intentionalism is so important?
Comment by Rob Crawford on 3/18 @ 10:16 am #
Sometimes I feel that the most important goal in these people’s lives is to sever us from our history.
Comment by Carin on 3/18 @ 10:19 am #
I’ve got a great idea. If people are so offended by the St in St Paddy’s day … howsabout they stay home instead of going out and having a fun time? I’ll call it Shamrock day when we can start calling Kwanza Made-up-Black-Holiday Day.
And, yes. I’ll simply denounce myself.
Comment by The Monster on 3/18 @ 10:24 am #
The Godless Commies renamed St. Petersburg “Petrograd”…
Franciscograd, CA.
Comment by The Monster on 3/18 @ 10:25 am #
Budweiser. King of Beers.
Anheuser-Busch, SomeGuyNamedLouis, MO
Comment by The Monster on 3/18 @ 10:26 am #
Pony Express Museum.
SomeOtherGuyNamedJoseph, MO
Comment by The Monster on 3/18 @ 10:27 am #
The Alamo.
AGuyNamedAntonio, TX
Comment by Mastiff on 3/18 @ 10:31 am #
Um, actually the Godless commies called it Leningrad. But carry on…
This “Shamrock Day” thing is crap. Observant Jews I know either say “saint” when it’s part of a place-name, or else substitute something innocuous in Hebrew if they really care enough. We definitely don’t impose on other people.
Grr.
Comment by Ginger on 3/18 @ 10:32 am #
“Anyone still unclear on why the struggle over intentionalism is so important?â€
When I first read the post I thought it said: “Anyone still unclear on why the struggle over intelligence is so important?
That works too.
Comment by the wolf on 3/18 @ 10:37 am #
“Non-offending?”
What exactly is offensive about a saint? I suggest, instead of renaming St. Patrick’s Day, these people create a separate holiday of their own. We can call it Asshole’s Day.
Comment by George Orwell on 3/18 @ 10:38 am #
Um, no, the Commies renamed it Petrograd in 1914, and then renamed it again to deify Lenin, hence Leningrad.
I live in the city formerly known as “Los Angeles,” from this point forth to be rechristened… uh, sorry, I didn’t mean to offend or fail to show appropriate honor to our diversity, by using that “rechristen” word.
Try again. I live in the city formerly known as “Los Angeles,” from this point forth to be known as “Las Criaturas MÃticos De Origen Sobrenatural.”
Comment by JD on 3/18 @ 10:44 am #
I think that the word President is offensive, and racist.
Comment by Ginger on 3/18 @ 10:45 am #
The gals at The View told me that saints of old were really mentally ill.
Hey Habitots! I’m now offended on behalf of the mentally ill community.
Comment by 11B40 on 3/18 @ 10:47 am #
Greetings:
Cultural Diversity – and we’ll tell you which cultures are diverse enough.
Comment by Chrees on 3/18 @ 10:50 am #
For the English First/Only crowd, change it to Body of Christ, Texas and watch heads explode.
Comment by Abe Froman on 3/18 @ 10:52 am #
It never stops with these people. And what’s most maddening to me is that over the years I notice that I’ll mock liberal friends over things like this, they’ll agree its silly and say most liberals don’t think that way and then over time they ALL think it. And the cycle repeats. Over and over again.
Comment by Republican on Acid on 3/18 @ 10:56 am #
Who the fuck are these people that think shit like this, and why isn’t anyone punching them in the face?
Comment by Abe Froman on 3/18 @ 11:04 am #
And the biggest irony is that if these fuckwits were consistent in their busybody bullshit they’d be more troubled by an ostensibly Irish holiday which reduces an ethnicity to being a bunch of drunken hooligans than the religious name.
Comment by William Teach on 3/18 @ 11:07 am #
You know, I am not even shocked by this kind of stuff anymore. Enraged, yes, but not shocked.
Comment by Republican on Acid on 3/18 @ 11:10 am #
Email everyone of these sorry bastards and let them know how retarded they are:
http://www.habitot.org/hab/contact.htm
Comment by PunditJoe on 3/18 @ 11:14 am #
So, cultural traditions must be changed or not observed in order to be sensitive to other cultures? Huh? I thought the tolerant multi-cultural thing would have been to allow and embrace the traditions of others.
Asking folks to surrender the names, origins and meanings behind their traditions doesn’t strike me as being sensitive to their cultures.
Comment by The Sanity Inspector on 3/18 @ 11:20 am #
Asking folks to surrender the names, origins and meanings behind their traditions doesn’t strike me as being sensitive to their cultures.
The most idiotic effort along these lines that I ever heard of was whoever it was that tried to get their employees to say “Happy Sparkle Season” instead of “Merry Christmas.”
Comment by Jeffersonian on 3/18 @ 11:22 am #
Time to rename that one Monday in January.
Comment by Jillian on 3/18 @ 11:24 am #
@ Abe Froman
“…these people.”
??
Comment by slackjawedyokel on 3/18 @ 11:32 am #
Well, when you have a Secretary of Homeland Security who substitutes the term “man-caused events” for “terrorism”, what do you expect?
Comment by Abe Froman on 3/18 @ 11:32 am #
23, “these people” would be left-wing fucktard busybodies.
Comment by N. O'Brain on 3/18 @ 11:40 am #
Fuck ‘em.
It’s St. Patrick’s Day.
And Christmas.
And Easter.
And Hanukkah.
Comment by Christopher Taylor on 3/18 @ 11:42 am #
I wish they’d stop saying they want to change things because they are “offensive” and just admit that it is because they are “offensive to the wrong people.” They don’t care about causing offense, it just has to be the correct groups who are offended: Christians, for instance.
Comment by N. O'Brain on 3/18 @ 11:47 am #
I’m offended that they are insulting an Irish tradition.
Comment by ccs on 3/18 @ 11:54 am #
So, it’s ok to be black for a month bu not Irish for a day?
(I denounce myself)
Comment by pdbuttons on 3/18 @ 11:57 am #
kiss me I’m…
Irish/druid/leprachaun /little people
height challenged
Erin go…
support bra/burn baby burn//manseirre/
bro…
i didn’t sat bot/bro..bra…
blarney
Comment by pdbuttons on 3/18 @ 12:01 pm #
blarney miller
eric holder
i denounce aggressive snakes
unless my babies momma got a tattoo on her lower back…
that look’s snakey…
tattoo removal/just in case
[free-formin']
tanks
Comment by pdbuttons on 3/18 @ 12:08 pm #
they planted a “time capsule”
a thousand years ago in Ireland
a big ceremony was commenced as they dug it up…
a big book was what was contained
the title…
“Great Irish Recipes”
[at least it didn't contain the word beer/potato]
points 4 that?
/
Comment by Kevin B on 3/18 @ 12:11 pm #
I deplore your propensity to wear leprechaun hats and ginger wigs, drink your Guinness dyed green and sing ‘Wild Rover’ drunkely and repeatedly on Saint Patrick’s day.
But I shall defend to the death your right to wear leprechaun hats and ginger wigs, drink your Guinness dyed green and sing ‘Wild Rover’ drunkenly and repeatedly on Saint Patrick’s day.
“Here Paddy! Come here Paddy! That’s a good boy Paddy!”
Comment by Kevin B on 3/18 @ 12:14 pm #
“What?… He’s an Irish setter. If it’s anything to do with you what I call my dog.”
Comment by roger h on 3/18 @ 12:17 pm #
I live in Santa Cruz county in California, “Holy Cross” has two strikes.
Comment by BJTexs on 3/18 @ 12:30 pm #
#24: “Man-caused events
Oh, yea, heaven forbid we call them terrorists … you know … those JIHADIST RELIGIOUS FANATICS WHO WANT TO KILL US! CAN’T RISK OFFENDING THEM, CAN WE??!!?!??!
What are they, then? Man-Caused Event Causers?
Advil … where is my Advil …
Comment by pdbuttons on 3/18 @ 12:35 pm #
paddy-wagon
Comment by mojo on 3/18 @ 12:38 pm #
“La Ciudad de Nuestra Dona Maria, Madre de Dios y Reina de Los Angeles”
(The City of Our Lady Mary, Mother of God and Queen of the Angels)
Them Spaniards were long-winded bastards, weren’t they?
Comment by Log Cabin on 3/18 @ 12:57 pm #
So should the federal holiday on December 25th become
“Jesus the Nazarene Carpenter’s birthday”? How about “Winter Day”?
Will kids trick or treat on “The night before deists honor all those they believe sacred, and people laughingly thought the dead could cross over to our world?”? Or simply, “Disguise Night”?
Comment by Sugah on 3/18 @ 1:01 pm #
It’s all about wanting to shame people. But only people who are generally white, anglo-saxon, protestanty/catholicy people. We have to constantly be aware of all the pain we’ve caused the world.
Sheesh.
Do I need to denounce myself now? I’m sure I’ve offended someone. Somewhere…
Comment by LTC John on 3/18 @ 1:06 pm #
“What are they, then? Man-Caused Event Causers?”
I remember being in a Alleged Hot Place that is Judgment-y of a fight with some Man-Caused Event Causers in Basrah…
Comment by SDN on 3/18 @ 1:14 pm #
Of course they’re man-caused events… you sexist pigs don’t think any of this is the womyn’s fault, DO YOU?
Comment by Squid on 3/18 @ 1:18 pm #
I can’t wait for the new editions of the geography books. The capital of Minnesota is… Paulton? Tarsusville? And just what are we going to call the capital of New Mexico? I mean, there’s just no way a city named “Holy Spirit” is going to be left alone!
Comment by Matt on 3/18 @ 1:35 pm #
Next we’ll be told to stop calling dad “father” as it references a religious type person. Plus, “dad” may be unacceptable, because it has three letters, just like “god.” We’re still waiting on the ACLU’s opinion on that.
Comment by Mayor McQueso on 3/18 @ 1:36 pm #
Wouldn’t this make it easier to market Shamrock Shakesâ„¢?
Comment by Sacrilicious on 3/18 @ 1:37 pm #
Speaking of Shamrock Day, isn’t Bunny Day coming up soon?
Comment by Matt on 3/18 @ 1:37 pm #
Also dog is just “god” spelled backward so that’s banned, for being both racist and religious. So dogs are canines. Wait, “canine”? That term brings to mind the Cananites, from a Biblical story so that one is probably out.
Comment by psycho... on 3/18 @ 1:42 pm #
It was.
Now, if you want to thwart the anti-St. Patrick brigade, sneakily get a couple kids to start using “shamrock” to mean “black guy.” It sounds like an ’80s MC name anyway, and kids love slang their teachers don’t know. It’ll catch and spread.
Every replacement for every “offensive” word, each bit of diversicrat jargon that annoys you — take it and make it unspeakable. Or just lie and say it already is. People will want to believe you if they think you’ve told them a secret.
You’re on the internet right now. Every word you type has the potential to become a “meme.” I made one myself — that’s on t-shirts now — just making a throwaway joke (not here, though every time I see a super-long “RAAAAAAAAAAAAACIST” anywhere else, I get a weird twinge).
Don’t let them decide what means what. Do it yourself, right in their face.
Comment by pdbuttons on 3/18 @ 1:49 pm #
the los angeles angels of anaheim
Comment by Vincent on 3/18 @ 1:59 pm #
Um, no, the Commies renamed it Petrograd in 1914, and then renamed it again to deify Lenin, hence Leningrad.
Not to be pedantic, but the tsarist government did not collapse until 1917, meaning “the Commies” weren’t in any position to go around renaming any cities in 1914.
The name “St. Petersburg” was changed when the First World War broke out because it was considered “too German” (the problem was with burg, which is a rather German word). So they renamed it петроград (Petrograd), which is a rather Russian way of saying “Peter’s City”.
The Bolsheviks only renamed the city to Ленинград (Leningrad) in 1924 after Lenin died.
Just thought I’d clear that up.
Comment by Ginger on 3/18 @ 2:44 pm #
Think of the dashed dreams of all the bumper-sticker holdouts in St. Paul. They were hopin’ to rename it “St. Paul Wellstone.”
Comment by TaiChiWawa on 3/18 @ 2:56 pm #
The capital of Minnesota is… Paulton?
I propose a merger with Minneapolis to form Polypolis — Polyps, for short.
Comment by Squid on 3/18 @ 3:42 pm #
I think you’d get a lot farther with Minneapaulis.
Comment by Jillian on 3/18 @ 4:36 pm #
St. Patrick used the shamrock to convert the Irish to Christianity by describing each of the three leaves as representing one of the holy trinity. So how does “Happy Shamrock Day” avoid broaching religious boundaries? I’m so confused.
Comment by solitary knight on 3/18 @ 4:51 pm #
Watch out Guy Fawkes Day, you’re just blantantly sexist.
Comment by Dana on 3/18 @ 6:23 pm #
One wonders what they think of Corpus Christi, Texas.
Comment by Great Mencken's Ghost! on 3/18 @ 6:38 pm #
An Unrevisionist Irish History
Comment by Andrew the Noisy on 3/19 @ 12:53 pm #
Further proof that Disney is the Mark of the Beast.
Ya know, it wasn’t so long ago that there’d be hoards of unwashed Micks ready to take a lead pipe to someone who suggested calling the Feast of St. Patrick something other than it is. You’d sooner wear orange to the pub that day.
I hate this with more hate than I can possibly describe. You take my culture from me in the name of tolerance? Are you too stupid to see the inanity of that?
This is what Rage means, isn’t it?
Comment by mojo on 3/19 @ 2:42 pm #
Padraic. Patrick is what the damned sassenach called him.