Political correctness gone wild.

[droogsteve]

When I first read this I though that it was a joke. Sadly, it isn't.

L.A. Wants to End 'Master' and 'Slave' Equipment
Wed November 26, 2003 08:04 AM ET

By Dan Whitcomb
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Los Angeles officials have asked that manufacturers, suppliers and contractors stop using the terms "master" and "slave" on computer equipment, saying such terms are unacceptable and offensive.

The request -- which has some suppliers furious and others busy re-labeling components -- came after an unidentified worker spotted a videotape machine carrying devices labeled "master" and "slave" and filed a discrimination complaint with the county's Office of Affirmative Action Compliance.

In the computer industry, "master" and "slave" are used to refer to primary and secondary hard disk drives. The terms are also used in other industries.

"Based on the cultural diversity and sensitivity of Los Angeles County, this is not an acceptable identification label," Joe Sandoval, division manager of purchasing and contract services, said in a memo sent to County vendors.

"We would request that each manufacturer, supplier and contractor review, identify and remove/change any identification or labeling of equipment components that could be interpreted as discriminatory or offensive in nature," Sandoval said in the memo, which was distributed last week and made available to Reuters.

The memo did not include any suggestions for alternative labels.

Dennis Tafoya, director of the affirmative action office, said in a separate memo that an "exhaustive search" had been undertaken to find all such labels and replace them with more "appropriate" ones. A form was sent to all departments to identify equipment carrying the labels "master" and "slave" or any other offensive terms.

Faced with an avalanche of complaints from vendors and the general public, Sandoval told Reuters in an interview that his memo was intended as "nothing more than a request" and not an ultimatum or policy change.

"I do understand that this term has been an industry standard for years and years and this is nothing more than a plea to vendors to see what they can do," he said. "It appears that some folks have taken this a little too literally."

Sandoval said that he had already rejected a suggestion that the county stop buying all equipment carrying the "master" and "slave" labels and had no intention of enforcing a ban on such terms with suppliers.

"But we are culturally sensitive and we have 90,000 employees," he said. "We have to take these things seriously."

HERE'S THE LINK (http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=3894931)




Un-fucking-believable. I can't wait for the first disability claim from an African-American state employee who claims that they were too emotionally traumatized by their "racist" computer to work.

[LOGAN]

whats next the s&m world?

[fcuknu]

Its just sad. These people are more worried about offending somebody (If you are offended buy something like this, your feelings shouldnt count) than some of the other things going on in the world now. Its just sad.

[mascan42]

an unidentified worker spotted a videotape machine carrying devices labeled "master" and "slave" and filed a discrimination complaint
Whoever this guy is, he needs a good solid kick in the head.

[Ballbuster1]

These people need to get a life. We use the same expresions
in auto repair when referring to components such as a master
cylinder for your brakes , or master and slave cylinders in a
clutch system. I'm personally offended by the stupidity of
some people. Can they kill them to make me happy?
:huh:

[Stinkysteve]

In Los Angeles, instead of labeling the devices Master and Slave, maybe they can try, Homeowner and Day Worker, or Boss and Slacker.

[Sinn Fein]

Unreal. Talk about frivolous...

[RandomNY]

Where is Dr. KAVORKIAN when we need him? Someone needs to put this moron out of his misery.

[carpetbagger]

In June, the Los Angeles city council unanimously passed a law requiring that any companies doing business with the city disclose profits they may have made from slavery in the 19th Century. In 2000, the council supported federal legislation seeking reparations for descendants of slaves

It's not just this guy, it's the fucking city of LA. The men who tried to murder Reginald Denny served 4 years behind bars. But it's offensive to use the terms "master" and "slave"

You want offensive -- here's Kee Kee Watson's explanation for why they smashed Denny's skull into 100 pieces on live TV
"When I think about the King verdict and the other shit that goes down in my community," Watson reflects, "the word that sticks out boldly in my mind is rage--a sense of sheer terror coming from a Black man's point of view. Someone had to stand up against this ridiculous verdict that had been handed down. Myself and the others around me in my area stood up."

[droogsteve]

What a load of bullshit. I guess the rest of the "community" showed their rage by looting stores and stealing big screen TVs and Air Jordans. The sad part is that there are actually bleeding heart morons who buy that bullshit. I was outraged by the OJ verdict. I somehow resisted the urge to loot my local mall. I was outraged by 9/11. I didn't find an arab and smash his head in with a cinderblock. The Rodney King verdict was used as an excuse. Most of the looters couldn't give a fuck about King. Those cops never should have been charged in the first place. He was resisting arrest. If you swing on a cop you should expect to be beaten. Hoo-hoo had a good line at the time. He said that King should be beaten every time he picks up his car keys.

It's funny. Despite their "outrage" at the system, nobody looted the courthouse or government buildings. I guess they figured while they were fighting for justice for Rodney, they might as well get a new VCR and some Tommy Hilfiger sweats out of the deal.

[Sinn Fein]

I couldn't have said it better myself. I wonder if the looters will be at it again when Michael Jackson is convicted, even though he's white now.

[RandomNY]

Originally posted by droogsteve
What a load of bullshit. I guess the rest of the "community" showed their rage by looting stores and stealing big screen TVs and Air Jordans. The sad part is that there are actually bleeding heart morons who buy that bullshit. I was outraged by the OJ verdict. I somehow resisted the urge to loot my local mall. I was outraged by 9/11. I didn't find an arab and smash his head in with a cinderblock. The Rodney King verdict was used as an excuse. Most of the looters couldn't give a fuck about King. Those cops never should have been charged in the first place. He was resisting arrest. If you swing on a cop you should expect to be beaten. Hoo-hoo had a good line at the time. He said that King should be beaten every time he picks up his car keys.

It's funny. Despite their "outrage" at the system, nobody looted the courthouse or government buildings. I guess they figured while they were fighting for justice for Rodney, they might as well get a new VCR and some Tommy Hilfiger sweats out of the deal.


I completely agree Al Sharpton and Jesse (I'm rich and never worked a day in my life) Jackson were screaming and yelling about Rodney King not getting justice.. but were F'n silent about the "COMMUNITY" detroying businesses and looting stores..

Well you get enough LIBERAL excuses and this is what happens.. I killed this person because I was OUTRAGED.. yea bullshit.. you are a fucking murderer and deserve to be put in jail..


It's a complete disgrace...

Ilove that line from HOO-HOO.. clearly in that video King pushed 6 cops off of his back multiple times.. He is lucky they didn't just start opening fire on his fat ass...

Stay the F down when you are told to GET THE F DOWN!!!!!!

[Darkstar]

yeah, this thing is a complete joke.

I run even farther from it when Al "the most racist man in America" Sharpton gets involved. He makes my skin crawl as he spews his lies and hatred for personal gain. He does more harm to the black community then anyone else in America simply because he is viewed as doing it for personal gain.

[Weldhelmet]

My original post, "One word,.. niggardly." was removed because I guess it was too vague. Here is the incident I was refering too.


"Parent offended by lesson in vocabulary."

Use of a word that sounds like a racial slur has landed a New Hanover County teacher in the middle of a controversy. Stephanie Bell, a fourth-grade teacher at Williams Elementary School, taught the word "niggardly" to her class last week in an effort to improve her students' vocabularies. Now, a parent wants her fired.

Niggardly as defined by Webster's:
adj.
1. reluctant to give or spend; stingy;miserly
2. meanly or ungenerously small or scanty

Although the word means stingy, Akwana Walker said it was inappropriate to use it because it sounds similar to a racial slur. She said she doesn't think fourth-graders can distinguish between the two words.

"My daughter told me what that word was, and I told her not to complete that part of her homework," said Ms. Walker, who is black.

Ms. Bell, who is white, defended her choice of the word and said she didn't mean to offend anyone. She has already sent home letters of apology with her students, as her principal instructed.

The word came up Aug. 20 during a comparison of two characters from different stories. One character was a Hispanic girl; the other was a white boy. The class talked briefly about the proper words to use when describing a person's race, Ms. Bell said.

Then, the class discussed other ways to describe people. One child described the boy as stingy.

Ms. Bell said she thought this would be a good chance to find a word for the day, a practice she has used this year.

"The idea for the word of the day is to pick part of the curriculum or something you can extend from it," she said.

She began looking for a synonym for "stingy." The children's dictionary offered "self-centered." But Ms. Bell said most of the children already knew that word.

That's when she landed on the word "niggard." She added the "-ly" because the class was studying adverbs. Ms. Bell explained the meaning of the word and told the students how to use it in a sentence, something they would have to do on their spelling tests to gain extra points.

"And that was it," she said. "These words for the day are used solely as extra credit. They have to use the word in a sentence that shows they understand the meaning."

Her students did that on their vocabulary tests, she said.

A few days later, Ms. Bell received a letter from Ms. Walker saying the word was not allowed in her house, no matter what it means.

"Common sense tells you not to put a word like that on the board," Ms. Walker said.

Ms. Walker met with Ms. Bell and the school's principal, Susan Hahn, Thursday. As a result, Ms. Walker's daughter, Gabrielle, has been moved to another class.

In addition to the apology sent home Friday, Ms. Bell has agreed not to use the word again in her class. A counselor will meet with Ms. Bell's students.

Ms. Walker doesn't think that's enough. She wants Ms. Bell removed from her teaching position.

Norm Shearin, deputy superintendent for the New Hanover County Schools, said Friday the principal is dealing with the situation.

"Our position is that it was an inappropriate action in terms of using that word at that grade level, in that context," he said. "… It was a bad choice."

This isn't the first time the word has stirred controversy. In 1999, for instance, an employee in the Washington, D.C., mayor's office resigned after being accused of using a racial slur. He had used the word "niggardly" during a conversation about funding.

Ms. Bell said she was sorry the word offended someone, but she wants people to understand that "niggardly" is an appropriate word.

"If these children read it, they are going to need to know what they are reading," she said. "My concern is that we are treading a fine line here. … What word do we take out next?"

William Whalen, whose daughter also is in Ms. Bell's class, said he thinks the situation has been blown out of proportion. Mr. Whalen is white.

"One mother was offended because she took that word to mean something it didn't mean," he said. "Ms. Bell apologized. That was sufficient."

He added his daughter has encountered the word when reading The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.

"She's a good teacher," Mr. Whalen said. "I don't think she had any ulterior motives. … It's a word. That's all it is."



Wilmington Star Article (http://209.157.64.200/focus/f-news/742882/posts)

[LiMaBeaN]

I forget where I heard the story, but isnt there also a problem with labeling computer parts (plugs) male and female? As well as labeling bathrooms as such?