Matt Milton, your black mates might assume it was silly old racist people from the provinces, but they'd be mistaken. Whilst we should try to avoid causing genuine offence, we cannot govern our lives because people may jump to wrong conclusions. That way of thinking reminds me of the case in America where a public official lost his job for using the word 'niggardly' when someone took offence because it sounds like an offensive word, even though it comes from entirely different linguistic routes and has no racial overtones.
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