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User Name Thread Name Subject Posted
GUEST,folk1e Anti-Semitism : A Mon Like Thee (144* d) RE: Anti-Semitism : A Mon Like Thee 12 Aug 09


I am not Jewish myself, but I am fat, follicly challenged and visually impaired, so am not totally oblivious to derogatory stereotyping!
Whilst overt racially based derogatory statements are obviously wrong I feel that we are getting into a silly situation where any implied slight to any race, colour or creed is met with a backlash that is more damaging than the original act!

A gun is just a gun. It only becomes a weapon of evil when somebody uses it as such! How the gun is used becomes the important issue, not what type and model the gun is. I think it is the same with songs. Overt editing of our songs will not only sanitize them out of all recognition, but will prevent anyone from appreciating the context they were written in!
I don't hear anybody (sensibly) saying we should edit out all the racist speeches made throughout history because we disagree with the sentiments expressed.

I have been sitting in my local folk club when "A Mon Like Thee" has been performed (with the "rich as any Jew" line in). At least one member of the audience was Jewish, but he took no offense!
He did however get barracked for singing a song "I Hate Wogs" by Eric Bogle (the song is an anti-racist song) merely because people were unable to look beyond the racist words to see the meaning of the song!


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