[Ads-l] banana (UNCLASSIFIED)

[Mark Mandel]

To be precise, I was pointing out a way in which the "black" mnemonic had a
somewhat stronger link to the data it was meant to represent than the "bad"
mnemonic. In no way do I approve its *use* as a mnemonic or for any other
purpose, let alone its (anti)social vituperation.

MAM


On Thu, Oct 31, 2019, 5:37 PM Andy Bach <afbach at gmail.com> wrote:

> >Except that it doesn't specify *b*lack, as opposed to *b*rown.
>
> Sort of a weak response, as neither does "rape", "our", "young", "girls",
> "but", "gives" or "willingly".  Yes, black and brown both share the initial
> B, still it's inarguably a terrible phrase and indefensible.  I bet even EE
> folks could remember black comes before brown, given the rest.  I
> understand that, at first, you were merely relaying the information, but
> now you seem to be attempting to justify it's validity.
>
> On Thu, Oct 31, 2019 at 4:25 PM Mark Mandel <markamandel at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Except that it doesn't specify *b*lack, as opposed to *b*rown.
> >
> > Mark Mandel
> >
> > On Thu, Oct 31, 2019, 4:47 PM Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com>
> > wrote:
> >
> > > You'll have noticed that "Bad boys" would have done just as well....
> > >
> > > JL
> > >
> > > On Thu, Oct 31, 2019 at 3:20 PM MULLINS, WILLIAM D (Bill) CIV USARMY
> CCDC
> > > AVMC (USA) <0000099bab68be9a-dmarc-request at listserv.uga.edu> wrote:
> > >
> > > > CLASSIFICATION: UNCLASSIFIED
> > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > In any case, Edward Said's _Orientalism_ (1978) was the biggest
> nail in the
> > > > > coffin and lexical re-orientation was de rigueur.
> > > > >
> > > > >  For people with degrees anyhow.
> > > > >
> > > >
> > > > Oh, I have a degree - Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering.
> > But
> > > > the standard mnemonic for color codes on resistors was taught to us
> > with
> > > a
> > > > straight face ("Black boys rape our young girls but Violet gives
> > > willingly"
> > > > -- black, brown, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet, grey,
> > white)),
> > > > so whether or not "oriental" was offensive was completely off the
> > radar.
> > > >
> > > > (Wikipedia has a number of mnemonics which are not so racist or
> sexist,
> > > > but are also much less memorable.)
> > > >
> > > >
>
>

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