Have you ever noticed the worst attacks come after the word “but”?
I’m sure you can finish this sentence.
“Some of my best friends are (black, gay, vegetarian), but, …”
It’s a code for, “I don’t know you so well that I can make an ironic point without
preface, so I’ll try to disclaim it up front”. Something like “You really suck. :)”
It’s copping out before you even do something wack.
And then comes the after-but. They hit you with some foul joke or epithet and you’re
left slackjawed. How do you respond? With a brick? a scowl?
Unfortunately, I have a sneaky suspicion that black people don’t walk around telling
whitey jokes by first saying, “Now, some of my oldest and dearest comrades are white,
but, …”. And I somehow get the idea that gay people probably don’t say, as a class,
“wait dude! I know your sister’s a breeder, but I heard this slamming joke!”
Somehow, I think this hidden incivility is restricted to white people. I dunno. Maybe
it’s just me. But some of my best friends are white, and …
[I dug this up in response to this
article]
