From: Brian Phillips (deepbluehalo@earthlink.net)
Date: Tue Sep 03 2002 - 09:41:42 MDT
From: "Phil Osborn"
> At my first high school, a rude,
> stupid, low-life,
> poor-white trash institution ...
"Olga Bourlin" chimed in..
<<It may be convenient
(although not reasonable)
to compartmentalize groups of
people - but it seems the law
of diminishing returns kicks
in on this perceived efficiency
when one resorts to calling
people trash. I know I brought
this up before, and I know some
people will dismiss this as
"PCness" ... but I still think
referring to (and thinking of)
human beings as trash (however
figuratively) only serves to
diminish us.>>
Olga with all due respect (i.e. not much),
find another tree to bark up. Having whole
sections of the family tree who are white
trash in spades I can and do attest
that those people who have extensive first
hand experience of this lifestyle and
underculture often use this phrase for it’s
evocative and historically resonant qualities.
Don’t you dare try to urge self-censorship of
my cultural frame of reference, especially
coming from you as an arch-proponent of subjectivism, odiously PC thought, and
other forms of memetic pestilence.
“White trash” is a lable we use because
it’s appropriate, it’s useful as a form of
cultural approbation, as a mechanism for
maintaining cohesion and adherence to
uniquely Southern (and rural) conceptions
of value, work-ethic and pride of place.
It carries with it complex connations
of worth and achievement, and it has a
certain linguistic charm to it by virtue
of juxtaposition of two diametrically
opposed qualities (at least in the ideal world
anyway). And it is incredibly appropriate
(like many a folk-usage)at accurately and
succinctly describing the culture of
dysfunction that permeates the lives of
so many poor whites. It also reminds
many southern whites of the very real
disconnection between morality/virtue and
wealth. It is a reminder that money does not
equal class. It serves a valuable purpose in
this respect as in reinforces the upward
mobility impulse of poor working whites.
You can be hungry, but still not be white trash.
Now go play somewhere else please.
Regards,
Brian
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