BlOoDy RiPpEr wrote on May 7^th, 2012 at 8:22am:


I would have thought that terms such as "abo" were used by people who lacked culture.....

ABO = Army Budget Office
ABBO  = Associate of the British Ballet Organisation

There would be no problem with using "Abo" as an abbreviation if we hadn't already trashed the word. The word "Abo" has negative connotations from years of being used pejoratively. We turned it into an offensive word. I don't believe you should be banned, but It wouldn't hurt for you to show a little respect. Continuing to use words that cause offense exposes either a mean spiritedness or a desire to perpetuate bigotry.

BlOoDy RiPpEr wrote on May 7^th, 2012 at 8:22am:




What if an Abo called you  white trailor trash ?

Sir Spot of Borg wrote on May 7^th, 2012 at 10:41am:


I've never heard any.

Still - I don't think anyone should be banned from using the term. People stop using words when they see their reaction on others - when they see how dumb some words make them appear.

If you ban words or language, people just react and dig their heels in. Or it goes underground.

Many Aboriginal languages went this way when they were banned in school and missions. As did the deaf sign language, Auslan. As did European languages like Welsh.

In a way, this is why racism still exists. It's also why nationalism and religion has resurfaced stronger in places like the former Soviet Union, a place where these things were banned. Banning language/culture/knowledge only makes them more powerful.

Abo is just one word, but it points to a whole sign system, a set of power relations.

It's also why the whole political correctness argument is flawed. All humans do is swap one form of political correctness for another.

Back in the 1950s, Abo was an endeering slang term. Aboriginal was seen as an academic term and people wanted to make it more user-friendly. When you shorten a name, it indicates familiarity and closeness - like calling David Dave, or Damien Damo.

However, before long, the term Abo became loaded. It wasn't the fault of the signifier itself, but the political discourse around Aboriginal issues. You ALWAYS get new names and labels when knowledge and power shifts.

Using the term Abo reacts against this shift, which is why it seems sinister and racist. Abo was never intended to be a racist term in itself (unlike black person, boong, koon, etc), but it's use represents an unwillingness to respect the shift in power.

The most powerful censorship tool is social interaction - but, of course, it depends on who you interact with.

Banning does the exact opposite.

You shouldn't rape abos then, Imperium.

Maybe you should stick to your own kind.

JC Denton wrote on May 18^th, 2012 at 2:23pm:


That's true, Impo.