Is this the solution?

[Maggot]

I like that .........."mud sharks" never heard it before.

[Clang McFly]

I like that .........."mud sharks" never heard it before.

I prefer the term porch monkeys.

[aussiefriend]

Racism is just another word for hatred. It exists. You guys have some strong "them" and "us" stuff that seems to exist there.

Starting any blog with a patronising self righteous finger waving tone to it is not going to fix the problem, it will exacerbate it.

It's all over the place in Oz too princess.

Nah nah nah nah nah not like it is over there. People here are more anti Islam. They are busy hatin' on all that scene.

[aussiefriend]

As for our racism with our indigenous people, we are currently going through a reconciliation process. We always acknowledge them, and there are all sorts of ways they try to make amends. It's just a completely different cultural thing, that we just don't have here. Not at all. I have been watching more crime and more documentaries from the USA and I am starting to understand fears on both sides and glad that it is not here in Australia.

[aussiefriend]

I still love you Maggot, but not in a Ramsey desperado way.

[Maggot]

Hopefully you are abiding by the rules of "Different color sock day" not sure if that happens "over there" or its just happens naturally sometimes.

[Love Child]

Once again I feel I should point out how lucky Aussie to live where she does and poor U.S. that has to deal with all of this racism. [/sarcasm]

Here is my friend's response to those supporting Bill Maher. I am enjoying this conversation by the way and appreciate the constructive comments to a real problem. It is not something I think about every day. There are so many issues one can be passionate about, one must choose what is closest to their heart.

To anyone thinking about defending Bill Maher: don't. There is no defense. As white people, we don't get to say that word, ever. Nope, not then. Not then either. Not even then. It is a word our ancestors created to dehumanize another group of people and maintain power over them, and no matter what the circumstances, even as a joke, it carries that history with it. The people the word targets can discuss whether or not they get to use it and what their use of it means. They can talk about whether their use reclaims it and takes away its power or reinforces its damaging history by keeping it alive and normalizing it. We don't get to be part of that discussion, we don't get to judge the people having the discussion, and we definitely don't get to use the word. No matter what we think we mean, when it comes out of any of our mouths, it will always represent the power structures it has been used to enforce, power structures that we still benefit from today, so we just don't get to say it.

[Duchess]

I get that the word is despicable and I completely understand why people don't want to see it used. Most people do the right thing and never use it. My Mom viewed it as a cuss word and I spent some time grounded for using it on one of my brothers. There are no black people where I come from so I don't know where I got it from. Having said all that, I don't like being told I can't use a word and chances are I'm going to use it on the person who told me I can't use it.

[sally]

I don't go around calling people niggers anymore than I go around calling people fucking assholes. But fuck with me and I'll call you any word I see fit.