This always leads me to the rant about the hipster co-opting of poor white culture (trucker hats, PBR, flannel worn ironically, that terrible, terrible Trailer Park Lounge in Chelsea). People wear flannel and trucker hats where I come from because, um, they fish and cut trees and drive trucks. I wonder if/how this co-opting chic will change as the market collapses...
In other news, I couldn't stop thinking about all the possibilities of -onomies, after reading the name of this blog. Wouldn't it be fun if we had these things?
Tweakonomy
Freakonomy
Seekonomy
Leakonomy
Beakonomy
Geekonomy
Meekonomy
Reekonomy
Shriekonomy
Chiconomy
Batikonomy
Q: How do you catch a unique rabbit?
A: Unique up on it!
Posts
Ah. Well, as the user of the term in question (twice, by my mental tally), perhaps I can respond?
ReplyDeleteReading your post, I can't argue with your perspective. I think it is valid to hear those connotations, and will try to keep that in mind in future posts.
Having said that, and considering the contexts of the two usages, the furthest thing from my intention was to imply any kind of "them vs. us" classist mentality. For good or ill, the word is used innocently and commonly with no intent to denigrate anyone. While I hear your concerns about the meaning behind the meaning, I don't think all readers perceive those valences, and certainly this writer did not. Fair enough?
But you're not the ONLY user of that term. I was mostly just sitting here trying to think of things having to do with the economy (which I have a really weird place in right now, still being in seminary) and was thinking about how a lot of people I know are OK at talking about economic matters (can talk about "the poor") but are really bad at talking about class, which is an overlapping but not cosimultaneous category. (It really super irritates me on feministing.) I know that people use it without thinking about it, but people also used to use "that's might white of you" as a compliment too. Thanks for responding and thinking about it!!
ReplyDeleteon your postscript:
ReplyDeleteQ: Then how do you catch a tame rabbit?
A: The tame way!