I think maybe it depends what you're used to. I don't mind Pom/Pommy because I grew up with it in NZ and on the whole it was just used as a way to describe someone e.g "do ya know John, the pommy guy with the brown hair" etc. The only time it wasn't used in that way was when it was preceded with the word 'whinge'....
I wasn't brought up with the words w** and n*****r (my astericks!) and feel really uncomfortable with them. Having said that, there was a thread started by someone a while back that Geoffrey felt quite strongly about and it seems that the W** word is part of mainstream Aussie conversation?
Yet another utter waste of people's breath. These arguments are for bored people who have never experienced real problems. Words are just words. Sticks and stones and all that. Whay don't people just get lives and stop campaigning to ban this and ban that and start helping to mend the issues of parents who abuse their kids or pervs who attack people, then perhaps we might be on our way to unity and a smidgen of peace.
These pointless organisations are the reason the world is becoming a ridiculous place to live. Once the moon is ready for inhabitants I'm off!
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Hi,
Is it not the Australians themselves who are poms? ie. Prisoners of her Majesty?
When the word' pom' is used in reference to me by an Ozzie I don't find it offensive at all!
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Who really cares? I don't care what people call me as long as they judge me on my personality as opposed to my nationality. There can't be too many 'pure breeds' in the Uk. We should all think about that before tarring individual nations with the same brushes. Pom, Chink, Yank, Frog, Paki...As others have said, they're just words. It's all in the way those words are used.
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Coming soon to Currambine, Perth 26th Jan......Fiona, 33 Pete, 34 Courtney, 11 and Daniel ,2.5
I just wanted to say when I read about the diversity training ( don't say anything you wouldn't say to your elderly mother) that it reminded me of an elderly aunt I had who received an obscene phone call once. The "tell me what colour knickers you are wearing" variety...well, she was so rude to him and gave him so much grief, he put the phone down on her!
Sometimes the elderly aren't as delicate as we think!
We had to stop at Bahrain Airport once. I tried to buy DH a watch but the Arabic sales assistant wouldn't even look at me, let alone serve me. I kept trying, 'cos I thought he was hard of hearing! Later, I moved aside to let some Arab guys pass through a corridor and they looked at me like I was dirt and should have moved out of the way quicker. They treat women with utter contempt. I have to say that I don't like Arab men based on my experiences - does that make me a racist? Why do I have to have respect for an ethnic group that has utter contempt for me? It's not always black and white in more ways than one and we should all have mutual respect for each other in an ideal world.
There's good and bad in every race, creed or colour. I don't get offended by being called a Pom, but like lots of others have said, it does depend on HOW it is being said. It can always be misinterpreted when it is written down though, can't it? If you give as good as you get with the Aussies they tend to leave you alone, in my experience. I think Pom baiting is a national sport, isn't it?!
Tracy
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Flying out to Perth 13th November. Heading to Mandurah.
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Last edited by Andy and Tracy; 01-10-2008 at 05:22 PM.
Reason: quoted wrong post!
Its the left-wing s pain in the arses do-gooder that have made "paki" and "chinaman" racist words...god I hate them.. If we kicked up a fuss like these pathetic morons we could make "pommie" a racist word, but Brits are easy going and do not give a toss to be honest.
" POM" is not a racist word it stands for " prisoner of mother England" which convicts had stamped on their uniforms, theres nothing racist about that. Also most Austrlians who call English people POMS are of British ancestory themselves, so how can you be racist against people of the same race as yourselves?
