What is this?

[Eduardo]

I just saw a PINK Mercedes with a guy wearing a big black hat driven it...Mercedes was pretty new and license plate was a regular Spanish one. Definitely this country is going down to hell in barrel. This is what i liked and had to say.

[Richard Moss]

Baby pink Range Rovers covered in sparkly crystal badges are very popular here - all are driven by young Arab men. There is a similar classic Mini convertible, also driven by a "bloke". Baby blue is also popular with the same group of men.

Mind you, they do walk around wearing dresses......

[Eduardo]

Could be... but this is DEEP Spain. In my long life (53) this is the first time i see a pink Mercedes. Of course in mean in Spain. I still remember the laugths of a friend of mine in Philly Pa when visiting the city i exclaimed 'Look!!! a nigger in a Cadillac' ...well that was long time ago.

[Richard Moss]

I guess that the world's idea of an acceptable form of address has moved on a bit since then

[Eduardo]

May is say: not in the rigt way? or at least: not for me?

[scoobyh123]

Just found this thread and it's crossed my mind that in Spain the "N-word" (nigger) is not as socially unacceptable/offensive/racist/politically incorrect as it is perceived here.
Likewise in America it might seem, Kanye West who is what you might describe as of darker extraction has a song called "Gold Digger" (Gold-digga?) and there is a line in that similar or the same as "I ain't saying she's a gold digger, but i don't see her messin' with no broke nigger". Now does the fact that he is black mean he can use the N-word with impunity or should he also be prosecuted for racism? Or is it simply that black Americans don't view it the same way as black British?

Although i don't know any personally i have spoken to many black Americans and they don't come across as anything other than American so perhaps in the States there isn't the "izzit coz i iz black?" culture as there is here in the UK. Many English black people i've met always seem to be "yeah, i'm English but i'm black too".

Would just like to point out i'm not trying to spark a row on racism, just airing my experiences and querying whether we are the only country that views the N-word as offensive.

[Richard Moss]

I've always believed that words themselves are not offensive - only the context or intent with which they are used. The same goes for guns (a whole different debate, for another day!)

However, I would ask everyone to be careful with their choice of words and to remember that other members may see things differently.

[metelmickey]

remember alf garnet and the series : love thy neighber : both now would not be P.C.

[scoobyh123]

remember alf garnet and the series : love thy neighber : both now would not be P.C.

Just like Robinsons jam and their "mascot" - originally renamed as the "Robinsons Golly" then dropped altogether to appease the PC Brigade.

[Eduardo]

I did learn the word nigger in Pa USA....translation to Spanish of Spain is 'negrata'... well i'm sorry to say it's despective and at the end the word is used to describe a coloured man who is different or opposed to common (me) of Spaniards. A man with a enormous black hat driving a pink Mercedes is way different to the common of Spaniards in deep Spain. For some reason i consider it ...'dangerous' maybe be the guy is the most kind and educated man in the world...but i doubt it. And i have the sneaky suspiction that he is related with drugs and prostitution. Well this is what ithink and that's me.

[Very Tall Brad]

The N word to me means Nissan.

I agree with RM. It depends in whose company you are, in what context a certain word is spoken and what inference is meant.

If you called me a lanky tw*t and I knew you and knew you meant it as a laugh, I'd laugh too. If you were a stranger in a pub holding a pint of beer and wobbling a bit and calling me a lanky tw*t, I'd be intimidated.

[vito]

If you called me a lanky tw*t and I knew you and knew you meant it as a laugh, I'd laugh too. If you were a stranger in a pub holding a pint of beer and wobbling a bit and calling me a lanky tw*t, I'd be intimidated.

Is your "i" key not working, it seems to be depicting a star .............

[BlueRover]

Pink could be a form of camouflage, SAS Landies were pink to blend in with the desert (not that I'm saying mid Spain is desert but it seems the landscape can be a bit beige coloured in places).

[Eduardo]

A PINK Mercedes a form of camouflage? Well pal, not here. Not to mention the big black hat. And the colour of his skin.
By the way, Seville is southwest Spain. Fields use to be green all year long except June to September wich are yelow in most places. When i say: deep Spain, i do not mean mid Spain but: non contaminated areas for tourism (God bless them, specially Brits, included) These areas are not real Spain but a kind of resort and are not lived for real Spaniards.

[vito]

A PINK Mercedes a form of camouflage? Well pal, not here. Not to mention the big black hat. And the colour of his skin.

Then I am sure he is conspicuous to the Guardia Civil military thugs, and I'm sure they will have his card marked, we had a similar instance near Almeria where a well known 'character of dubious nature' was flagged down at a GC roadblock where they simply told him to wind his window down, shot him through the thigh then dragged him orf to Jail for 'questioning'.