It's a nasty slur in my view not so much due to the racial issues that have been raised but because many people suffer from psoriasis and rosacea. This is encouraging abuse against such people who now have to contend with being associated with being pro-Brexit and right-wing? If you are an older white male with rosacea and get heckled "gammon" in the street, is that something these purveyors of "gammon" are proud of? I thought the left would be against bullying on the basis of what is in effect facial disfiguration?
Why has a term been adopted that is essentially picking on people for their appearance? Has politics really reached that level?
You seem to be attempting some Olympic level mental gymnastics here to equate ruddy cheeked old tub thumpers and some intent to offend people with a skin condition.
It's a nasty slur in my view not so much due to the racial issues that have been raised but because many people suffer from psoriasis and rosacea.
What does 'gammon', a word related to pigs and that also means 'humbug' or 'nonsense', have to do with sufferers of skin conditions? You seem to be inventing one new meaning to complain about a new usage. You might as well complain that 'Kipper' is offensive to people with BO.
I'm glad to see that Mr Corbyn's nice supporters are finding new ways to carry on his 'new way of doing politics'. I presume, though, that they take what he says and reverse it before actually doing it. They must have read 'Nineteen Eighty-Four'.
It's a nasty slur in my view not so much due to the racial issues that have been raised but because many people suffer from psoriasis and rosacea. This is encouraging abuse against such people who now have to contend with being associated with being pro-Brexit and right-wing? If you are an older white male with rosacea and get heckled "gammon" in the street, is that something these purveyors of "gammon" are proud of? I thought the left would be against bullying on the basis of what is in effect facial disfiguration?
Why has a term been adopted that is essentially picking on people for their appearance? Has politics really reached that level?
I've seen people commenting that 'gammon' is racist and/ or ageist- don't really see how it can be though.Yes, the people its directed at tend to be middle aged/ older white men but the emphasis is on their attitudes & how they express them rather than their appearance- people who fit the same physical description who don't spout right wing, reactionary views don't get labelled this way. As for the word itself, OK its a bit silly but the people complaining about it are probably the same ones who label anyone with liberal/ left wing views as 'SJWs' or 'snowflakes'.
It's clearly discriminatory and somewhat racist as the insult could not be applied to a black, middle-class, man. It's a mildly amusing metaphor but ultimately it is **** slinging and doesn't progress any conversation.
Charles Dickens used the word "gammon" to describe a large, self-satisfied, middle aged man who professes an extreme patriotism in large part to disguise his essential selfishness and corruption. 180 years ago! It's part of our culture.
It isn't new but Dickens was using it in a sense not used much now, but previously used to mean nonsense or rubbish. It was not an attempted personal insult, just a comment on what was being espoused.