No Country for Indian Men

[spectralbovine]

So I stopped by a used car lot because I'm looking at getting a car. An older white man, probably in his fifties or later, came over and introduced himself. I told him my name, and he failed to hear it properly twice ("Neil? Funil?"), but I didn't care. I told him what I was looking for, and he started to show me some cars

Comments

[amberlynne]

*facepalm* Bless you for having a sense of humor about it. People are so ridiculous sometimes!

[spectralbovine]

I probably have too much of a sense of humor about these things, which is why I'm no good during the periodic racism debates on the Interwebs.

[amberlynne]

Naw. As Jon Stewart has shown us, being smart and funny is what is going to save the world. *pats*

[spectralbovine]

I will keep that in mind, Nicole. You are full of useful information.

[miniglik]

Heh. You should have made him feel awkward. That would have been fun.

In the context of you being asked if you liked being Indian, I have a story. When I was in high school, especially during the winter, there was a period of time where I was atold by someone (various someones) nearly every day, "crap, your legs are so white!" or "wow, why are you so pale" or my favorite "how are you so white?" Eventually, I would sarcastically answer something like, "OMG, I'm white!?! Really? Crap!" Or "why am I so white? Well, let's see. My mother is white, and my dad is white, and -- *gasp* -- somehow I turned out white."

(Similarly J got to say things like, "I'm tall? No shit?!?!)

Okay, getting off on a huge, somewhat unrelated tangent, but I do think there was a point somewhere in there originally. Hmm... what was it? Oh, oh. Yes. People are weird. They like to question and comment on that which is different, like skin color, even when it's meant harmlessly, because different is interesting.

And there was your first random

[spectralbovine]

You should have made him feel awkward. That would have been fun.
My friends have come up with the following responses so far:

"I'm American and already in my country."
"No. Are you going back to yours?"
"Yes, but it's just down the block. So it shouldn't matter too much."
"I have my own country?! Am I king? Is this a reality TV show? Where are the cameras?! Where?!"
"In fact, I'm going back to your mom's house."

People certainly do like to say dumb things, don't they.

[miniglik]

I vote for "No. Are you going back to yours?". It reminds me of Jon Stewart asking Mike Huckabee when he decided he wasn't gay.

[miniglik]

Hmmm. I've been thinking too many thinky thoughts about this kind of well-meaning, unintential racism recently. It's making me sad and brain-broked.

(I didn't mean to blow it off with a story about it occasionally being socially uncomfortable to be part of the white oppressor race.)

[minim_calibre]

Why, why people gotta be such idjits?

You could always blink a lot and go, "Oh, man! Did Texas secede??? My folks totally failed to tell me!"

[spectralbovine]

Hee! Yes, that is definitely the country he thought I was from.

[allthelivesofme]

Oh boy. *eyeroll* I love people, I really do.

[spectralbovine]

They bring the lulz.