[Assam] From NYT--On Insults
Chan Mahanta
cmahanta at charter.net
Wed Dec 17 16:34:12 PST 2008
At 6:17 PM -0600 12/17/08, Alpana B. Sarangapani wrote:
> > some more folks. I heard Goalparias are rich
>in > these insult laden phrases and epithets. Is
>it > true?
>Are you trying to make some people mad, C'da? :)
*** Would *I* ever do anything like that
Alpnana? Just trying to ascertain if there is
truth to it, or it is just a vicious rumor.
> was told Guwal-Gaali is not necessarily bad,
>and is just rebuking someone without addressing
>them, >no?
**** Oh no! Guaal Gaali can be pretty vicious,
and colorful too. Grew up hearing an awful lot
of them.
Yes they are hurled at unnamed recipients,
usually delivered from 'nongola-mukh' ( gate), by
males with a tangwn ( staff) or a 'daa' in hand
looking towards the recipient's house and by
females raising the mekhela to one side by one
hand and shaking a 'baarhoni' ( stiff bamboo
slat broom) with the other hand, again looking
towards the recipient's homestead. Of necessity
it is conducted by and among neighbors. If the
conflict is very serious, the male and the female
will take turns keeping up the fusillade.
And if the recipient /s return the fire, the
conflict elevates from mere 'guaal-gaali'
launching to a full-fledged war of 'gaalis' and
in rare instances would transform into fist
fights , body slams and the like, usually drawing
intervention by neighbors.
c-da
>
>You are not referring to 'Guwal-Gaali', are you?
>Anyway, I was told Guwal-Gaali is not
>necessarily bad, and is just rebuking someone
>without addressing them, no?
>
>
>
>
>
>"Nor love thy life, nor hate; but what thou
>livest, Live well; how long or short, permit to
>Heav'n."
>-John Milton
>"In order to make spiritual progress you must be
>patient like a tree and humble like a blade of
>grass."
>
> > Date: Wed, 17 Dec 2008 15:05:36 -0600> To:
>assam at assamnet.org> From: cmahanta at charter.net>
>Subject: Re: [Assam] From NYT--On Insults> >
>Those are some good ones Alpana , but lack
>real > zing and zest . There must be more lethal
>ones, > again leaving the profane aside. Let us
>hear > some more folks. I heard Goalparias are
>rich in > these insult laden phrases and
>epithets. Is it > true?> > > > > > > > > At 2:34
>PM -0600 12/17/08, Alpana B. Sarangapani
>wrote:> > > What would be the ultimate Oxomiya
>insult?> > > >cm> ( No need to describe with
>profanity of > >course)> >> >In a 'decent
>world', it could be one of these > >which
>practically mean
>'low-life':> >> >'Paaxondo'> >'Dhurondhor'> >'Omukar
>Suwa-Khowa'> >'Tomukar pitek' (also
>Kukur-powali, > >Gahori-Powali, etc., though I
>think referring to > >any scum-bag as an
>innocent animal is nothing > >but an insult to
>the animal only )> >'Odhom'> >?? That's all I
>can think of now.> >Pardon me, Gentle
>Readers.> >> >> >> >> >> > > >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >"In
>order to make spiritual progress you must
>be > >patient like a tree and humble like a
>blade of > >grass."> >> > > Date: Wed, 17 Dec
>2008 13:35:18 -0600> To: > >assam at assamnet.org>
>From: cmahanta at charter.net> > >Subject: [Assam]
>From NYT--On Insults> > What > >would be the
>ultimate Oxomiya insult?> > cm> ( > >No need to
>describe with profanity of
>course)> > > >***********************************************************************************************************> > > > >OP-ED
>CONTRIBUTOR> The Shoe Heard Round
>the > >World> > > By JOHN KENNEY> Published:
>December > >16, 2008> Hitting someone with a
>shoe is > >considered the > supreme insult in
>Iraq. It > >means that the target > is even
>lower than the > >shoe, which is always on > the
>ground and > >dirty.> - The Times, Dec. 15> > IN
>France, of > >course, it's a waffle. Throw a >
>waffle at > >someone and you have said, in
>essence: > "I > >loathe you. You are scum. Your
>people are > > >donkey traders." It suggests
>that the target > >is > even lower than a
>waffle, which is > >sometimes on > the ground if
>it happens to fall > >off a plate, and > the
>ground could be dirty, > >depending upon the >
>ground.> Who's to say why, > >exactly? Some say
>the waffle's > association > >with Belgium is
>enough to disgust any > > >Frenchman. Others
>suggest it is its annoyingly > > >spongy
>consistency. Still others say it's
>the > > >derivation of the word - "le waffle"
>in > >French, > from the Flemish "wafflintis"
>and > >originally the > Latin "wafflibus," all
>of which > >translate, > loosely, to "waffle.">
>For scholars > >of insults, what comes to mind >
>almost > >immediately after a high-profile
>insulting > > >incident is the central African
>nation of > >Chad, > where hitting someone with
>a pair of > >pants is the > highest form of
>insult. It means > >that the target > is lower
>than pants, the hem > >of which, while not > on
>the ground, is often > >near the ground and, >
>again, unclean. The only > >problem with this
>form > of insult is that the > >thrower then has
>to > retrieve the pants, as he > >or she had
>been wearing > them.> For many years > >people
>threw shorts, but almost no > one
>was > >offended, as the hem of shorts is a
>great > > >distance from the ground. "We're
>working on > >new > forms of insult, as well as
>changing our > > >country's name, which,
>strangely, is a common > > >first name in
>California," said a Chadian > > >cultural
>attaché. "We need to be taken
>more > > >seriously."> In the former Soviet
>Union it is > >not uncommon, > especially among
>the savage > >Russian mafia, to > throw a 68-ton
>American-made > >Abrams M1A1 tank. It > means
>that the target is > >even lower than a tank, >
>whose treads are > >always on the ground,
>unless > they're not for > >some reason - say,
>repairs or > what-have-you. > >In fairness,
>though, the throwing > of tanks > >appears to be
>happening with less > frequency, > >due to the
>near impossibility of > surprise, > >especially
>at indoor events.> In Peru, > >meanwhile, people
>throw their voices as > a form > >of insult.
>While not technically near the > > >ground, a
>voice suggests "sound" and "sound" > > >rhymes
>with "ground," the ground being low
>and > > >possibly unclean, depending upon
>where, > >exactly, > you're standing.> Peruvians
>say that > >throwing your voice is the >
>ultimate insult > >because the intended victim >
>doesn't know where > >it came from. It is not >
>uncommon to hear > >someone say, "Who said
>that?!" > on the streets > >of Lima after a
>particularly > cutting remark. > >The danger, of
>course, is > insulting someone by > >trying to
>throw your voice, > but doing it > >poorly and
>instead moving your lips. > The > >intended
>victim knows immediately where it > > >came
>from.> And what of tiny Bhutan, snug > >between
>Tibet in > the north and India to the > >south?
>In this > mysterious Buddhist
>country, > >perhaps the only one > in the world
>that > >measures its Gross National > Happiness,
>people > >throw brightly colored tissue > paper,
>so as not > >to hurt anyone. The paper falls >
>harmlessly to > >the ground - a symbol of both >
>lowness and dirt > >- and the thrower quickly
>picks > it up, > >disposes of it, and then
>apologizes > > >profusely.> John Kenney is a
>writer.> > > >_______________________________________________> > >assam
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