Comments on: A puzzlingly poor apology

By: Rebecca Leong

Rebecca Leong — Thu, 07 Mar 2019 02:04:53 +0000

I am a 61 year old of Chinese descent who grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, and I had never heard of “beaner” as a slur for people of Mexican descent until I read it here today. Maybe because I left California for Boston before I was 17? I dunno, my mom still lives there, I go back every year. And I think of myself as having a good, broad vocabulary.
Perhaps because I am ethnically Asian, I would actually consider “gook” as a puzzle answer to be shocking unless the puzzle inserted a space between the words. “Chink” in the armor and “slant” at an angle are fine.

By: Happy 30th birthday, Heather Has Two Mommies!

Happy 30th birthday, Heather Has Two Mommies! — Tue, 12 Feb 2019 20:24:47 +0000

[…] as ever, we have loads of thrilling and dismaying new apology analysis (a racist crossword puzzle! more racism, from Cindy McCain! bad behavior in DC — shocking, we’re sure — and […]

By: Linda S

Linda S — Sun, 06 Jan 2019 00:52:40 +0000

I am a 59 year old woman, and beaner was the very first ethnic slur I ever heard in the wild. I was in middle school and I heard another kid say it about the school groundskeeper; I was so deeply shocked and disturbed that my memory of the moment is crystal clear to this day. The point being, I suppose, that this slur is not a new thing. Apologize better Will!

By: Fighting Words: The New York Times Crossword Puzzle as Cultural Divide

Fighting Words: The New York Times Crossword Puzzle as Cultural Divide — Sat, 05 Jan 2019 10:58:08 +0000

[…] stories about the slur had been posted on The Hill, The Wrap, Fox News, and a site called SorryWatch, to name but a […]

By: snarly

snarly — Fri, 04 Jan 2019 16:20:26 +0000

In reply to Clem W. Valid question!

By: Clem W

Clem W — Fri, 04 Jan 2019 09:08:08 +0000

what does one do if one’s name is feygele?

By: tee+d

tee+d — Thu, 03 Jan 2019 20:02:09 +0000

"Side issue." Oh, yes, that evasion is familiar. I imagine him patting the air, "Well, let's not get distracted. No one meant to be hurtful." What we SAID is not the problem. What you HEARD is your problem. Got it? Good. I have never, ever, ever heard of a beaner in baseball... and while I was mostly in the outfield picking tiny flowers, I DID PLAY. A beaner is ONLY a racial slur on the West Coast, and while the Newspaper of Record is printed in the East and largely read there, we plebes over here occasionally pick it up. If you're meaning for your puzzles to be read nationwide, do a bit more work, sir.

By: Daniel Slosberg

Daniel Slosberg — Thu, 03 Jan 2019 14:08:20 +0000

Will Shortz, a man whose livelihood depends on having a massive vocabulary, doesn’t know the meaning of a common racial slur? I don’t buy it. He needs to do penance. I suggest that he slather himself with aloe, spends a few weeks sweeping up orts, and then makes substantial contributions to the conservation of efts, orcs, and asps.

By: Frances Montell

Frances Montell — Thu, 03 Jan 2019 04:54:57 +0000

So disappointing that someone as erudite and genial as Will Shortz (can you tell I love puzzles?) would be so clueless (pun unintended, but I like it) when it comes to apologies. He practically hits every square in Bad Apology Bingo!