C3PX said:

*snip*

Yes, yes. I do love a quote in that article that mockingly says we should stop saying "snigger" because it's too close to that other word. I'm certainly not in favor of anyone saying hate speech that offends anybody, but I just can't wrap my head around this particular word. First off, I've always been of the mind that a word or symbol only has the particular meaning that a context imbues itself with. I believe we talked about this in the Politics thread last fall. And apparently this particular word started out in a very benign context. But my main beef is that, if it's so terrible a word to use, why are those insulted with it okay with using it in regards to one another? I mean, it's a bit of a leap between "terrible offensive hate word" and "modern slang."

But, yeah, it's really the oversensitivity that gets me, particularly in regards to niggardly. I honestly can't believe there's ever been a real controversy over that. Anyone with the least bit of sense should look at that and immediately laugh it out of court. But the sad thing is, that word is going to die. Why? Because white people are genuinely afraid of getting fired/beaten up/called a racist.