BuzzerBeater Forums

Oh My God. What has the world come too. People are offended by real last names that are being used for players names in an online basketball simulator game? Are you serious?

People need to harden up and not take things out of context. Would you not be friends with someone in real life that had a last name that offended you?

Ridiculous.

Let's not make a bigger deal out of it than it actually was. The guy who brought up the problem isn't suggesting a BB crusade against all possible offensive names. He was just uncomfortable with a player from his own team, due to seeing the name a lot during games. If he could have ignored it or not, I don't know. But if it affected him enough to bring it up in a forum and if it was easy enough to fix then let's just all move on.

There's always a chance that a name in a different language will be funny in ours. But unless there is real reason for complaint, with an offensive name in one's team, I think this discussion isn't going to lead us anywhere. It's just a game...

What about my dear friend fromSouth Africa, Charles Orville Jones.
Every time he went to Spain (he's in the wine business), he was taken aside and properly investigated by custom officers with white gloves. The only thing he ever did was mark his suitcases and sign his forms with his initials. COJones. He later found out what it meant and stopped using his middle name....

The fact a BB deleted all Coons from the database because of a complaint from one player is simply astonishing and sets a precedent whereby anyone can claim any name is offensive to them and ask for it to be removed. I find it political correctness gone mad and highly offensive. Why should we forget this?

The only logical thing to do now is to forget player names and give them numbers.

Exactly! I was just as astonished that someone asked for it to be removed though.

So was I. I saw a player the other day I was tempted to buy...Naor Fux.

Presumably our thin skinned friend would have been traumatised seeing Fux everywhere when watching the game live. Whereas some other people with a maybe childish sense of humour would find that quite amusing, but because the BBs are willing to change names across the world at the drop of a hat, anyone buying Fux and similar names should beware, there is no guarantee the name will stay with the player...taking some of the charm out of the game. I know if I had bought that guy and weeks later the name was changed I'd be majorly peeved.

Last edited by CorruptCop at 3/28/2010 7:30:29 AM

Yeah I went looking through my roster to see if I had any offensive names that might get changed lol.
Hopefully it doesn't become some sort of epidemic.

COJones. He later found out what it meant and stopped using his middle name....

That's nothing. My first name (Gary) means "diarrhea" in Japanese.

And of course there's Randy, which has a sexual connotation in the U.K. but not in U.S. English.

This is the equivalent of your tirade that you will report every trade you make (how's that going btw?), you take things too far and reach illogical conclusions. Please, introduce some sort of historical context into your understanding of this issue.

I think the name should have not been changed. Just because this name is actually used in US. It was just one user complaining. Perhaps just change his player name (it was his player that was offending him right?). If my surname was Coon and I would have been born in US, I would really be offended.
Let me give all of you some examples: Should Rudy Gay change his name because he likes women? Should all players with first names Dick be removed (perhaps some women find it offencive because they got none :D ) despite the fact that is commonly used in US.
I think if a person wants to be offended it can be done pretty easily (just calling people slow can offend someone, but we can all agree it's not really an offencive word). So basically you can offend people using the simplest of words and can offend some less intelligent people without them even realizing it.
Now let's get back to the current problem. I'm sorry if the following offends somebody here, but I can not deliver the point without writing the offencive words. In Estonia we do not have a lot of black people (so prolly we do not have that much racism). I find it a little odd that in the US black people can call eachother "niggers" but if white people use the term they get offended. To me it seems a bit fabricated. In estonia we use the word neeger (nigger) without it being an offencive word. Do we agree that we only use the words to describe someone you do not know, otherwise you would use his name, correct? If the person is the only black person in the room it's the easiest way to let the other people know who you want to meet. Skin color is just a characteristic just like big nose or no hair. Color black in estonian means must. Must also means dirty. Is that a better word to use? Not likely. There is also colored but it's really not the word you would use translated into estonian. So basically if someone has issues with his own skin color is his own problem, or?
Now getting back to the name issue. We have a lot of people in Estonia with surname Kukk. Kukk also is used in prison for men who are used as "women". Now if someone has a brother that has been violated in jail. This surname would actually make him feel uncomfortable, should it? no it should not. It's a surname for crying out loud. In this case he should sell his player or get his newly drafted players name changed. BUT DO NOT REMOVE THE NAME FOR THE WHOLE COUNTRY.
Also Estonia was occupied by Russia and a lot of people got deported to Siberia. I believe some of descendents of those deported would really like russian surnames removed from estonian database. Would it be logical? No.
I understand that it has already been done and it's a US's own matter. But when changing something in the other countrys, atleast please adress the community first.

Please do enlighten me as to the historical context. As far as I can tell the OP has laid it out. Is there more you wish to add?

Why you imagine I am unaware of US history I am not sure as you are unable to read my mind. However maybe there is some more to be said about the name beyond the racist connotations it may have in a particular country.

"Coons Surname Origin

(Origin Dutch) Koen, bold, daring, audacious. Coon, Saxon, bold.

Source: An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names With an Essay on their Derivation and Import; Arthur, William, M.A.; New York, NY: Sheldon, Blake, Bleeker & CO., 1857. "

Perhaps this was the kind of historical context you were after, thus proving the origin of the name is in no way racist at all?

The trade reporting goes well. As you can see, I have not been banned yet. Thank you for your interest.

Last edited by CorruptCop at 3/28/2010 10:25:40 AM