Above is a photo of Nigger, the black labrador of Wing Commander Guy Penrose Gibson VC, DSO & Bar, DFC & Bar, RAF.
It is fair assumption that most British Gazette readers are not terribly happy about political correctness. So it will be interesting to see what you make of the answer to the predicament that Mr Stephen Fry, the writer actor and comedian found himself in.
Mr Fry has been hired to write the script for the remake of the Dam Busters. Work on a remake of The Dam Busters, being produced by Peter Jackson and directed by Christian Rivers, began production in 2008 but is yet to be completed. Mr Jackson initially found that the rights had been bought by Mel Gibson. In 2005, the rights were purchased by Sir David Frost from the Brickhill family who had acquired them from Mr Gibson.
Given Mr Gibson’s virulent anti-Britishness as demonstrated in the film “The Patriot” it is a great blessing that such as Mr Fry is at the helm writing the script of a film that portrays of one of the greatest acts of courage undertaken by Bomber Command.
We hope the film will be both an accurate and patriotic rendering of the story. Stephen Fry has announced that Guy Gibson’s black Labrador, “Nigger” is to be renamed “Digger.”
The dog’s name was used as a code word during the operation.
Mr. Fry said: “There is no question in America that you could ever have a dog called the N-word. It’s no good saying that it is the Latin word for black or that it didn’t have the meaning that it does now – you just can’t go back, which is unfortunate. You can go to RAF Scampton and see the dog’s grave and there he is with his name, and it’s an important part of the film. The name of the dog was a code word to show that the dam had been successfully breached. In the film, you’re constantly hearing ‘n-word, n-word, n-word, hurray’ and Barnes Wallis is punching the air. But obviously that’s not going to happen now. So Digger seems okay, I reckon.”
British Gazette Comment: The British Gazette supports and agrees with Mr Fry’s decision. Yes, we criticise political correctness: No more “baa, baa, black sheep”, “blackmail”, blackleg &C.
But we are firmly of the opinion that Mr Fry made the only sensible and practical decision he could. In fact, it would have been an act of absolute folly to persist in using the dog’s actual name for it would have ensured that the film would have been an absolute failure. Mr Fry is right. The USA film industry would not have taken up the film. One has to live in the real world. Of the global English speaking audience, a minority live in the UK. Even here, had the film had been made using the dog’s actual name there would have been a very great brouhaha, which would only have served to distract the attention from the bravery and sacrifice of those gallant airmen.
The British Gazette however hopes that in rewriting history, Mr Fry has confined himself to this one aspect of it.
Speaking the Truth unto the Nation
Living in a free, democratic society means that people have the right to offend you. That’s one of the reasons why we were fighting the Nazis in the first place.
Maybe someone ought to organise on online campaign to now make the word ‘Digger’ offensive and force the makers of the film to choose another name.
By the way, I am grossly offended by everything Stephen Fry does.
It has always been an absurdity, that Nigger, the Latin word for Black, had been hi-jacked by the PC morons. They falsely complain that it is a derogative term for black people, and insult, no less.
Yet, when you point out that the word is used frequently by black actors in films, we are then told, that it is not offensive unless used by us whitey’s, this is hypocrisy at its most blatant.
But then Stephen Fry is never happier than when pandering to the ‘you must do as we say’ brigade.
Dear Editor,
I’ve got more than a sneaking feeling that your faith in Stephen Fry will be confounded as indeed will your belief that the Yanks will ensure box office success for this film.
Mr. Fry is the epitome of a ‘champagne socialist’ He appears in the guise of ‘man of the people’ whilst living high on the hog as befits his many talents – not all to the taste of many accustomed to the principle of decent reticence. The proposed film might well prove to be a tribute to historical revisionism.
The Americans have bought few British films dealing with our military successes. Why ? Because they are not American and are therefore of little interest to American audiences unless, of course, they feature a strong American actor presence or theme.
As for ‘Digger/Nigger’ our sensitivities are seventy years different to those prevalent during the war years. We should be both honest and accurate in our story telling and if it requires an explanatory footnote at the start of this film which explains and therefore excuses the use of terms that to-day some would find offensive, then let it be so. We should not indulge in untruths and evasions to suit the whim of the politically correct nonentities that infest our country There remains the suspicion that in so doing we become little better than the monstrous propagandists that we fought so hard to eliminate during WW2.
Dear Editor,
I agree with Mr John Green but if we must have “Digger” in the film say to yourself, “Oh Dear, those poor RAF chaps have really bad HEAD COLDS” – it will help keep the thing on track.
This proves just how INSANE political insanity now is – the word NIGGER -as a black reference point – never, ever meant a BLACK SKINNED PERSON – it evolved from the word NIG – which is a masonry term from times when ‘nigs’ were made in the stonework during the process of construction. At the time when the word NIGGER evolved – all business transactions were paid for by COURIERS delivering the payments for business concluded in Gold Coins (1) the payment was WEIGHED before and after delivery (2) at that time gold coins had a PLAIN EDGE (3) businessmen had a problem with dodgy dealings – because slithers (nigs) of Gold could be shaved from the edges of the coins (4) so – the word ‘nigger’ evolved from that – to identify dodgy contacts -between businessmen to tip each other off when they suspected as untrustworthy people – couriers – etc. : i.e. “watch him – he’s a nigger…” (5) it was a matter of who to trust and who not to trust – nothing racial. (6) it only meant ‘black’meanings in those terms (7) as in ‘dark’ – so the solution was to put a design on the edge of all gold coins – to prevent that crime …. somehow – the word got lampooned into racial territory … which just proves how really daft and stupid the intelligence boffins of the West really are … so, thanks to The British Gazette for keeping Truth alive.