Did Nikki Haley cross a line when she referred to as Vivek Ramaswamy “scum” throughout Wednesday evening’s U.S. Republican presidential debate?
Specifically, Haley, the previous governor of South Carolina, stated “You’re just scum” after protesting the truth that Ramaswamy, an entrepreneur, introduced up Haley’s daughter’s through the occasion. Ramaswamy was defending his use of TikTookay and famous that Haley’s grownup baby was on the social-media platform.
Haley’s comment shortly turned some of the quotable moments of the night. Some defended her use of “scum” — “If the shoe fits” stated one commentator on X — however others advised that the phrase constitutes inappropriate trash speak.
And MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow noticed of Haley’s “scum” remark that it was one thing she has “never heard, ever, in any debate” she’s ever coated.
This isn’t the primary time a politician has gotten consideration for utilizing “scum,” nevertheless. In 2021, Britain’s deputy Labour Party chief Angela Rayner began what was described as “a war of words” in opposition to the nation’s Conservative Party, led by then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson, when she referred to as the Conservatives “a bunch of scum.”
Even Labour Party chief Keir Starmer stated of Rayner’s remark, “It’s not language that I would have used.” Nevertheless, Rayner refused to apologize for her comment — and even doubled down on her feedback.
“What I was trying to get across…is the anger and frustration that people feel,” Rayner stated.
To be clear, “scum” will not be outlined as a vulgar time period — a minimum of by the Merriam-Webster dictionary — in the identical method that sure four-letter phrases are.
The dictionary platform notes that “scum” can seek advice from “a low, vile, or worthless person or group of people.” Of course, that’s along with its different which means — as “extraneous matter or impurities risen to or formed on the surface of a liquid” (suppose pond scum).
The phrase has been round for hundreds of years. According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, “scum” is derived a minimum of partly from “schume,” a Middle Dutch time period for foam or froth.
Source web site: www.marketwatch.com
