Steve in Ankara has sent in a fantastic link to this chilling tale (link in Turkish) of a local Antalya man and his sad, sad plight. I got Steve to put together a little translated summary for those of us who don’t read Turkish so well:
It’s about a chap who is suing an Antalya clothing seller for selling him a top that says “Mod Pimp, Fetish Machine.” He claims he wasn’t warned what it meant and that his honour has been tainted. He discovered something was wrong when foreigners came up to him in the street asking to buy women, it says.
Hmm. Interesting.
Okay, first of all, clothing in Antalya with inappropriate messages… that never happens. Never.
Seriously though, this falls into the same category as people who get one of those ridiculous Chinese tattoos, thinking it means something deeply philosophical, and then when they find out their tattoo actually says “demon bird mothballs,” they want to sue the tattoo artist. Because of course, all tattoo artists should also be expected to be fluent in Chinese, Japanese, Thai, and Korean. And furthermore, they should be responsible for any decisions you make about what you put on your body.
The reason the clothing seller did not warn this guy about the meaning of the shirt is because he doesn’t read English himself, and has no clue what any of his shirts say. He just displays what he has on offer, which is whatever he got in bulk this week from his distributor (who also doesn’t speak English). If you choose to buy something, frankly, that’s your problem. No one is forcing anyone to purchase a t-shirt.
If you insist on putting something on your body with words in a language other than your own, you either need to do the appropriate research, or you need to accept the possibility that there might be mistakes that will make you look silly. T-shirts with “English” on them are very popular here, and even though I often point out to Turks what their shirts really say, more often than not they don’t care— they just giggle and shrug. And that’s exactly the attitude you have to take if you’re going to pay two dollars for a “Nike” shirt with English writing on it because you think English makes you look cool.
On a side note, I’d like to express my disappointment that a Turk is suing another Turk over something so silly. Normally people in this part of the world aren’t as ridiculous as we are about frivolous law suits. Next stop: someone will probably sue a restaurant because he wasn’t warned the hot tea was hot, and it burned his tongue. Link, much thanks to Steve in Ankara
would agree up to the point where you started to bash American frivolous lawsuits. people get pissed off everywhere over stupid stuff, in upper middle class America we are less likely to start a tribal war over it. the thugs… well they might just pop a cap in yo ass. I say better to sue each other.
would agree up to the point where you started to bash American frivolous lawsuits. people get pissed off everywhere over stupid stuff, in upper middle class America we are less likely to start a tribal war over it. the thugs… well they might just pop a cap in yo ass. I say better to sue each other.
Reminds me of a Central American construction worker I used to work with. One day he showed up to work with a t-shirt that said “World’s Greatest Grandma”. He of course, had no idea. Good for a chuckle, when we translated it for him.
Reminds me of a Central American construction worker I used to work with. One day he showed up to work with a t-shirt that said “World’s Greatest Grandma”. He of course, had no idea. Good for a chuckle, when we translated it for him.
@Noah: but when people sue each other over petty things, every tax payer suffers. Personally, I don’t think that’s better, or more civilised, than what normally happens here when people get angry about stupid things – they eventually cool down and forget about it.
I also think there was a bit of a racist/classist/xenophobic tone in your comment, on several levels… not even sure I want to open that can of worms.
@Noah: but when people sue each other over petty things, every tax payer suffers. Personally, I don’t think that’s better, or more civilised, than what normally happens here when people get angry about stupid things – they eventually cool down and forget about it.
I also think there was a bit of a racist/classist/xenophobic tone in your comment, on several levels… not even sure I want to open that can of worms.
@motownmutt: that’s fantastic. 😀
@motownmutt: that’s fantastic. 😀
Oh yeah! I’ve read about it in a newspaper in Istanbul and I immediately thought about you and your “Daily Bazaar Treasures” run on LJ; I though, “Ha! Melissa so should learn of this!” And, in Antalya too…of all places. 😀
Methinks, the act of complete strangers coming up to the guy and asking for “women on sale”, accompanied by giggles and such I’m sure, is what got the guy so upset about the whole thing rather than the t-shirt itself per se, and he’s just looking for a venue to vent off his indignant frustration. But that’s just my opinion for what it’s worth.
Oh yeah! I’ve read about it in a newspaper in Istanbul and I immediately thought about you and your “Daily Bazaar Treasures” run on LJ; I though, “Ha! Melissa so should learn of this!” And, in Antalya too…of all places. 😀
Methinks, the act of complete strangers coming up to the guy and asking for “women on sale”, accompanied by giggles and such I’m sure, is what got the guy so upset about the whole thing rather than the t-shirt itself per se, and he’s just looking for a venue to vent off his indignant frustration. But that’s just my opinion for what it’s worth.
I have friends who have Chinese character tattoos. I would laugh if they turned out to say something like “strawberry cat shaver” or “extreme halitosis”.
I have friends who have Chinese character tattoos. I would laugh if they turned out to say something like “strawberry cat shaver” or “extreme halitosis”.
Of course there is also the new verb “to pimp” meaning to redecorate, modernise or “do up” something… your car, bedroom, blog, or in the case of the wearer of this T-shirt, your chest. “To mod” something is to do pretty much the same thing as to pimp, only more geekily imho, so the t-shirt is just saying the same thing twice… Fetish Machine, hell, that’s just extra servings of pimp mode with buckles on the side.
Of course there is also the new verb “to pimp” meaning to redecorate, modernise or “do up” something… your car, bedroom, blog, or in the case of the wearer of this T-shirt, your chest. “To mod” something is to do pretty much the same thing as to pimp, only more geekily imho, so the t-shirt is just saying the same thing twice… Fetish Machine, hell, that’s just extra servings of pimp mode with buckles on the side.