May 02, 2009

Dennis Miller's "Touch Indians"

Correspondent DMarks brought this curiosity to my attention:

Why does Dennis Miller say "touch indians" when he talks about talking to people?Best Answer--Chosen by Asker

The phrase Touch Indians comes from the movie Lost in America starring the great Albert Brooks via The Dennis Miller Radio Show. Shortly after being fired from a job he gave his life to, Brook's character implores his wife to throw caution to the wind and follow him on a quest to find himself and experience things he's always wanted to like they dreamed of doing when they were young. He wants to "see the country!" "Climb a mountain!" Touch Indians! It's not meant to be taken literally so relax. Dennis Miller uses the phrase in the opening segment of his great new radio show in reference to taking calls from listeners. Basically doing something new, reaching out to the folks i.e. Touching Indians!

Source(s): Taken from the website "touchindians.com"

Asker's Comment:

You're way off. First of all, there is no touchindians.com. Second, I don't need to relax, I wasn't uptight to begin with. Third, you didn't even answer the question. You just told me the movie where he got the phrase from. That doesn't tell me what touching indians means.
Someone's comment on the asker's comment:you a retarded. hes more than explained what it means. if you cant figure that out, then your brain must just melt when you listen to dennis miller. stick to tom leykis dumbass.Rob's comment:  TouchIndians.com may have been a legitimate website when the first person responded. It isn't any longer.

Judging by his writing, the second person seems to be the most "retarded." But I think his point is valid. The first person gave a reasonably good answer. "Touch Indians" obviously means to go out into the real world and meet authentic people such as Indians.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

I am tired of everyone using the word "retarded" so loosely. We may be developmentally challenged, but that does not mean you should inuslt us by equating our challenges to those of the first two commenters. Choose your insults more carefully because you may be insulting more people than intended.

Rob said...

I put the word "retarded" in quotes to show I was only echoing the first person who used it. I was making fun of his use of the word, not using it for my own purposes.

Similarly, I make fun of people who think "redskin" is acceptable by calling them "redskins." Both slurs are okay when used in this kind of context.

Anonymous said...

Slurs are always okay. If you are offended by words than you are not too bright. Everyone is so damn touchy these days.

Rob said...

If you say so, stupid.

You must be okay with calling blacks "niggers," "coons," and "spades," right? After all, they're just words too.

Bring your children to me and I'll teach them about the harm of slurs. Then you can wipe away their tears and explain that words can't hurt them.

Anonymous said...

watch your keystrokes, retard!

Moody said...

Rob,
I'm a white guy in Alabama. Why is it still okay to say "redneck", "hick", "white trash", etc? I've even seen a recent commercial that has 2 white dudes in a tub, in the yard, with a fire under it. I beleive they call it a Redneck Hot Tub.

Seems everyone is in a 'protected class' with the exceptions of white people and Christians.

Double standard, don't you think?

Rob said...

"Hick" isn't a racial term. I don't use the term "redneck" or "white trash" much except when quoting others. So there's no double standard here.

If whites want to call themselves "rednecks" or "white trash," it's their prerogative. Every group should have the ability to make fun of itself. If you don't like the ad-makers' choice of words, take it up with them, not me.

There's a big difference between a minority's using slurs against the majority and the majority's using slurs against a minority. The minority is usually criticizing the majority's (ab)use of power, while the majority is usually criticizing the minority's race. One criticism is legitimate and the other isn't.

In other words, whites and Christians don't need "protection" because they have most of the power. To put it in terms you can understand, when an elephant and a mouse are in a room, you protect the mouse. You don't protect the elephant or both animals equally.

Anonymous said...

Since non-Hispanic whites are a minority in California now your last rule only applies outside of the Golden State I guess.

Anonymous said...

Wow. That had to be the most retarded string of comments, ever. And we wonder why Islam is the religion of choice for some.

Anonymous said...

Retarded is an acceptable description of these series of responses. The more relative term would have to be gay. As in when I hear the term "touch indians", I think Miller wants to "play swords" with his callers. Gay, very gay.

Rob said...

You guessed wrong about my "last rule" applying only outside California, Anonymous.

First, according to the 2010 Census, non-Hispanic whites constitute 40.1% of California's population. Hispanics or Latinos constitute 37.6% of the population. Although whites aren't the majority in the state anymore, they're still the largest ethnic group.

Perhaps more important, my comment referred to power as well as numbers. Whites will still be in control even when other groups outnumber them. We're a long way from the point where everyone is equal in all respects.

Rob said...

"Retarded" and "gay" are both stupid words to use as slurs. They're acceptable only in the context of quoting someone.

I guess no one else has an intelligent response to my comments. Thanks for playing, people!

Anonymous said...

Apparently Rob is retarded and gay, and butthurt.