I worked with one colorful character that would say the most racist and sexist things you can imagine- to say he was 'not PC' would be understatement of the year- he was likely to insult your race, religion, and ethnicity all before 10 AM. Now, most people that did that would be quickly fired- yet he got away with it... I think he got away with it because, even as he was saying these things, you knew that he was just joking and his actions showed that he had respect for you and he would do anything he could to help you.

So he would make sexist off color jokes, and comments about asian drivers directly to asian drivers, and jokes about certain ethnicities eating dogs, and jokes about jesus and mohammed... but to be honest, I dont think a single person was offended- at least if they actually knew him...

I guess it all boils down to how you treat people- I dont think Bob was actually a bigot, he just loved shocking people- and he knew that he could get away with it- Everyone knew he was a genuinely nice guy trying to put up an offensive image- he played along, as did we. He could go into a bar in harlem and scream the 'n-word' and likely end up with free drinks. You just know he was a nice guy.

Sadly, he died of cancer- and a whole community mourned his death- and what they remembered was just what a wonderful ass he could be, and the kindness he showed that betrayed his act- its amazing how he pulled it off.

So, yes, some derogatory terms can be used in a harmless way, but you gotta be a goddamn artist to get away with it- as for myself, I avoid all racial and ethnic stereotypes and slurs- I know that I cant do what Bob did. I avoid using terms that are racially, or ethnically loaded- and I suggest we should ALL avoid such terms. As for 'coon ass' well, its just a term that sounds rather silly....