CHAT: Self-Use of Ethnic Insults

> > >I had *no idea* there was anything negative attached to the word
> > _Jew_ in English,
I often heard "Jew's harp" as a child.  It's "a small instrument consisting
of a lyre-shaped metal frame that is held between the teeth and a projecting
steel tongue that is plucked to produce a soft, twanging sound." [AHED]  One
of my next-door neighbors, a surrogate grandfather to me, played it.

As an adult, I've assumed it was offensive, but maybe that's because "Jew"
alone is so often seen as offensive.  My dictionary doesn't list it as
vulgar -- is it?

Best regards,

Jeffrey Henning
http://www.LangMaker.com/ - Invent Your Own Language
http://www.Jeffrey.Henning.com/
"If Bill Gates had a nickel for every time Windows crashed....  Oh, wait, he
does!"