[OT] Re: [EVA] Death & Rebirth Cataloguing Mistakes

[MMKokusaiYK]

> I don't speak Japanese, but I thought "gaijin" was
> considered a bit impolite and that "gaik(g?)okujin"
> would be more polite.

"gaijin" is simply the common-use abbreviation of "gaikokujin"
(foreigner).  While it does have earlier roots meaning "outsider", it
has all but lost this connotation, and currently "gaijin" and
"gaikokujin" are used interchangeably.  Using the word "gaijin" at a
high society function might be frowned upon, but for all practical
purposes in the everyday life of the masses, there is no distinction in
politeness.
The politeness or use as a slur (ie: "gringo") all depends on how it is
spoken.  Japanese has few cuss-words, and mostly depends on
intonation/inflection, context and degradation of the word form. (ie:
Fuzakenaide kudasai -> Fuzakenaide -> Fuzakennayo -> Zakennayo ->
Zakenjaneeyo -> and so on, although you really don't need to remember
this...)  :P

Bochan_bird