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Original poster

AIBU to find this name offensive?

159 replies

Snowleopardsspots · 15/09/2026 15:46

Blindness is a serious disability. Not some word to be chucked around for marketing attention. There are a lot of other words that could have been used - mystery box, suprise box.

AIBU to find this name offensive?
OP posts:
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RobinEllacotStrike · 16/09/2026 16:32

my DD's are 18 & 15 & as long as I can remember they have used the terms "blind bags" and "blind boxes" for what I would call "lucky dips"

Cotopaxi · 15/09/2026 22:44

lilacpetals · 15/09/2026 15:47

That's a normal name for mystery boxes.. seems you are singling out m&s for no reason

Is it? I've never come across the term before, and I'm in my 60's.

AquamarinePearlGold · 15/09/2026 22:38

Are you Professionally Offended?

WordOfTheDay · 15/09/2026 22:21

I have blinds on my window to keep out the blinding sun in summer. I didn't choose them blindly, but it wouldn't have made a blind bit of difference if I had.

TwinklyAmberSloth · 15/09/2026 21:43

Unsurprisingly the OP didn't come back, so I assume this is just one of those troll threads trying to cause offense for no reason whatsoever...

BillieWiper · 15/09/2026 21:34

Backedoffhackedoff · 15/09/2026 16:48

Where were you in the 2010s?!

goggle summary

The phrase "black sheep" is controversial because some critics view it as reinforcing a negative association with the color black, while historians and linguists trace its roots to animal husbandry. 1, 2]
True Origins of the Phrase

  • Fleece value: The idiom comes from real sheep that are born with black wool instead of white. 1, 2]
  • Lower quality: Black wool was historically worth less because it could not be easily dyed different colors. 1, 2]
  • Standing out: A black sheep looked very different in a standard white flock, which led to the metaphor for an outcast or a family member who does not fit in. 1, 2]
  • Superstition: In 18th- and 19th-century England, a black sheep was sometimes viewed through a superstitious lens as the mark of the devil or bad luck. 1]
The Nursery Rhyme Debate ("Baa Baa Black Sheep")
  • Slavery rumors: Some people claimed the classic nursery rhyme Baa Baa Black Sheep was linked to the transatlantic slave trade. 1, 2]
  • Historical consensus: Scholars widely agree the rhyme has nothing to do with slavery. Most historians tie it to the Great Custom, a 13th-century wool tax imposed by King Edward I that split wool profits between the king, the church, and the farmer. 1]
  • Toy modifications: Some modern toy makers and nurseries altered the lyrics to phrases like "baa baa sheep sheep" out of what critics call over-cautious or misguided political correctness. 1]
Modern Linguistic Controversy
  • Racial connotations: Some modern anti-racism educators and trainers argue that phrases using "black" to mean bad, unwanted, or inferior (such as black sheep, blacklist, or blackmail) carry negative psychological weight tied to historical colorism. 1]
  • Counter-arguments: Many linguists and everyday speakers counter that the idiom is completely non-racial, grounded strictly in agricultural reality, and that trying to sanitize it creates unnecessary controversy over everyday words. 1]
  • Personal reclamation: In family and social contexts, many people who feel like outsiders now wear the title of "black sheep" with pride as a symbol of personal independence and authenticity. 1]
Show quote history

I did not know that! Thank you. I certainly wasn't aware of this.

The colour black has long been associated with night, death, the occult, decay, dirt, the underworld. Black magic, Like the 'black' market etc. and having a 'black mark against your name'. I did not know it was to do with racism.

Dollymylove · 15/09/2026 21:31

What about the Blind Beggar pub? One of the haunts of the Kray twins IIRC

Sam1000 · 15/09/2026 21:28

Get a grip

FreddysFingers · 15/09/2026 21:22

Sorry but this is what I categorise as being snowflakey 😆. It's just a name for a mystery box, no more no less.

Jc2001 · 15/09/2026 21:11

TonyDancer · 15/09/2026 15:58

Aaah, the terminally offended.

And it's always people who aren't personally affected by the thing they're supposedly offered by. They just see themselves as some sort of crusader for the 'poor and unfortunate'. It's pretty patronising really.

2manyEnergyDrinks · 15/09/2026 21:02

Some people really will find anything to complain or be unhappy about. I mean really!?

Victoria Beckham Eye Roll GIF
jcyclops · 15/09/2026 21:00

So with the Percy Pig Blind Box you think M&S are tone deaf. (oops!)

Toosadtonight · 15/09/2026 20:38

We have a company near to us called The Blind Mannie, the owners not blind by the way. I’ve never seen anyone frothing at the mouth on their Facebook page about the company disrespecting people with a visual impairment.

Springtimeinsunshine · 15/09/2026 20:37

Backedoffhackedoff · 15/09/2026 16:54

I long for the heady days 20 years ago of globalisation and wealth and caring about other citizens rather than this fan girling facists inproverished hateful present

Show quote history

Well, that escalated.

Fan girling fascists?? 😂😂

Morecoffeeneedef · 15/09/2026 20:30

I think it's OK. You pick out an item 'blind'.
It's much more insulting to mutter 'Are you blind?' when someone bumps into you.

Bananalanacake · 15/09/2026 20:16

I thought you were complaining about the name Percy being slang for penis.

IAmInTheHouseSidney · 15/09/2026 19:56

Backedoffhackedoff · 15/09/2026 17:36

Yes this. People might refer to them as blind bags/ box’s but that isn’t what they’re called, usually.

i just searched smyths toy store and although you can search blind box the returned products are actually called mystery boxes as below

Show quote history

There are absolutely blind boxes on Smyts. They have it in the title on items

UnctuousUnicorns · 15/09/2026 19:07

AgnesX · 15/09/2026 16:54

Are you blind and have experience of it detracting or making your disability less serious?

If not then YABU. It's like a wheelchair user saying that they were walking somewhere when they actually aren't.

I won't stand for this, d'you hear me? 😡

SuePerblybuilt · 15/09/2026 18:51

Give me strength…

IndigoBluey · 15/09/2026 18:48

@runnerducky made me spit out my wine on my sun longer lol 😂

Dr13Hadley · 15/09/2026 18:28

MyThreeWords · 15/09/2026 16:10

I've just had some blinds installed. I'm mortified at my unintentional insensitivity. From now on I will call them window winks.

😂😂😂 I may have to borrow this! I love the idea of window winks!

Dollymylove · 15/09/2026 18:24

Have any blind people complained about it?

dustabsorber · 15/09/2026 18:23

So the box contains a random pig?

EBearhug · 15/09/2026 18:22

I haven't heard of blind boxes before - I think we'd have probably called them lucky dip bags or something.

My first instinct was, "ooh, might have to get one for my blind friend!" and I still might. It's a change from Haribo. (We met on OLD, so it was definitely a blind date.)

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