I'm your huckleberry...

Yes, I realize that the quote used in the title actually refers to an old expression meaning "I'm your man" or "I'm the one you're looking for" but it'll all make sense in a minute I swear (and to those of you who thought it meant something about a pallbearer...sorry you were wrong). 

Back in 1885 a man by the name of Samuel Clemens, of course more well known by his nom de plume Mark Twain, wrote a little book called "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn".  Today, most consider this one of the great American novels, myself included.  One of the reasons it was so amazing, even when I read it in the early 90's over 100 YEARS after it was first published, was because you could pick up this book and instantly be transported to the Mississippi River.  The main factor behind this immersion in the book?  The vernacular that was in it.  I'll cut to the chase for those of you who are not lucky enough to have read this book.  It uses the N-word...A LOT, something like 220 times.  Do I condone the use of this word?  Hell no!  But,  this word, at the time of the writing, was in much more common use in the South.  Changing a novel, especially one of so much great importance in the history of the United States, just because a word is deemed inappropriate in today's society (again, don't disagree that the word ITSELF is horrible), is on the same grounds as book burning in my eyes.  If a book, in it's original state, cannot be viewed by it's audience, then it loses all that it set out to do.  Whether it be to inform or entertain.  And teachers, who think that this is a good idea because it gets Huck back into classrooms...shame on you.  You are supposed to be the educators of our future.  If our future is hand-fed censored drivel their whole lives, with no respect or knowledge of it's original form, then I'll be home-schooling my future children.

Yup, that's right, I'm your huckleberry...