Carpetbagger? (Pittsburgh: high school, live, store)

[Caladium]

I'm curious what the term "carpetbagger" means to Pittsburghians, and if it's considered an offensive term up your way.

The reason I ask is I was surprised to see someone in another thread suggest a catholic school moving to Cranberry should be called Carpetbagger Catholic. If you made a remark like that down where I live, you could expect to get a black eye. Down here, it's almost as bad the N word (or as offensive as "yinzer" is to some people in Pittsburgh), But maybe it means something different in Pittsburgh?

Without getting too hung up on whether or not it's offensive, I'm mostly curious what it means up there. In my neck of the woods it means a nasty outsider who arrives in town for the purpose of taking advantage of people in an unfortunate a situation in order to steal money and property. But that doesn't quite make sense for a school that's moving to Cranberry so I think it must have some other meaning to you guys.

[XRiteMA98]

Shouldn't a carpet bagger be the person that wraps up the carpet in the store and puts it in your ...bag?

[Pitt Chick]

Originally Posted by Caladium

In my neck of the woods it means a nasty outsider who arrives in town for the purpose of taking advantage of people in an unfortunate a situation in order to steal money and property. But that doesn't quite make sense for a school that's moving to Cranberry so I think it must have some other meaning to you guys.

Nope.
That's the meaning here too!

Perhaps you can ask the poster what was meant by that.

[Pitt Chick]

Originally Posted by Caladium

I'm curious what the term "carpetbagger" means to Pittsburghians

Pittsburghians??

[UKyank]

Sounds like it was just someone using the term incorrectly without knowing its actual meaning.

I've never heard the term used for much of anything outside of its original negative use referring to a northerner moving into the south.

[jay5835]

I had no idea what he was talking about. I was thinking of PMing him to ask, as it made no sense in this context, even if he does "adore alliteration." I wasn't offended, though.

Oh, and we are Pittsburghers.

[Copanut]

Never heard the term Pittsburghians. As to carpetbagger, that word was used after the Civil War. Have not heard it in ages.

[cheezit34141988]

Originally Posted by Copanut

Never heard the term Pittsburghians. As to carpetbagger, that word was used after the Civil War. Have not heard it in ages.

You're older than I thought if you heard it after the civil war...

[Copanut]

Originally Posted by dtrtrggr13

You're older than I thought if you heard it after the civil war...

Hey, when I went to high school I only had to remember 4 presidents names.

[MathmanMathman]

It's a term Southerners use to describe Northern business opportunists who come to the South just to make their fortune with no sentimental attachment to the region.