>but to me, if anything,
>it would be akin to an old white person calling me a "colored
>man." bizarre, and incorrect, but not really offensive.

I can understand why you wouldn't be offended, but you would think it weird that another black person might associate a white person's use of the word "coloured" with white racism?

>A-rab isn't a term that has ever been used by an oppressor group to
>dehumanize middle eastern folks, so i don't get what baggage
>is attached to it.

Um, now that's just incorrect. White people talk disparagingly about a-rabs, so Arabs are offended - why should this be strange to you?