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Insults and What They Say

neitherday
Date and Time  - Jan. 4th, 2008, 01:40 pm

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If you use X to insult someone, you aren't just insulting that person — you are insulting X. You are saying that X is something worthy of being insulted. It doesn't matter if you think they are a horrible person. If you don't think that X is something horrible about them, then insult the reasons you do think they are horrible.

I've seen far too many homophobic, racist, misogynistic, misandristic, transphobic, sizeist, anti-disabled and anti-semitic slurs "justified" by assertions that person being insulted doesn't personally deserve respect or that they fit some bad stereotype. Use something as an insult and you are saying that it is something worth of admonishment. Your words can say a lot more about what you think than you intend them to.

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Comments:
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From:[info]upstart_crow
Date:January 4th, 2008 - 07:32 pm
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Yes! You know, as much as people complain about insults like "that's so gay!" no one ever complains about things like "psycho" "nut-job" "lunatic" "freak" etc. It makes me so angry.
From:[info]electricube
Date:January 4th, 2008 - 07:35 pm

Slurs against mental illness

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What are some ways to indicate that you think that something someone said is irrational, other than calling it "irrational"?
From:[info]electricube
Date:January 4th, 2008 - 07:36 pm
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Is this in response to something?
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From:[info]neitherday
Date:January 4th, 2008 - 07:51 pm
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While a bit of online drama that I don't want to drag here may have affected the timing, it is something I have been meaning to post for some time.
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From:[info]bunnyhero
Date:January 4th, 2008 - 09:00 pm
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i completely agree. and while i have never used 'gay' as a derogatory term, i am making a conscious effort to not use 'lame' any more, for example.
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From:[info]shelostherheart
Date:January 6th, 2008 - 03:09 am
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damn right.. ♥
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From:[info]macabre_grrl
Date:January 7th, 2008 - 01:35 am
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Yes, you are certainly right about this.

Much as I love the punk scene in this city, they keep saying sexist shit. MOST punk scenes are sexist in spite of often saying they are not, and Dog forbid you try to start a discussion about it. I spent some time a few weeks ago calling them on racist shit, and I fear that calling them on their sexist shit will be even harder and more shattering.

What are your thoughts on political correctness? I think that "pc" is fine so long as it demands you to change your language to be more inclusive. Thanks to the right wing, most of what that movement set out to accomplish has been made into a grotesque and misunderstood sideshow and really isn't "pc" at all.
From:burpitude
Date:April 17th, 2008 - 06:31 pm
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Thank you for saying this!