Okay, so I'm getting flak for naming the threads "Retarded Lie Day" and some people are upset and stuff. I'm not an asshole (okay, not a huge asshole), so I want to open this as an venue to discuss this without derailing the actual threads. If I am wrong, I am willing to admit it and change.
Why are people jumping on the use of "retarded" as opposed to so many other possible insults I could have used? For the record, Retarded Lie Day is not something I came up with either, but something that has been used historically on this forum to describe April Fool's Day. Why is the word worse than stupid, moronic, or dumbfuck?
Is it because the term retardation references mental illness? If that is that case, why is using an actual disability as a description for something (often in an insulting form) automatically a bad thing? Other disabilities such as blindness and lameness are also used in insulting ways. It is viewed as socially acceptable, and no one questions it. Would people who are against the use of the term 'retarded' also be opposed to the use of "Are you blind" and "Are you illiterate" when making a remark about how someone has either missed something very obvious, or didn't bother to read something carefully enough?
I don't think making fun of people with handicaps or disabilities is cool. It is not cool, and it has never been cool. But I am also not a 400% politically correct person, especially in a casual environment, and I do not feel I need to be. If something is deemed completely unacceptable and offensive socially, I would not do it. But sometimes it is also a matter of people being too sensitive towards something which is not harmful.
This could be a good thread to discuss and educate people about your stand on why the word should not be used if you feel strongly about it, and it can also be a platform to express that for the people using it, I don't think we really mean any harm. I don't see how using the word retarded to describe a stupid day is harmful to anyone.
When did this "movement" against the use of this word start, and what is it such a big deal to some of you? Your voice can now be heard!
Why are people jumping on the use of "retarded" as opposed to so many other possible insults I could have used? For the record, Retarded Lie Day is not something I came up with either, but something that has been used historically on this forum to describe April Fool's Day. Why is the word worse than stupid, moronic, or dumbfuck?
Is it because the term retardation references mental illness? If that is that case, why is using an actual disability as a description for something (often in an insulting form) automatically a bad thing? Other disabilities such as blindness and lameness are also used in insulting ways. It is viewed as socially acceptable, and no one questions it. Would people who are against the use of the term 'retarded' also be opposed to the use of "Are you blind" and "Are you illiterate" when making a remark about how someone has either missed something very obvious, or didn't bother to read something carefully enough?
I don't think making fun of people with handicaps or disabilities is cool. It is not cool, and it has never been cool. But I am also not a 400% politically correct person, especially in a casual environment, and I do not feel I need to be. If something is deemed completely unacceptable and offensive socially, I would not do it. But sometimes it is also a matter of people being too sensitive towards something which is not harmful.
This could be a good thread to discuss and educate people about your stand on why the word should not be used if you feel strongly about it, and it can also be a platform to express that for the people using it, I don't think we really mean any harm. I don't see how using the word retarded to describe a stupid day is harmful to anyone.
When did this "movement" against the use of this word start, and what is it such a big deal to some of you? Your voice can now be heard!
