Please stop with the iterations of political correctness!

It's a big conspiracy to make us seem more polite to each other, but it is really unnecessary.

How do I explain this better?

Ok, once upon a time....

You could call someone retarded, but then that became an insult, so they started using the term "mentally handicapped", then that became an insult, and now people say "differently abled" which could be applied to someone with a 200 IQ score, as they would be "differently abled"; but the common feeling is that it means someone is retarded or handicapped in some way.

Can we please go back to using clinical terms for things? If I lost a leg because I was playing on train tracks, im not "partially ambulatorily differently abled" im CRIPPLED, or an AMPUTEE.

If my mom decided that smoking and drinking was the height of fashion or comfort, while she was pregnant, and I have down syndrome, then i am (insert disability term here), not "mentally differently abled".

The favourite examples would be referring to peoples asses,
bum, fanny, buttocks, seat, rear, backdoor, anatomy (for people living in the year 1500 in their minds and any latin word automatically becomes a dirty word). The reason the word ass is offensive, is because it means donkey, not buttocks, they use that same insult in other languages too. Can we just stick to "ass" for donkey, and buttocks for your bodypart?

RARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

WHAT IS THE POINT OF MAKING NEW ITERATIONS TO MEAN THE SAME THING.

please stop creating new iterations of the same science unoptimized thing (see how I did that?) and let's go back to the clinical definitions!

[edit on 14-1-2009 by Davood]

I don't really see what your beef is?

How many disabled people do you know who would rather be called a 'cripple'?

I'm on disability, so I'm disabled. Some here call me other names that are much more insulting. I've heard nutjob from law enforcement and a few others. "disabled' seems enough for me. Handicapped parking suggests something a little more defined than a disablity. I was called deliberate once in a sarcastic way. My favorite is: "You people"

Originally posted by aleon1018
I'm on disability, so I'm disabled.

Yeah me to. Some dude called me a cripple in the store a while back cause I was in line before him, I almost smacked him with my cane...lol

It's not really about words, it's about the intent behind those words.

Like in that other thread, when a construction workers calls a buddy at work a derogatory term, it's not the same as some stranger (or harry) doing the same thing to another stranger.

It's NOT PC it's common decency and respect.

If I caught somebody calling you a cripple I'd hold em down while you beat em up.
I hate that type of attitude.

and
I understand what the OP is saying.
I think the place where many people (like myself) become frustrated is that we do try to be respectful of others and use what is deemed as proper and respectful language. What gets frustrating is that it all keeps changing.

I'd never feel the need to call an old woman with a cane a differently abled semi ambulatory caucasian American person of advanced years.
I just call her Ma'm, and I'm sure most people don't feel the need to actually have a 24 syllable phrase to point out that they are different from others.

The problem seems to be that every time we get to a certian point of common sense, somebody wants to come along and make things even more irrationaly specific and adds some more terms that just highlight the fact that I'm suddenly a insensitive monster because I haven't learned yet to embrace the next hot PC jargon and that anybody who is different needs to be further classified like a high school science project .

I actually like people. I enjoy meeting new friends and communicating with them. It's frustrating living in a world where everybody suffers from offensensitivity and people have to use a spreadsheet so they won't offend somebody else by using the wrong term.

It's infuriating living in a world where people would use the word cripple or anything like it as a derogatory term.

Sorry, went a bit long on that and not very eloquent, but I think you get the drift.







[edit on 15-1-2009 by badgerprints]

I'm with the OP on this one. Whatever happened to sticks and stones/words are painless and all that? Whatever happened to the intent behind the words being the problem. Sure I could call you a genius, and mean it, but if I say it in a different manner: the word "genius" becomes an insult.

This whole "political correctness" thing has gone too far. Aren't we supposed to be functioning adults? Must we really whine and complain just because someone said the word: midget, retarded, handicapped, gay, or whatever words are making people b***h every day?

If I call someone crippled, it's because they're crippled, and that's what the word is for. If someone is an ass and uses the word as an insult, who says you have to find it insulting. It is, after all, just a word right?

I agree that it can cross the line...

For example, having a "winter party" instead of a Christmas party, that includes no references to Jesus, Santa, etc.

C'mon...really???

Yeah...that winter stuff drives me nuts. We couldn't have a Halloween dance at school to raise money, they said we would have to call it a "Harvest Dance" and we were not allowed to put up bats or pumpkins(without faces).

I'm not even a Christian, but as I grew up with Christmas, I'm not about to "throw it out"... For me, the giving spirit of the holiday is much more important than a prophet's birthday...

The Halloween thing throws me...not even that religious (heck, it's Pagan)...yet they still try to be PC....

Thing is, by catering to a vocal minority, they end up ticking off the majority.

Where's the logic in that?

There is no logic in it.

But then again, when did people in this country utilize logic? Or even common sense?

Originally posted by badgerprints
If I caught somebody calling you a cripple I'd hold em down while you beat em up. I hate that type of attitude.

Hehe thanx mate, I would have needed the help.

Actually to some point I agree with the OP also.

Not about words like 'cripple' but with terms like 'African American', most blacks in America were not born in Africa and they find the term silly. Where does it leave blacks from the Caribbean etc?

So I agree to a point, but I think OP needs to refine his point a little...

If one wants politically incorrect humor, there is always the wonderful Don Rickles. I have seen parts of his HBO special, and he put me in stitches. People need to be less sensitive about the whole matter, and not walk on eggshells all the time.