this post was submitted on 19 Oct 2023
3015 points (97.8% liked)

Memes

45889 readers
1517 users here now

Rules:

  1. Be civil and nice.
  2. Try not to excessively repost, as a rule of thumb, wait at least 2 months to do it if you have to.

founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS
 
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] [email protected] -1 points 1 year ago (4 children)

Since I have been a child the word retard has NOT been used for people with developmental disabilities, it has only ever been used to describe people who've done something incredibly stupid that they had the capacity not to do. In fact, I have worked with low and high functioning people with developmental disabilities, and one of the high function people actually told me to use the word when he's being stupid, as I was using the word goof before, and that had unfortunate prison meanings that the resident didnt like.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

My roommate is autistic and was in the special classes. He thinks it's funny to be called a retard when he's, you know, being retarded. He actively tells me not to stop doing it. Hell, he's the one who told me it was fine to begin with, haha

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago

Hey! It doesn't matter if people say they are ok with it! White people are fixing the world by doing nothing but creating limitations to how we speak! Can't you understand how that's better?
Look at Latin-x and how it isn't usable by anyone that actually speaks Spanish and was entirely conceived of by rich kids in universities in America! It's just obviously better when we let others define our entire interactions with the world and immediately get upset to try to shame anyone not conforming to the point that shame isn't even usable because no one feels it anymore.

This is better this way. ¯⁠\⁠_⁠ಠ⁠_⁠ಠ⁠_⁠/⁠¯

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (2 children)

2023 now… doesn’t matter what it used to be.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Yes, so thats 33 years where its NOT BEEN USED TO REFER TO PEOPLE WITH DEVELOPMENTMENTAL DISABILITIES

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

It absolutely was used to refer to development disabilities in the US during the 80s - as well as anyone acting like they were disabled.

[–] [email protected] -3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

And probably about 23 years where it’s been frowned on to use the word as a pejorative. Don’t use your capital letters with me dipshit.

[–] [email protected] -4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I can capitalise whatever letters I damn well please, and like I said in another reply, insults by their nature have never been appropriate, and by their very nature are frowned upon.

[–] [email protected] -2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Yet, you’re cool with doing it… okay.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Yes, yes I am. What a fucking gotcha that was. Oh no, my insult insulted people, whatever should I do

[–] [email protected] -2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Whatever should you do? Probably stop being a cunt.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

In this instance being a cunt to the idiots was my exact point. I dont care for their stupid ass opinions, and I dont for yours. IRL I make it a point to avoid people as sensitive as you as its more rewarding to spend my time around people who arent as fragile and sensitive

[–] [email protected] -4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Go back to IRL then you dumb cunt.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (1 children)

lmao, if the word Retard is too scary for you, what makes you think cunt will scare me off the internet. I'm perfectly capable of just blocking you when I get tired of thos conversation

[–] [email protected] -3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It’s not the word that I give a shit about; I just abhor people that opt to not attempt to use a modicum of respect when talking to other people. That word offends people for very specific reasons, and I (and most other people) phased it out of using it as a pejorative a long time ago.

If you want to act like a fucking child; keep on keeping on. You should block me now.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I mean, you could also block me, that works too. I'm not tired of this yet =D

[–] [email protected] -3 points 1 year ago

I’m not the weak of personally sack of shit that used “blocking” as my solution. That was you.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

You know, not too long ago the same argument you're making was made for the word cunt with regard to sexism instead of ableism. Just food for thought is all.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

God I fucking hate "it's current year stop doing x"

The year isn't a fucking argument, dipshit retard

[–] [email protected] -4 points 1 year ago

It’s generally intended to mean “pull your head out of your ass, what was once acceptable is no longer.”

Glad I was able to spell that out for you.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Your experience is not absolute. It's still abelist and offensive.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Nah man, I'm just not down for constantly keeping up to date with the treadmill of what words are and arent appropriate... especially for insults, which have never been meant to be appropriate. I dont fucking care if your feelings are so fragile that relatively tame words can hurt you

[–] [email protected] -2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

I’m just not down for constantly keeping up to date with the treadmill of what words are and arent appropriate

Then be prepared for people to rightly call you a bigot. Sorry you're done learning, grandpa but the world keeps turning.

And the fact that you now know better and still choose to hurt ableist language just means you're embracing your bigotry.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Calling someone a bigot based entirely on the words they use instead of the intent behind them is a great way to be wrong 80% of the time

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Someone knowing using hurtful, bigoted language and claiming they didn't "mean it like that" is asinine and disingenuous. Using deliberately incorrect terminology nearly everyone will misinterpret and then complaining when they do is placing yourself upon a cross. It's a pathetic level of discourse usually outgrown by middle school.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

You're assuming barely anyone keeps up with what the minority of people decide isn't okay to say anymore. Twitter isn't the world. Lemmy isn't the world. Reddit isn't the world. There may be millions of users, but the average person doesn't give a shit about any of these platforms.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago

If you think ableist pejoratives targeting neurodivergences and metal impairments are only present on social media, you need to touch some fucking grass. That shit hasn't been OK in decades. South Park even did an apologetic episode on it more than a decade ago which means the discussion was mainstream. And you should 100% not be taking social cues from that show.

[–] [email protected] -2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Then that's a more honest response than your earlier one. It's not that you don't understand that others may be hurt by your language even though it's not a word you personally ever used to describe developmental disabilities, it's just that you don't give a shit.

Good on you for owning it (on the second try), I guess.

I dont fucking care if your feelings are so fragile that relatively tame words can hurt you

You mean like developmentally disabled people you work with who may have good reasons to be sensitive about certain words? I guess since one of those people said he was cool with it he speaks for all of them. I'm sure none of them have ever been hurt by hateful people using the R word about them.

Nah man, I’m just not down for constantly keeping up to date with the treadmill of what words are and arent appropriate… especially for insults

50+ years old and in my entire life this isn't something I've found to be mentally taxing to keep up with. This is truly the flimsiest excuse I've ever seen for using shitty language. Just stick with "I don't fucking care."

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Do you really not know that people can have multiple different reasons and motivations for their behaviours and actions? I've been honest this entire time, there are slurs I absolutely wont use because of their history and the immediate harm they cause, but retard isnt one of them, so my earlier explaination still stands. Its also true that people that get offended on others behalf annoy me and I dont care when I offend them. If I PERSONALLY offend someone for something that they PERSONALLY struggle with? I care in that scenario and I mark it down mentally to adapt to their needs and not hurt them again. You are a stranger on the internet, I dont care about you, I dont have the emotional space to. I didnt casually use the spicy word, I used it specifically as an insult towards people who I've been dealing with dogshit takes from. To be clear, I NEVER called any of my clients Retard, and this client I only did for them, after they requested it, and even then it made me uncomfortable because using that word to refer to someone with developmental disabilities IS gross. Nuance exists. And yes, I'm tired of the treadmill. I have Aspergers syndrome and now the treadmill is trying to tell me that not only did the DSM take that diagnosis away, I'm now not allowed to refer to my high functioning autism as Aspergers since the guy whom it was named after was a nazi, even though my autism has NEVER BEEN about that guy, and IM THE PERSON WHO HAS the diagnosis.

[–] [email protected] -5 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

xD Ok. Have a nice day!