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The degradation of online discourse: What can we do about it?
Posts
What a wonderful way of stating it. Something very poetic in your response.
Nah, not with how many homonyms we have in the english language, and how many different words have 100% different meanings in different contexts.
Not to mention "gay" didnt originally mean "homosexual" in the first place. I mean who really associates gay with happy anymore like no one.
Thats gay is here to stay whether people like it or not, and I think it will eventually be accepted and not have any negative connotation towards homosexuals, who may even eventually stop calling themselves gay. I don't even get why they are called gay in the first place tbh.
I don't know, man. No one I know says "that's gay" because they know that's offensive, and we're more invested in not perpetuating the association of homosexuality with something pathetic or unfortunate than we are in one particular term.
Also with regard to "that's gay" and the last part of the OP, I feel like you can't "take back" anything unless you're a member of the group that's being referred to (when a black person refers to "my [n-word]" or a woman who has decided to reclaim the word "cunt" or "bitch" and use it in a positive context, as in for example saying reverently "she is one bad bitch" it's really different from when a white person or a man uses the n-word or "cunt" or "bitch"). Context matters, and the speaker matters. Even if you're not consciously thinking "black people are terrible" when you say the n-word, it's not okay.
I like that!
Yeah, fuck that kid. All being generally reinforced for awful behavior over a lifetime. That goddamn hypothetical layabout. He deserves to make other people feel bad all the time. That'll learn him! When he's older and wiser, looking back on the life he lead and feeling bad about the times he hurt people oh boy oh boy will Hypothetical Kid With Homophobic Parents or Something feel so awful.
And then who's on top? You and me, buddy.
http://troublethinking.wordpress.com (Updated Wed) http://twitter.com/#!/Durandal4532
But the "wrong speaker" doesn't give up the right to be free from physical violence for disagreeing with/ignoring your sentiment, correct?
And why exactly is it impossible for someone outside the group to use a term in a positive manner? Like, I assume Eminem can get away with the line Jackie Chan just tried.
What? Of course I am not advocating violence against people who are offensive and disrespectful. That doesn't mean they're not obnoxious.
As for your other question, you just can't. It's rude at best.
And Eminem himself has said that it's not okay for him as a white rapper to use the N word, so he doesn't. There are old tapes of him from when he was a teenager freestyling, and he used the N word then. He no longer does.
You know I am beginning to think "thats gay" is a largely west coast thing, because people say it all the time in california. I even know some gay people that say it.
My roommate calls the pets "fucking faggots."
As in, "Who's a fucking faggot?"
He's nice about it, in terms of voice. He's just doing that thing people do where they're really nice to dogs while telling them mean things. He loves that dog.
But it gets sort of disturbing and makes me feel unsafe half the time. Like, what if he notices that I'm wearing a women's shirt or whatever? Is he just kidding? Or should I be wary?
Which is actually another reason you should probably avoid using slurs like that. The atmosphere becomes toxic and minorities who know they can't stand up for themselves are forced into either accepting that they're everyone's punching bags or quitting the game/chat/whatever.
That's a general "you" in that last paragraph.
Enjoy policing the internet. I think you can download a badge somewhere.
@bolded: If his parents are that terrible then yea, eventually he's going to run into a time at work or wherever where he's going to made to feel 3 inches tall for being a bigot. This is a good thing.
So wait a minute.
It's appropriate and proper that this hypothetical person get called out for being a homophobe, just, god forbid it happen via the medium of an online game? Because after all if it were expected people stand up to this shit while playing halo, you'd wind up feeling like it was expected of you.
my unofficial autobio will be accompanied with tips on how to smile
cause I've found that when they don't see you frown, they never know that you're a threat
and they don't sweat you when you came around
That's the appropriate process. Grow up being told that it's right to hurt other people, hurt other people, and eventually maybe you'll get hurt badly in return after the damage has already been done. That's how everyone wins.
http://troublethinking.wordpress.com (Updated Wed) http://twitter.com/#!/Durandal4532
Rigorous Scholarship
Ive heard people say f***ot many times. But you know what is almost as common as the use of that word? Implying that someone is homosexual, and then deriding them for it.
A lot of times it isnt as simple as someone saying the n word or calling people fa**ots. A lot of the time its people being insultingly hurtful towards people by being as offensive as possible.
There is a difference in stating an opinion and verbally attacking somone.
I'll hang out with any class of people. More importantly, I don't choose before hand. If I show up at a party and only know one or two people there I'm not really looking to start shit due to someone's choice of words.
Rigorous Scholarship
Your priorities are bad.
This neo-feudalism would be more tolerable if our betters had fancy titles.