Why do you find the word "ret*d" offensive?
They have been retired from clinical use, so they no longer refer to groups of people. However, "ret*d" (actually "mentally ret*d") is still on the medical records of many living people. Once it gets retired entirely from official use to refer to any living people it will lose much of its' offensiveness. The catch is that when that happens, it will be because a new term has risen to take its place officially. The term that is now ascending is "intellectual disability" and also "cognitive disability". In time, a version of those terms will become an insult too.
Oh that explains the hypocrisy. Once the word ret*d is no longer in the medical dictionary and used in the medical field, people will stop connecting it to the low intelligence.
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Son: Diagnosed w/anxiety and ADHD. Also academic delayed.
Daughter: NT, no diagnoses.
They have been retired from clinical use, so they no longer refer to groups of people. However, "ret*d" (actually "mentally ret*d") is still on the medical records of many living people. Once it gets retired entirely from official use to refer to any living people it will lose much of its' offensiveness. The catch is that when that happens, it will be because a new term has risen to take its place officially. The term that is now ascending is "intellectual disability" and also "cognitive disability". In time, a version of those terms will become an insult too.
Oh that explains the hypocrisy. Once the word ret*d is no longer in the medical dictionary and used in the medical field, people will stop connecting it to the low intelligence.
It's not hypocrisy.
They don't connect words like "idiot" and so forth to intellectual impairment because they've never been used that way in their lifetime.
It's as though I called you a cretin and expected you to not be insulted because, after all, the word is derived from "Christian" and all I'm doing is acknowledging that you're human too.
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Music Theory 101: Cadences.
Authentic cadence: V-I
Plagal cadence: IV-I
Deceptive cadence: V- ANYTHING BUT I ! !! !
Beethoven cadence: V-I-V-I-V-V-V-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I
-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I! I! I! I I I
Its a derogatory term used to insult intelligence.
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They have been retired from clinical use, so they no longer refer to groups of people. However, "ret*d" (actually "mentally ret*d") is still on the medical records of many living people. Once it gets retired entirely from official use to refer to any living people it will lose much of its' offensiveness. The catch is that when that happens, it will be because a new term has risen to take its place officially. The term that is now ascending is "intellectual disability" and also "cognitive disability". In time, a version of those terms will become an insult too.
Oh that explains the hypocrisy. Once the word ret*d is no longer in the medical dictionary and used in the medical field, people will stop connecting it to the low intelligence.
It's not hypocrisy.
They don't connect words like "idiot" and so forth to intellectual impairment because they've never been used that way in their lifetime.
It's as though I called you a cretin and expected you to not be insulted because, after all, the word is derived from "Christian" and all I'm doing is acknowledging that you're human too.
That.
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I agree, and I'm quite good at insulting people.
However, I prefer to only insult the person I'm trying to insult, and not unintentionally insult an entire group of people who have done me no wrong.
"ret*d" as an insult falls into the latter category. Besides, I'm far too creative to fall back on the ready-made insults of the pedestrian herds.
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"If we fail to anticipate the unforeseen or expect the unexpected in a universe of infinite possibilities, we may find ourselves at the mercy of anyone or anything that cannot be programmed, categorized or easily referenced."
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Verdandi
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I do not agree with the premise you've established for this being "hypocrisy." I do find the use of the word "ret*d" to be offensive and avoidable. But I also wonder if you can find anywhere I've used the words "stupid," "idiot," or "dumb" to insult people.
I've eliminated those other words from my vocabulary. Since I do not believe "stupid" and similar words are meaningful, I do not see any point or need to calling anything those words. I have not had any difficulty finding other words to replace them.
The real reason such words ARE actually insulting is: Gay, ret*d, Etc. is because they also come to mean "Sub-human" Not of us, not really human.
And there, not in dry, pedantic discussions of word history is the harm they do. I heard the word "Gay" used so many times as an insult in High School, despite the person being called that was anything but a homosexual.. It meant that person was INFERIOR. Pehaps something that needed culling from the herd, if you follow my meaning. If you do not, please study the history of what the Nazis did to people they deemed inferior...
Sincerely,
Matthew
Verdandi
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And there, not in dry, pedantic discussions of word history is the harm they do. I heard the word "Gay" used so many times as an insult in High School, despite the person being called that was anything but a homosexual.. It meant that person was INFERIOR. Pehaps something that needed culling from the herd, if you follow my meaning. If you do not, please study the history of what the Nazis did to people they deemed inferior...
^^^
This is the best explanation I've seen in the thread.
I think the Nazi comparison is over the top, though, because people will tend to focus on that and miss the point.
I only use "ret*d" matter of factly. I will describe myself as "socially ret*d", I would say "anyone with an IQ below 70 is defined as ret*d", if somebody asked me the symptoms of Downs Syndrome I would mention retardation.
I would never use "ret*d" though, defining a person by the fact that they are ret*d is reminiscent of the eugenics campaigns of the early 20th century. Plus I find it to be an insult used by people who frankly have no ground to insult anyone from.
What about "lame"? What do you think about people referring to things as "lame"? The word means "unable to walk".
My ex boyfriend would call me "ret*d" a lot yet he gets really mad when I call him "gay". What a hypocrite. Don't you just hate when people insult you all the time without caring yet get really mad when you insult them back in kind? I say don't dish if you can't handle getting dished back in kind.
They have been retired from clinical use, so they no longer refer to groups of people. However, "ret*d" (actually "mentally ret*d") is still on the medical records of many living people. Once it gets retired entirely from official use to refer to any living people it will lose much of its' offensiveness. The catch is that when that happens, it will be because a new term has risen to take its place officially. The term that is now ascending is "intellectual disability" and also "cognitive disability". In time, a version of those terms will become an insult too.
Oh that explains the hypocrisy. Once the word ret*d is no longer in the medical dictionary and used in the medical field, people will stop connecting it to the low intelligence.
It's not hypocrisy.
They don't connect words like "idiot" and so forth to intellectual impairment because they've never been used that way in their lifetime.
It's as though I called you a cretin and expected you to not be insulted because, after all, the word is derived from "Christian" and all I'm doing is acknowledging that you're human too.
Back in the 1960's, they were still using those words. In the 1970's, they weren't anymore and it was now ret*d.
_________________
Son: Diagnosed w/anxiety and ADHD. Also academic delayed.
Daughter: NT, no diagnoses.
I do not agree with the premise you've established for this being "hypocrisy." I do find the use of the word "ret*d" to be offensive and avoidable. But I also wonder if you can find anywhere I've used the words "stupid," "idiot," or "dumb" to insult people.
I've eliminated those other words from my vocabulary. Since I do not believe "stupid" and similar words are meaningful, I do not see any point or need to calling anything those words. I have not had any difficulty finding other words to replace them.
People also say stupid for items and for ideas they don't agree with. Like "That's stupid" or "Stupid toy." People will also say "that's dumb." I have never seen anyone call any ideas an idiot or any items or situations an idiot. Only dumb and stupid.
_________________
Son: Diagnosed w/anxiety and ADHD. Also academic delayed.
Daughter: NT, no diagnoses.
What about "lame"? What do you think about people referring to things as "lame"? The word means "unable to walk".
Same as what I think about people who are offended with the R word but yet aren't offended by that word nor the other words and also use them themselves.
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Son: Diagnosed w/anxiety and ADHD. Also academic delayed.
Daughter: NT, no diagnoses.
btbnnyr
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I tried hard to come up with some negative emotional reaction or feelings of offense to this word, but I failed. My mother often calls me ret*d, stupid, or missing pieces of my brain, and I feel nothing from these insults, but maybe that is because they come from my mother. I don't recall others calling me these things, only weird which I didn't mind either, and creepy which made me somewhat pleased.
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