Special Olympics fights use of word 'ret*d'
What I've noticed is that the people with the actual disabilities (such as myself, apparantly) couldn't care less about the word, but people related to ID people or people who think they should have ended up with massive birth defects but didn't are as afraid of it as I'm afraid of heights. To them it symbolizes everything they fear: not being an NT. I don't use the word very often, and it's normally to describe myself, and I try to avoid it when around the above mentioned people. However, I don't plan to stop using it because of some new PC junk. You know, political correctness should get a new name. It's not worthy to take the same initials as the best series of OSes ever.
In music, that word is used when you need to slow the tempo for a while. Other than that, I make an effort not to use the R word because it's often used as an insult and is offensive.
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"I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason,
and intellect has intended us to forgo their use."
- Galileo Galilei
Just little clarification for everyone, Special Olympics Inc and Best Buddies International are working together on the Spread the Word to End the Word Campaign. The word of course is the R-Word. U.S. state governments have also changed their views on the R-Word and have strike it down in legislation usage. Rosa's Law the federal government version has already passed through the Senate.
http://mikulski.senate.gov/Newsroom/Pre ... ?id=327082
Also I think you should watch these videos on Soeren Palumbo, a good friend I made during my internship with Special Olympics Project UNIFY.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zFKFshINuw[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=riHmUW_MO6A[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dM2TD6ErTcI[/youtube]
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"You are the stars and the world is watching you. By your presence you send a message to every village, every city, every nation. A message of hope. A message of victory."- Eunice Kennedy Shriver
I've never called anyone a ret*d. I know it sounds bad but I call ret*ds ret*ds, like if I have to specify for some reason. I would never use a name for them on someone because I'm mad. I respect ret*ds. And now of course I get to hear I don't because I call them ret*ds but I don't care. I don't care what the new fancy name is. The name for ret*ds will always become used for bad as long as ret*ds are not accepted.
Think about it.
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"Striking up conversations with strangers is an autistic person's version of extreme sports." Kamran Nazeer
It's different. n****r was never meant to be a nice word. Mental retardation was meant to be a nice way of saying things and before you called intellectually handicapped people idiots. You might say it is different to say ret*d and person with retardation but I don't agree. Every new name they make up for an unpopular group will sound like a bad name at the end until they start accepting this group.
4. orig. and chiefly N. Amer.
a. (1909) (a) Educ. and Psychol. A person displaying or characterized by developmental delay or learning difficulties (cf. RETARDATION n. 4a) (now rare, not the preferred term); (b) Educ. a child whose educational progress or level of attainment has fallen behind that expected for his or her age (cf. RETARDATION n. 4b) (now rare, not the preferred term).
b. (1968) colloq. and slang (freq. derogatory and offensive, esp. in recent use). A person (or occas. thing) regarded as being mentally or physically deficient, stupid, or incompetent.
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"Striking up conversations with strangers is an autistic person's version of extreme sports." Kamran Nazeer
No its not different since it is prejudice and discrimination as it is a label. If you deserved to label when you are able to do great things then you're be discriminated against. I don't agree with you because acceptance, dignity, respect, and inclusion is need in the world. Using the R-Word is not inclusion or acceptance but exclusion and hate. Also it is people with intellectual disabilities not people who are intellectual handicapped.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRUOL5Rm2XY[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXg5Q0dI6nM[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dM2TD6ErTcI[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RfMlrTV_5vY[/youtube]
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"You are the stars and the world is watching you. By your presence you send a message to every village, every city, every nation. A message of hope. A message of victory."- Eunice Kennedy Shriver
Quite possibly. This is the difference between a living language and a dead one.
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"Striking up conversations with strangers is an autistic person's version of extreme sports." Kamran Nazeer
Unfortunately you are absolutely right. People can stay one step ahead of the insults by coining new terms, but those new terms always become insults. This will happen with "intellectual disability" and "cognitive disability". Which is not to say that those terms shouldn't be used. I am totally in favor of "spread the word to end the word". But real change only comes when the disability itself is no longer considered so horrible.
Unfortunately you are absolutely right. People can stay one step ahead of the insults by coining new terms, but those new terms always become insults. This will happen with "intellectual disability" and "cognitive disability". Which is not to say that those terms shouldn't be used. I am totally in favor of "spread the word to end the word".
If it is known that the new terms will be misused for things they're not supposed to be used for, but the "end the word" nonsense continues with its churning out of euphemisms, then it's a phony and condescending effort. I've had enough of these spectacles drummed up by a bunch of non-mentally disabled creeps who make complaints like that, so they can pat themselves on the back for supposedly doing something nice.
It will be impossible to convince all of such a nonsense delusion.
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