Posted on 07/22/2008 4:02:08 AM PDT by Kaslin
Back when I took communications courses, I was taught that communication, in its most basic form, consists of a sender, a message, and a receiver. It was the receiver, though, who assigned meaning to the message. Regardless of what the sender means, if the receiver does not assign a pejorative meaning, then there is no offense. You could go into the deepest, untouched part of the jungle, bump into a native, and say, “Hello, you are a blitzflick,” and if you were smiling when you said it, the listener would probably think you were saying something complimentary. This seems to be close to what blacks are saying: “I do not take offense when a black calls me nigger because I know the message is not meant to be pejorative; I DO take offense when a white calls me nigger because it is likely that a white person says it with evil intent.” The problem, of course, is legitimizing derogatory language in ANY form encourages the use of such language in EVERY form.
And just whom is it that will determine what is, and what isn't derogatory?
Shall it be dealt with by the point of a gun wielded by elected officials?
As with this global warming religion of the left, it has become "derogatory" to issue statements contrary to their continued propaganda, though based on factual evidence.
Are we all to be put to the sword unless we capitulate to these despots?
In calling someone a name (ie: a$$hole) may be exactly what I think they are. Is it now to become a crime? Or something that it really is ... one persons thoughts (though rather vulger) about another.
I guess you’re right but if someone wants to call me white trash and I know I’m not then I don’t care. If I know I’m white trash and act like white trash then I might take offense but that would be my own fault for being white trash
When I was a little boy I remember much more distinct dialect from the various regions of the country also.
Too much a homogeneous American we speak nowadays.
I use to relish listening to an Alabama raised Woman speak or a Black woman from Mass. or Conn. with that distinct New England tone.
Being from the south that was an eye opener.
You are correct, have a handle on your language and have at least a chance.
Agreed. I ‘d be a lot more offended if someone called me stupid,which is what this whole thing is.
This is what PC-ness does to us.
“Words once considered evil . . . “
Yeah, and that’s the problem. People have become confused about what evil really is. It’s evil when someone abuses someone else in a physical sense, but name-calling is not on that same level. Most people are so thin-skinned these days they can’t just ignore an insult from some loser.
Words are neither evil nor good. Only people can be evil. That’s why the debate has gotten so ridiculous, because no one will just stand tall and ignore when someone uses an ‘evil’ word against them, like the n-word, white trash, etc.
Well, that’s sort of the point, isn’t it? There should be no arbiter of proper or improper language. If one is not free to express even an offensive opinion, then can we say we have freedom of expression at all? We already have elected officials decreeing that certain types of language are impermissible, only they back it up with fines (so far), and, of course, the politically correct sheeple then set about heedlessly destroying the careers and ruining the lives of the accused.
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