I fight this inner war all the time. I"m not always sure where I fall on such debates.
"I feel like a spaz" is something I'd never heard of as being related to cerebral palsy. Calling someone a retard is at least clearly that type of insult.
"You're psychotic!" "You're neurotic!" -- are these things problematic for similar reasons?
What sorts of good insults will be left? where do you draw theline?
"Spaz" is short for "spastic" - in Australia, the cerebral palsy association is still called the Spastic Society. So the word's origins are kind of in our face. (Maybe this is why we have the loose synonym "unco", meaning "clumsy".)
You should try coming up with an insult from the perspective of Zen, in which there is "nothing immaculate, nothing defiled", and "Buddha is a dung-wiping stick". Blimey, there's nothing left!
"Is the fact that a nation has lost sight of the origins of the word a good or bad thing? Is it harmful or is it genuinely meaningless now?"
I dont think it makes sense to appeal to etymology. We don't need to know the origins of words to use them. The problem is that this word means different things to different people. And the US has not lost sight of the origins of this word, as the articles goes on to show.
Well, speacking as someone who is a "spaz" (with spastic diplegia cerebral palsy, to be precise), I am perfectly comfortable with the word. I suspect, however, that's because when the word came into fashion around my high school (late 70's to early 80's), my friends all used it as a term of self-deprication and general friendship. If I'd ever heard it used as an insult, or with malicious intent, I probably would be be upset by its use.
Now, the word that I find totally insulting, when aimed in my general direction is "Special," because it sets me apart from the rest of humanity.
I have to confess I hadn't given terms like "special education" a thought! I figured it just had the same meaning as "special reserve" in the Library, where we keep the most used textbooks and stuff. So now I know!
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2006-04-13 02:37 am (UTC)"I feel like a spaz" is something I'd never heard of as being related to cerebral palsy. Calling someone a retard is at least clearly that type of insult.
"You're psychotic!" "You're neurotic!" -- are these things problematic for similar reasons?
What sorts of good insults will be left? where do you draw theline?
no subject
Date: 2006-04-13 03:11 am (UTC)You should try coming up with an insult from the perspective of Zen, in which there is "nothing immaculate, nothing defiled", and "Buddha is a dung-wiping stick". Blimey, there's nothing left!
no subject
Date: 2006-04-13 05:57 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-13 03:06 pm (UTC)I dont think it makes sense to appeal to etymology. We don't need to know the origins of words to use them. The problem is that this word means different things to different people. And the US has not lost sight of the origins of this word, as the articles goes on to show.
no subject
Date: 2006-04-13 04:08 pm (UTC)Now, the word that I find totally insulting, when aimed in my general direction is "Special," because it sets me apart from the rest of humanity.
no subject
Date: 2006-04-14 09:57 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-17 01:28 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-20 12:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-04-18 03:04 pm (UTC)