DU Honesty poll time.

[MUAD_DIB]

Poll question: DU Honesty poll time.

I would like to see how many people will actually answer yes to this poll.

Rahm Emanuel was quoted in private of using the term "fucking retarded."


How many of the DU community has ever used that term or something close to it?

[slackmaster]

1. DU is just about the only forum in which I don't use that term

Because it offends some people who think the term is an insult to people who they describe as mentally disabled.

[Name removed]

3. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Umbral]

2. FWIW, it's not the term that offends me, it's the context and the intent. nt

[NYC_SKP]

4. I've never used the terms, "retarded" or "gay" in a derrogatory way. Not ever.

Not even in grade school when it was common and cool.

"Fucking", on the other hand rolls right off the tongue.

[wtmusic]

6. Me too

Never even tempted.

[Jennicut]

13. Yeah, my husband and I get yelled at by our kids for using that term quite often.

}( Oops.

[bobbolink]

72. dupe

[bobbolink]

73. Good for your kids! Its time to listen to them.

[T Wolf]

5. When we (I) lose my temper, we (I) sometimes fall back into the patterns we learned growing up.

And for those of us of advanced yearage, we were raised in a time when many things were said (and thought and done) that we later learned were not acceptable or appropriate.

We can learn. That does not mean that we do not slip.

[NightWatcher]

7. the offensive nature of his use of that term has nothing to do with the term "retarded"

but the fact that he has felt to use it to describe the Progressive Base.

Tell me that Progressives are not the Base, and I'll tell you to wait and see what happens in November if we keep getting shat upon and ignored. We got Obama his job in 08 by our actions and our inaction will see the Dems lose whatever little majority they have left.

[MUAD_DIB]

9. So you're not offended at the term, but you are offended

that it was used to describe progressives.

[dmallind]

10. Thet has no relevance to being "the base"

If centrists stayed home he wouild lose just as easily. There is only about a 5% swing between the parties on a good day, so any bloc greater than 5% of the population can cause a candidate to win or lose. That doesn't make them the base or clsoe to it. The Democratic party base can easily be identified by looking at the party platform - a document created by those elected at the most grassroots and activist level within the party. It is NOT a terribly left/progressive document.

EDIT to get back to OP. Sure I have used it, and probably will again. Rarely to describe people, except for where it si technically correct, but to describe processes and issues I come across.

[lumberjack_jeff]

21. Bull. Shit.

If he had called progressives "N****rs" would it have been offensive only because he saw fit to call *us* that?

Every mealy-mouthed goddamn defense of using that term as a perjorative relies on the "but everyone does it" excuse.

[MrsCorleone]

74. Did he describe the progressive base as retarded or did he say that a particular

progressive strategy was retarded?

I just want to be clear on what was actually said and in what context. Thanks.

[MrsCorleone]

82. Not to pile on or anything, but the first headlines out regarding

the "retarded" comment are contradictory.

WSJ article (first to report): Chief of Staff Draws Fire From Left as Obama Falters
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703808904575025030384695158.html

"The friction was laid bare in August when Mr. Emanuel showed up at a weekly strategy session featuring liberal groups and White House aides. Some attendees said they were planning to air ads attacking conservative Democrats who were balking at Mr. Obama's health-care overhaul.

"F—ing retarded," Mr. Emanuel scolded the group, according to several participants. He warned them not to alienate lawmakers whose votes would be needed on health care and other top legislative items."

Then, Raw Story picks up story: Under fire, Obama’s chief of staff calls liberal strategy ‘fucking retarded’
http://rawstory.com/2010/01/fire-obamas-chief-staff-calls-liberal-strategy-fucking-retarded/

"According to a report Tuesday in the Wall Street Journal, Emanuel told a liberal strategy group in August that a plan to run advertisements against conservative Democrats who were "balking at Mr. Obama's health-care overhaul" was grossly unwise.

"F—ing retarded," Mr. Emanuel scolded the group, according to participants cited by the paper.

"He warned them not to alienate lawmakers whose votes would be needed on health care and other top legislative"

But, then, FireDogLake runs this article: Rahm Emanuel: Liberals Are “F–king Retarded”
http://fdlaction.firedoglake.com/2010/01/26/rahm-emanuel-liberals-are-f-king-retarded/

"Previously it had been reported that Rahm called them “f*#king stupid,” even though the scuttlebut was that Rahm said they were “f*#king retards.” It’s a tight-lipped crowd to penetrate, and nobody wants to get zapped from the meetings for talking to the press. But Wallsten managed to get the story:

The friction was laid bare in August when Mr. Emanuel showed up at a weekly strategy session featuring liberal groups and White House aides. Some attendees said they were planning to air ads attacking conservative Democrats who were balking at Mr. Obama’s health-care overhaul.

“F—ing retarded,” Mr. Emanuel scolded the group, according to several participants. He warned them not to alienate lawmakers whose votes would be needed on health care and other top legislative items."

________


Either FDL purposely used a misleading headline and, therefore, misled their readers, or they're relying on some secondary source (not named in their article)? Either way, there are inconsistencies in the reporting on Retardgate, and the RWers are reveling in the chaos.

[Kahuna]

8. I've used it a lot. nt

[hunter]

11. Maybe rarely I'll dredge up something from the abuse I took as a kid...

... someone was always calling me gay or retarded in the schoolyard.

But there are so many better ways to describe one's disgust...

For example, George W. Bush is an incurious sheep fucker.

I used to say similar things about Ronald Reagan but then I saw him stumbling around at a semi-private function and he really was a lost and demented old man who had no idea where the hell he was or what he was doing. The irony is that Reagan probably made it into heaven because by the time he got to the Pearly Gates he'd truly forgotten what a banal rat fuck he used to be.

But maybe I should change my language. It's derogatory of animals. I won't call Bush a "chimp" because chimps are intelligent and very much our respected kin. And even the nastiest biting flea ridden sewer rat is a beautiful creature of God compared to someone like Karl Rove or the wretched right wingers the neocons shat out onto our Supreme Court...

:grr:

[MUAD_DIB]

14. Incurious sheep fucker is such a mouthful, though.

What I am trying to do is to illustrate that nobody is perfect.

Frankly I have used the term retard or fucking retarded. It doesn't mean that I am referring to special needs individuals.

[redqueen]

23. If you look up "moron", it was originally used to describe a degree of retardation.

Most use the term today without giving one thought about the fact that the term might be offensive to morons or those with loved ones who are morons.

It seems to me that people who use the term "retard" are using it in that same way.

[WildEyedLiberal]

48. I think that is the ultimate fate of the word "retarded," honestly

I admittedly have used it in the pejorative sense. Yes, it's a pretty unevolved and vulgar thing to say, but... as the OP illustrates, no one's perfect. And even less so when we're angry and trying to insult someone.

I will say, though, that it has been AGES since I have referred to an actual person with a mental disability or special needs as "retarded." For me at least, the term has crossed firmly into pejorative schoolyard slang territory and no longer has any real application to actual people - which is maybe why it doesn't offend me much to use it. I understand why people ARE offended, but - as you said, "moron," "imbecile," and "idiot" all used to be legitimate psychiatric terms to refer to people with varying degrees of mental deficiency.

[M155Y_A1CH]

30. I used it too, long ago

when I didn't know any better, but is it still an offensive term now that they don't call people retarded anymore?
Special needs, developmentally delayed, differently abled. They don't label people with the word retarded any more so now it just means delayed.
My SO is a special education professional, so I can't say retarded anymore within earshot. We have discussions about this term from time to time because she gets so mad when people say it. She believes that stupid is okay because people aren't diagnosed as stupid. I personally think that PC is always changing, so maybe it's time for this word to lose it's evil?

[MUAD_DIB]

36. Have you ever heard the story about the name of god: Yahweh?

As I understand it the name, over time, became so holy that it could not be uttered.

Those that used it were accused of blasphemy and met an unfortunate end.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yahweh

"Yahweh" is the proper name of God in the Hebrew bible, where it is written as four consonants (YHWH), called the tetragrammaton,<16> the actual pronunciation of which is still debated. Jews ceased to use the name in the Greco-Roman period, replacing it with the common noun Elohim, “god,” to demonstrate the universal sovereignty of Israel’s God over all others; at the same time, the divine name was increasingly regarded as too sacred to be uttered, and was replaced in spoken ritual by the word Adonai (“My Lord”), or with haShem (“the Name”) in everyday speech.


I'm not dumping on the ancient Israelites, but I am just illustrating a point that language is fluid, and that meanings and perceptions to meanings can change.

[M155Y_A1CH]

44. King James says

I Am that I Am.
Not that I identify as a christian, just raised with the tradition.
The other 700 Club would run me out on a rail for heresy. LOL

BTW I voted yes in the spirit of the poll
:hi:

[bobbolink]

76. Oh, you really think that special needs people AREN'T called retards anymore?

Really?

You can say that with a straight face?

Tell ya what..... YOU walk in the shoes, and face being called names like that, and THEN see how YOU feel about it.

Can't any of you ever imagine what its like to be hurt like some are? Can't you walk in the shoes for even a little while?

[M155Y_A1CH]

87. I meant they aren't labeled that way as an official diagnosis

Why would you think that I have no sympathy?
I'm not sure why you think that none of us has empathy.
I myself have been taunted by others for reasons
that would be obvious if you met me.

[bobbolink]

95. "but is it still an offensive term now that they don't call people retarded anymore?"

I hear it a lot, and that is what you POSTED, so, yes, I took it as you wrote it.

While I sympathize that you have been taunted, that doesn't always mean that the taunted person has gained in empathy for OTHERS. In fact, many times people who are oppressed for one reason, join in oppressing others who are oppressed for a *different* reason. But, I'm sure you're aware of that.

[proud2BlibKansan]

99. They still call them retarded in Missouri

[Ignis]

50. ...Particularly for the sheep!

:hide:

[bobbolink]

75. Of course that is what it means you are referring to,

Do you ever stop to think of the pain you inflict?

Is that a "progressive" value, inflicting pain on people who are already living in pain?

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

12. When referring to Rahm, I find "opportunistic, corporate, asshole" more satisfying.

[cynatnite]

15. The number of people using the term doesn't make it any less offensive. n/t

[MUAD_DIB]

32. Offensive is a relative term and a personal one.

You could argue the same thing for the words fuck, shit or even...insane given the right context. No?

Should we never be allowed to use some words or any words that may offend others? Should that be extended to music, literature and the arts?

There is a level of civility that everybody should be aware of, and there are some whoppers that I would never use in public: absolutely never around children.

That being said does every colorful metaphor need to be met with stern disapproval when it is said in private...even learning about it second hand?

Are we so afraid of language that any instance of unrefined conversation needs to be met with harsh public outcry?


Such sterilization of any societal discourse should not be considered virtuous, but IMHO it actually runs contrary and and is dangerous to the principals of free speech that we hold dear.

[cynatnite]

68. the word isn't a metaphor...it's denigrating an entire group of people...

Common sense and decency should dictate to not use it.

I say fuck, shit, and damn a lot, but I don't use those words or others to put people down.

The repukes like to use free speech as an excuse to denigrate other groups like Muslims and gays.

[bobbolink]

77. Exactly, In the south, there were a majority of people who used the "n" word....

that didn't make it less offensive.

More importantly, it didn't take away the pain.

[closeupready]

16. No, like "faggot" or the N word, I struck the word "retard" (in the context Rahm used it) years ago.

so no. Honestly, I am an empathic person to whom insults and swearing were an acquired thing, not natural for me at all. I was teased as a child for being effeminate, and I never would have done something like that to someone who is mentally disabled, should someone like that be within ear shot as I indulged myself and let 'er rip.

[Name removed]

17. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[w8liftinglady]

18. when I worked at the state school for the mentally retarded,the docs used the following terms:

IQ Range Classification
70-80 Borderline deficiency
50-69 Moron
20-49 Imbecile
below 20 Idiot

..and,yes,I have found myself using them...especially when referring to *.

[redqueen]

28. Are those terms still in use today?

I thought even 'retarded' and 'mental retardation' had been replaced by other terms in the medical community. (e.g. developmentally disabled)

[w8liftinglady]

31. this was 24 years ago...so I doubt it...I hope not

[hayu_lol]

42. Why, all those terms apply to present day Representitives and...

senators...sometimes even to their bosses.

[earth mom]

19. Sorry but you can't prove that using the word retarded as slang is ok-EVER. nt

[NFL80]

26. The engine will over-rev unless the throttle is retarded.

[Moochy]

27. not slang

That is the past participle form of the verb in it's original meaning. Would you also like the definition of disingenuous?

[NFL80]

37. Sorry, I did not mean to sign up for the language skills class.

[Moochy]

38. Oh right, I see that you wanted the Justifying Bigotry Seminar.

You might consider it, if your busy schedule allows.

[NFL80]

43. You do not "see" very well

when it comes to me. You do not know me, you do not know what I need, and you certainly do not know how "busy" I may or may not be. You are quick to jump to judgement and apparently are looking for an argument, which you will not find here. I hear they are being auditioned in room 3. Enjoyed our little chat, thanks and goodbye.

[Moochy]

70. Thou dost protest too much

Pronunciation: \ˌdis-in-ˈjen-yə-wəs, -yü-əs-\
Function: adjective
Date: 1655

: lacking in candor; also : giving a false appearance of simple frankness : calculating

— dis·in·gen·u·ous·ly adverb

— dis·in·gen·u·ous·ness noun

[bobbolink]

96. Corporation = person. Engine = person.

:wtf:

[lumberjack_jeff]

20. Yes, but it was unacceptable when I said it too. n/t

[bridgit]

22. I never use the term, but my posts that point out that others do are deleted and...

There's not that much more to expect here; but my gay friends call others, and each other: flames, queens, retards, bitches, dumb-asses, gimps and worse all the time and they consider those terms of endearment, so...what to do, what to do

[Captain Hilts]

24. I've never used it. It never occurred to me. nt

[Moochy]

25. When I was in grade school

But when I was a white house chief of staff, not so much.

[Name removed]

29. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[KharmaTrain]

33. A Product Of The Times...

Several have pointed to using such slurs back in grade school...and that's an important point. It's when many of us are first faced with complex social situations and peer pressure, including adopting the language, including slurs...many times without truly understanding what they mean. I had a mentally-handicapped sister and growing up my parents would constantly use the word retarded...it was in a clinical sense but used nonetheless. Also since it was known about my sister's condition, I encountered bullies and others who would call me a "retard"...and trust me, it hurt. But it also was one of many slurs that were used at a time of far less understanding and intolerance. The same applies to "fag" and "homo"...words that were thrown about with little understanding or feeling but "acceptable" as opposed to today. In many ways this is similar to Harry Reid calling President Obama a "negro"...a product of 50s speak where the "n" word was tossed around in a similar manner. Some of us rise to stop using such insenitive verbage and regret having used them, but some don't...and don't realize they've crossed the line.

[Iggo]

34. Of course I have.

I've switched to "fucking lame", but even that might be offensive to people who walk with a limp...right?

Seriously, though, all words come from somewhere, even if they don't mean the same thing to different people. I've curbed my use of "aw, gay!" to alomst zero (I slip every now and then. sue me), and in the same way I'm learning to not use "retarded", but It's gonna be a while 'til I get it right. At least I know that it sounds different to the people hearing it than it does to me, so I'm way ahead of my step-father, who never could figure out why people had a problem with his use of the n-word. It was wrong for him, and it's wrong for me, and I'm working on it. That's the best that I can do.

[Mz Pip]

35. Is retard

really much different from moron, cretin or idiot? All are pretty commonly used slang words that are used in derogatory terms. They also have their roots in actual discriptions of people with mental/intellectual disabilities.

This whole episode smacks of political corrects run amok; just that this time it's a Democrat being criticized by an idiot (oops, I meant conservative.) Sarah interjected herself into all of this to make some news for herself. I doubt she's bothered to criticize any conservative who has used such language.

That, to me, is the story here. It's the hypocricy of Sarah Palin, not Rahm's mouth.

[bobbolink]

78. Well, Mz, then you must be a fan of dehumanizing the "enemy" during war.

Because that is exactly what you are doing.

And, when someone calls you on it, you dismiss it as "PC", just like the RW does.

Reducing human beings to OBJECTS is just as odious, no matter the context, as reducing an enemy to a thing.

[Mz Pip]

86. I'm asking a question.

I certainly have noticed the use of moron on DU for years.Seemed to be perfectly okay and I certainly never saw any outrage over it.

As for "being a fan of dehumanizing the enemy". Well if asking a question is morally equivelent then I guess it is more than just me who is guilty in your eyes. You have no idea "exactly" what I am doing.

You are creating a very small world where people can only say what you deem as correct. Good luck with that. Enjoy your stay on the perfect pedestal that you have created for yourself.

[bobbolink]

97. There is a lot of dehumanization at DU, and it has outraged a number of people.

Just because you see it a lot, does that make it OK? Seems to me to be a rather third-grade argument.

Yes, in today's USian society, compassion and empathy are in a small minority. Does that mean we should give up on it?

" Enjoy your stay on the perfect pedestal that you have created for yourself."

Bwahahaha! You need a new playbook... that is the method of the RW, we see through it, and it doesn't stop us any longer from working for... JUSTICE.

Get used to it.

=

[rocktivity]

39. I've referred to situtations or company/government policies as "retarded"

But not people.


rocktivity

[MUAD_DIB]

40. The policies didn't write themselves. They were written by people.

[Marr]

41. I can honestly say I've never used that term or anything similar to it to

insult people I disagreed with in a meeting. I'm surprised you'd try to suggest that such a childish and disrespectful act is acceptable.

[Name removed]

45. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[blueworld]

46. Yes, but not since I was in my 20's or thereabouts & even then infrequently

I much preferred cursing & insulting in Italian:)

Also, after the growth of the internet tubes, I learned a lot of better words like asshat & jerkbag. :rofl:

[undeterred]

47. Emanuel is the President's Chief of Staff

and there is no one in the DU community (that I am aware of) who is. Whether people swear around friends and family or even co-workers is a matter of taste and judgment. When the President's right hand man can barely put two sentences together without swearing- he needs to be replaced with someone whose behavior in front of a microphone is polished and professional. Rahm Emanuel is unprofessional and he needs to go.

[MUAD_DIB]

57. He wasn't in front of a microphone, now was he?

He also seems to be capable of putting two sentences together without swearing.

But thank you for your noted concern.

[undeterred]

61. Microphone or not, when you are the president's right hand man

everything political remark you make reflects on the president. And Emanuel has been publicly acknowledged by Obama as someone who rarely uses the word "mother" without another word tacked onto it. He swears a lot.

[MUAD_DIB]

62. So you admit that your last statement was in error, but now have shifted

to position it differently?

Frankly I could care less if Rahm Emanuel swears like a sailor before breakfast lunch and dinner as long as he gets the job done.

There are a lot more miserable things going on in this country and in the republican party to be hopping mad about than the sauced up mini scandal that gets everybody worked up into a lather.

Rahm's comment wasn't manufactured, but the emotional outcry to it seems to be.


Thanks again for caring.

[undeterred]

63. So it would be just fine with you if Obama talked trash at the podium?

Thanks for your sarcasm, which is always refreshing.

[undeterred]

64. So it would be just fine with you if Obama talked trash at the podium?

Thanks for your sarcasm, which is always refreshing.

[MUAD_DIB]

67. You're welcome, but you shouldn't fly off the handle for something

I didn't write.

Since when do I mean Obama when I write Rahm Emanuel?

And even if I did write Obama, which I didn't, does he eat breakfast lunch and dinner at a podium?


I believe you understood the point I was making so why go all to pieces over it?

[undeterred]

65. So it would be just fine with you if Obama talked trash at the podium?

Thanks for your sarcasm, which is always refreshing.

[undeterred]

66. So it would be just fine with you if Obama talked trash at the podium?

Thanks for your sarcasm, which is always refreshing.

[bobbolink]

79. Yes, we get that its ok with you for human beings to be dehumanized.

Check.

[tango-tee]

49. Deeply ashamed to admit it, but yes I have used that term.

Not engaging my heart and brain before flapping my gums. No excuses.

[cherokeeprogressive]

51. Had to vote yes. I'll tell you this though, I haven't used it since I was a kid, and I used it

because it was the most offensive thing I could come up with at the moment. I used it BECAUSE I knew it was hurtful and insulting. I used it BECAUSE I wanted someone to feel bad about something, or to make them angry.

I've done a lot of growing up since then. After a serious asswhoopin years and years ago, I learned not to call people I didn't know names.

Rahm's an ass BEFORE he opens his mouth, and a BIGGER ass after.

[liberal_at_heart]

52. I'm very scared of that word

I'm always worried that a kid at my son's school will call him that because of his autism. If the parents use that word alot then their children are more likely to use that word as well. As far as I'm concerned it is bad as the n word.

[Bluenorthwest]

53. Of course not, for many reasons.

The first being that I like to be understood. But what I do or say is said by and for myself. I do not represent another, certainly not the President. If I were representing that office, I'd not even say 'fuck' and I say fuck a thousand times a day.
I've heard enough from the administration to figure they are fairly crass and crude when alone in meetings, and that I'd not like it much. Not my style, not at all.

[cry baby]

54. I've said it before, but then hung my head in shame cause it belittles

those people that need not be belittled.

It's been a while since I used that term - I hope it never slips out again.

[bobbolink]

81. Thank you. I wish there were more like you.

The tone of many in this thread is very upsetting, and makes me ashamed of this society.

[kristopher]

55. As usual the word isn't the problem

Most terms that are offensive like this are offensive because there is an underlying connection with someone that is weak, deficient or who has been victimized.

The sense of injury that the use of these terms stirs within some is a reflection of their connection with the underlying problem.

If I refer to the child of someone as "slow" in front of the parent and the issue is that the child can't run fast, it isn't likely to be offensive in modern society.

If I refer to the child of someone as "slow" in front of the parent and the issue is that the child can't learn fast, it is likely to be offensive in modern society. The difference is that the first case isn't likely to put the child at a disadvantage in life, while the other most likely *will* have the effect of limiting options to achieve the goals that mark success by our culture. (The definition of what constitutes "success" is a large part of the problem).

The issue is compounded by the fact that society often rejects attempts by the offended party to bring notice to what they see as an injustice. This doesn't necessarily mean that society is cold and uncaring (although in many cases that would be true) but such rejection might be simply a belief that there is little that can be done to bring greater equality to the bear on the underlying problem.

It is hard to argue whether that is true or not. Is it possible to eliminate the cruel nature in people? To effect real change we would need to somehow change the fundamental perspective we hold in how reality is organized. For example, Buddhist oriented beliefs center around the premise that we are all equal in a way that is in stark contrast to the vertically oriented structure of monotheism.

In many ways Buddhism-centric cultures are more kind and tolerant of the weak than the imprint of Calvinism on American culture would ever allow. Yet that doesn't mean that cruelty and intolerance are banished from Buddhist cultures. I would maintain, however, that on balance, most of the cries for "politically correct" speech reflect a real social injustice that can largely be traced to the influence of SOME schools of fundamentalist Christianity.

[GreenPartyVoter]

56. I haven't used the term in years, but yes I used it as a kid.

[GoCubsGo]

58. I woul'd say the odds are pretty high that Sarah Palin used to use it, too

Up until she realized her Down's syndrome baby was a political asset.

[mochajava666]

59. Yes, I've used the term, but very rarely in the last 30 years

It's just a term that doesn't really have an occasion where it wouldn't sound like childhood playground stuff. Kind of like, "I know you are, but what am I?" Using it in the context of stupid, or ill-advised, it really reflects back poorly on the person using the term, since using that term is stupid and ill-advised.

By the way, is "fucking retarded" worse than just "retarded"? My Mother would think so, but I have absolutely no problem with the F Bomb. I love Louis Black, and every F Bomb he drops. I love Jon Stewart F Bombs, too.

[Codeine]

60. I use it all the time.

:shrug: Not very polite of me, but that's life.

[mmonk]

69. Most probably not since they were children,

And Rahm gets no pass from me. I'd like to see him out and in private life.

[bobbolink]

71. Having been a special ed teacher, but more importantly, being a human being,

I would never say anything like that.

We have become a very ugly society.

[abq e streeter]

80. many years ago--I'm not 12 years old anymore--waiting for Rahm's excuse

[Obamanaut]

83. It is how the words are used. Position of the throttle, or the spark

of an internal combustion engine, etc.

Words do not have to be eliminated from the vocabulary just because they are offensive in one context. Don't use them in the offensive context, and they remain, well, words.

[Spider Jerusalem]

84. One of my first cousins has severe and congenital mental disabilities.

She's 40 and has a mental age of about 5 or so. I may say something is 'stupid' but 'retarded' isn't a term I'd employ, personally. (It's not much different to saying 'that's so gay' meaning 'wow, that really sucks', as I see it.)

[apocalypsehow]

85. You forgot to add choice #3 to this poll: "I'm voting NO. I'm a fucking liar." n/t.

[defendandprotect]

88. Pre-consciousness raising, the term was in general use . . . NOT NOW, HOWEVER!!!

You have to really be trying at this point to be ignorant or insensistive!!

[Socal31]

89. When I was younger, "retarded" was more accepted.

It actually does have practical meaning, as someone's development has been "retarded." However, much like when my parents were young and "negro" was acceptable, we have moved on to more sensitive and appropriate vernacular.

Edit: Not giving anyone an excuse to use the term

[Raine]

90. When you're in a position like that nothing is "private"

and Rahm should know that.

[Onceuponalife]

91. Rahm Emanuel is so mentally challenged...

[omega minimo]

92. Here's some honesty THIS IS FUCKING BULLSHIT

[Caliman73]

93. I use that term all day long, 5 days a week or more...

I work with people with developmental disabilities. Mental retardation is a clinical term. I have not used the term to insult anyone since I was an adolescent.

[Orsino]

94. I'm sure I must have, though for better or worse I no longer recall doing so.

I find it incredibly offensive, along with the various 'tard permutations.

Equating mentally challenged with "stupid" or "bad" is a nasty, cowardly slur.

[proud2BlibKansan]

98. I use that term at work

I am a special ed teacher. :)

[Fire1]

100. I use the terms "moron," "idiot," and "stupid." n/t