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PeaceNikki

(27,985 posts)
1. You're being hyperbolic. Nobody said never use one or they're useless.
Mon Jul 14, 2014, 01:23 PM
Jul 2014

They are, in fact, a HUGE oversimplification when used to try to describe things like large sociological issues.

But, kvetch away if you must.

 

AlbertCat

(17,505 posts)
5. They ?
Mon Jul 14, 2014, 01:56 PM
Jul 2014

You'll have to define "they"

every dictionary?

even scientific ones?

Are definitions from academia supposed to be understood by everybody?

 

Warren Stupidity

(48,181 posts)
13. well, there are some dictionaries that are piss poor reference sources
Mon Jul 14, 2014, 05:22 PM
Jul 2014

for example, the Urban Dictionary for anything other than bro-slang.

LostOne4Ever

(9,267 posts)
2. When it comes to Merriam Webster's dictionary
Mon Jul 14, 2014, 01:47 PM
Jul 2014

I have to agree its useless...especially its definition of atheist. But I don't want a rehash of the thread from the bash the atheists room, so I will leave it at that.

 

AlbertCat

(17,505 posts)
3. "Define your terms if you want to make a point"
Mon Jul 14, 2014, 01:54 PM
Jul 2014

.... is all I was advocating. And emotional tirade 101 took place.





(see...I looked up "tirade" to make sure I was using it correctly)

 

AlbertCat

(17,505 posts)
7. you dragged it into the A&A group
Mon Jul 14, 2014, 03:52 PM
Jul 2014

We had a similar thing here earlier re the word "atheist". (this was for the word "racist&quot


And the "dictionaries are useless" is the reducto ad absurdum implication.


Racism, like religion, is an emotional subject.... so, like religion, all logic flies out the window. Which was my point.

I find the parallels interesting.

and relevant.

or do we not discuss logic and skepticism here? (or human behavior?)

WhollyHeretic

(4,074 posts)
8. I really don't think your frantic posts in that thread, or your continuation here, would be
Mon Jul 14, 2014, 03:59 PM
Jul 2014

considered logic.

 

AlbertCat

(17,505 posts)
9. your frantic posts in that thread
Mon Jul 14, 2014, 04:15 PM
Jul 2014

Frantic?

What are you talking about?


Just like in that thread.... all this bizarre unfounded idea about how "upset" I am. Weird.

If I have to repeat myself over and over and try to reword or adjust things because it's like responders to my posts have read something else I didn't write, it's not "frantic". I'd say the complete inability to reply to a post like you actually read it looks a bit "frantic". I just try a few times and then give up. Like Barney Frank said....you can't argue with a coffee table.

WhollyHeretic

(4,074 posts)
10. "Just like in that thread.... all this bizarre unfounded idea about how "upset" I am. Weird."
Mon Jul 14, 2014, 04:37 PM
Jul 2014
also a little

Act_of_Reparation

(9,116 posts)
12. Dictionaries are bad places to go if you are looking for very specific information
Mon Jul 14, 2014, 05:04 PM
Jul 2014

Miriam-Webster will give you a decent idea of what "racism" generally entails, but it won't give you much insight into the decades' worth of attention paid to the issue by, say, sociologists, psychologists, or political scientists. The best you're going to get from a dictionary in such situations is the definition of a word as it is used in common parlance; it is a good jumping-off point, but you're going to have to dig deeper for a more complete understanding of the term and its contextual usages.

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