And maybe I ought not be demeaning someone to begin with.

Sometimes you're just being descriptive. They already demeaned themselves by earning that description.

That's true in some cases. But sometimes I'm just being a jerk, and being demeaning isn't called for.

My mom says a teacher at her school makes her students replace "niggah" with "Ninja" as in "kickin' it with my ninjas" I thought Buffistas would like that.

It's a real contradiction, being a feminist Entourage fan, but I also love watching Dana Gordon pwn, too. And Shauna, nail-polishing badass.

Now that I think of it, I wouldn't even call most people with a mental illness "crazy", I would call it by its clinical name. Does that make sense? Like, I wouldn't call someone with, say, Tourette's, "crazy", because I don't think having Tourette's means someone is crazy. (The symptoms might "drive them crazy" but that's a whole different meaning.) When I say someone's "crazy", I'm usually NOT referring to an actual diagnosed mental illness.

And now YOU'RE making me think, dang it!

"kickin' it with my ninjas"

Okay, that's AWESOME.

"kickin' it with my ninjas"

You know there are ninjitsu practitioners screaming "STOP IT!" right now, right?

Please explain to me how racial/ethnic slurs are a benefit to language and communication. Seriously, I can't wait.

Well, I can see it in writing fiction. What if you want to portray someone as a racist asshole?

And now YOU'RE making me think, dang it!

Sorry!

"kickin' it with my ninjas"

This is fantastic.

You know there are ninjitsu practitioners screaming "STOP IT!" right now, right?

Still, there's no way "ninja" is going to become an insult in this culture.

Hec, I appreciate your long and considered response. I'm still curious about the "gypped" thing but respect your discretion.

Sometimes it does trump word choice. In fact, in most instances I try to be conscious of all the implications of my word choice. If I'm not actively trying to offend somebody then it's poor communication to do so. The burden is not on the listener to be unoffended. I am responsible for my words and their effect.

All true.

To continue my not-radical proposition, I weigh the value of linguistic freedom, nuance and vigor in balance to the potential to offend differently than you do. I do consider both elements.

I consider both elements, but I probably tend to weigh "offensive" heavier than you do.

Language doesn't get hurt feelings but it can be demeaned and watered down and made weak. Euphemizing is a really pernicious attack on meaning and discourse, widely used by politicians and managers. It can become a kind of bad faith, and creates distrust.

While this may be true, we have not been discussing euphemisms. We have been discussing cultural/ethnic/other privilege slurs. I disagree with you that eliminating them weakens the language. (I know the "niggardly" thing is a misconception but I stand by my swastika comparison.)

I am conscious that the broadest categories that define me (white, male, het, cis, educated etc.) align me with the dominant culture. And that I do have the privilege of Not Having To Think About A Lot of Shitty Things Because They're Not Always In My Face. But I do think about them. It's not unconsidered.

I appreciate that you are aware of this. I pondered long and hard about bringing up privilege in this discussion, but did because I feel that it's relevant to language use and especially the examples up for discussion.

I am not arguing that "potential offense" does or should always outweigh word choice. I agree with you that equivocation and the non-apology inherent in passive voice, for example (mistakes were made).

I recognize that you will likely continue to disagree. I simply don't see why, with the richness of language (not just English), one would choose to use a term like "niggardly" or "gypped". "Miserly" and "cheated" work just fine, thanks.

Please explain to me how racial/ethnic slurs are a benefit to language and communication. Seriously, I can't wait.

Well, I can see it in writing fiction. What if you want to portray someone as a racist asshole?

I was going on the assumption that we were discussing interpersonal communication, rather than creating fiction. That's a whole other category.

Whether I say "You pussy!" or "You are a weak and ineffectual person who lacks the strength to deal with this situation," it's still demeaning. And maybe I ought not be demeaning someone to begin with.

This, at the heart of the matter, makes me think. It's easy for me to control my use of language that might demean. It's much less easy for me to think carefully about the way I lose my rag at good people who don't deserve it. Because I try to be careful and not call them insults doesn't always mean I avoided insulting them.

Zenkitty, your thoughtful explanation of your use of 'crazy' is really interesting.

What if you want to portray someone as a racist asshole?

Aren't there more creative ways than just using language to oppress them, in much the same way as racist arseholes oppress others?

You know there are ninjitsu practitioners screaming "STOP IT!" right now, right?

The UK Bronzers call The Girl 'the ninja' (she's a black belt in... something... I think taekwondo... I need to get to know my future wife better before August, really). She likes this a bit too much.

I'm not pregnant, but the dresses JZ linked to are beautiful.