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Can We Eliminate “Offensive†Language? "I don't know whether such a campaign, no matter how well-intentioned, can completely succeed. Some people who use such language are not intentionally trying to hurt those the word or terms refers; they just 'don't know any better.' And so we may be able to educate them."
This is a tired, old subject. But, the war of words is still raging, so it's fair game to continue writing about it. This article doesn't say what sort of "campaign" it might be. Sensitivity classes for school kids? The banning of books, songs, TV shows, and movies which contain these words? The elimination of words from dictionaries? Making the use of certain words a legal offense? 1984, anyone? The author writes: "The task seems unlikely to ever completely succeed." This degree of understatement is more offensive to the intelligence of its readers than any "bad" word could ever be!
We need a new word for blog articles as tenuous as cotton candy. How about blarnicles? And the people who write them are blogiots.
I confess a certain sympathy with Lenny Bruce (of all people) on the matter of offensive words. He had a routine that started by rattling off a series of offensive ethnic terms, some of them many times in rapid succession. Then when his audience was thoroughly shocked, he recommended using words like those as often as possible, explaining that if you repeat a word enough times, it eventually loses all meaning and thus any ability to offend.
The reverse is also true. If you really want an epithet to pack a wallop, save it up. When Don Rickles points to someone in the audience and says "Hey, look at the guy!" we accept it as part of the routine. But just imagine the hush that would fall over a theatre if someone like Mr Rogers suddenly blurted out exactly the same thing!
I'm certain if some lost meaning, we would come up with new ones. The words aren't the problem.
Many of us of a certain age may recall, for example, when “moron†and “idiot†were both considered accurate labels that described specific characteristics of stages of “mental retardation.†Over-usage of these terms in an offensive mannertook care of that.
Now we are free to use these words without confusion!
Martha Barnette
Grant Barrett
Grant Barrett
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