Gender- and disability-related insults

[lizardly]

I have decided that I really need to eliminate insults that put people down based on gender and disability. I don't use insults related to sexual orientation (words like faggot, I really hate that word) because I don't think it's right so why is it okay for me to continue throwing around the word "retarded" and gender-related insults? I definitely

Comments

[blackwingedrose]

This is interesting and has really made me think about which words I use. Most of these words are ones which I use at home but would never use if anybody besides my boyfriend could hear them. We started using some of these ironically - like 'retarded', we began using it to make fun of his little brother who always says it - but they stuck. Hah. We tend to go with "penis" and "vagina" instead of cunt or prick because it's amusing to declare "oh my god, what a penis." xD
Why, yes, we are twelve. Haha.

I think it's okay to use these words around people who know that you don't mean disrespect to the gender associations, but I think it's a good thing to actively remove them from your vocabulary.