{"id":6026,"date":"2013-02-06T09:00:49","date_gmt":"2013-02-06T17:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/?p=6026"},"modified":"2013-02-05T10:10:39","modified_gmt":"2013-02-05T18:10:39","slug":"abilitys-muse-offensive-words-can-hurt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/2013\/02\/06\/abilitys-muse-offensive-words-can-hurt\/","title":{"rendered":"Ability\u2019s Muse<\/em>: Offensive words can hurt"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s common practice in today\u2019s society to say what\u2019s on your mind without considering the implications. What we say can make or break a relationship, build a person up, or bring them to their knees. Words are far more powerful than we give them credit for.<\/p>\n

A word that I hear at an alarming frequency is \u201cretarded.\u201d Anything that could be labelled as absurd, ill conceived, or illogical is often expressed with this word. It\u2019s an outdated medical term referring to developmental (dis)ability and it comes with a long, dark history of neglect, abuse, and oppression. When this word is uttered, it comes with that baggage and hate, despite the user\u2019s intention.<\/p>\n

So, should we all go read up on how to be politically correct and live in fear of being offensive, or looked down upon for not being up to speed with the current ways of vocalizing our opinions? No.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t like the term \u201cpolitically correct.\u201d I prefer \u201ccollaborative language\u201d: contributing to a conversation rather than devaluing others and stripping individuals and cultures of respect. Enough repression is already being perpetuated without ignorant and counterproductive speech.<\/p>\n

So before saying \u201cretarded,\u201d I strongly suggest doing some research to have some idea of what\u2019s actually being said. In the meantime, if it\u2019s difficult to think of something less hurtful and ignorant to say, get a bloody dictionary.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s common practice in today\u2019s society to say what\u2019s on your mind without considering the implications. What we say can make or break a relationship, build a person up, or bring them to their knees. Words are far more powerful than we give them credit for. A word that I hear at an alarming frequency […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,95],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6026","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-columns","category-february-6-2013"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t