Whilst swearing on MN is ok, there are some words that are simply not acceptable.

I have just bored everybody to death.

at saddo

It's the thyroid gland actually (I know I am a sad bastard, just looked it up).

Agree pag - don't care if handicapped, spaz, retart are generally used in conversation in america, the vast majority of the users of this site are UK based and therefore we should not use the words imo.

It may have been pituitary gland.

I agree with the OP. Mind you I think people really do come down like a tonne of bricks on people who say retard, spaz, mong anyway. We are pretty well regulated in this respect.

Somne people genuinely use words out of ignorance. I used to use the word cretin (seemed a good, Blackadder-sih word). However my boss years ago said that his daughter was born without her adrenal gland (iirc) and the old word for people like this was cretin - sufferers generally had stunted growth and suffered in adult life. That was news to me and don't use the word now.

But this is a predominately UK site isn't it? Do I care what people on sites in the USA think?
If you want me to pop to the SN section and ask what the concensus is on 'spaz' I can. I think I know the answer though.

No, I'm not nit-picking, and I already said I agreed to a large extent, but I do find mamazon's haughty and supercilious tone taher patronising and 'little England'

From a global perspective it's just simply not as cut & dried as she makes out.

And it's not true that all the words she refers to are deemed offensive:

e.g. Re Spaz "However, the term is largely nonoffensive in American English, denoting general clumsiness, often associated with hyperactivity or excessive energy."

doggie - re words coming 'full circle' - see the wiki piece about words being 'reclaimed' by the groups they refer to..

"Finally, some people with disabilities are choosing to reclaim certain terms, using them to describe themselves with high-impact effect. This reclaiming of hurtful words takes the power away from those who intend to use them to put others down. Reclaiming a term gives it a positive meaning when used by the people it describes, but it is still considered a slur when used by others"

You see - it's so complex...

Why is it OK for Jonathan Ross to have Four Poofs and piano????

Whippet I feel you are nit picking here

I notice on the page you linked to that all the examples mamazon quotes are deemed unacceptable or no longer used

Can I say Malco (serious question). It is one of my favorite words-that-I-learnt-from-Neighbours (Australian soap not next door).

"Man I'm such a Malco" (said she after tripping up on the front step for the 3rd time that week)

all fair enough but I have to admit I chortled @ 'Please, before posting could you just do a brief speel check...'

Agree OP

It does my head in.

I work in a university and "retard" is very widely used among students, just in general conversation

Seriously I hear it a few times a day just walking around campus

It depresses me that these words seem to have come full circle and become somehow acceptable again. It reminds me of ironic sexism in a way

A pretty good Wki summary which explains why it's not so clear cut....

Context and intent is always important, and often difficult to assess on a internet forum.

Has anyone noticed that in the USA it is acceptable to use 'handicap' and the disabled toilet is the 'handicap stall'?

MORON
n.
A stupid person; a dolt.
Psychology. A person of mild mental retardation having a mental age of from 7 to 12 years and generally having communication and social skills enabling some degree of academic or vocational education. The term belongs to a classification system no longer in use and is now considered offensive.

Wow, just googled moron.....what a hideous word. I will not be using it in future.....

What is the definition of moron?

They are not always deleted though - there was a therad last week that used the R word and I think its still there - I commented on the post at the time.

Any words associated with vulnerable groups, prejudice or hate crime have no place on MN. I do like swearing though, love Anyfucker's name and the word twunt.

agree

I really agree with your post but were you being tongue in cheek when you typed:
"Please could we have a similar stance given to words that are offensive to those who have disabilities (or just those who are not ignorant morons) please."?
Because the definition of morons is not nice either.

Thanks Mamazon for starting this thread.

"i really dont care if it is commonly used. it is offensive."

It's not as simple as that. Who decides if it is 'offensive'? The person who takes offence.

Language is a fluid thing and always has to be understood in context. Retard is widely used in the US without being regarded as being offensive as we might feel it is in the UK.

However mostly I would agree with you Mamazon - I hate the increasing use of swearing and lazy and uneducated speech here on MN these days. I don't want to see Fck or Cnt everywhere when my children are lurking over my shoulder.

oh crossposted there! yes, you are right, i would have expected them to be deleted.