The 'c' word

Trying to think if there are any male animal names which carry the equivalent negative vibes... hmm... more likely to imply virility.

Cock?

I hate the word. My surname is Hunt so I was called it far too many times from a fairly young age by people who thought they were hilarious. 'Is your Dad's name Mike?' Brilliant.

"Bitch" in the context of animals is simply the canine version of ewe, mare, sow, hen. There is no reason not to use it. There is no reason to use it for a girl or woman.

Yes ... and the same goes for some of the other female animal names which are used in more or less derogatory (and dehumanising?) ways ... 'cow' can go on the list too please.
Trying to think if there are any male animal names which carry the equivalent negative vibes... hmm... more likely to imply virility.

Plenty of usage is misogynistic, quite a few new ones since Dale Spender's day, eg 'pearl clutching', 'big girl's blouse'... not that I'd dream of using those either

I would and do report any one who directly calls another poster a cunt or a bitch. I would also report anyone who uses "pearl-
clutching". It is lazy and stupid, intended to belittle posters and shut down discussion.

"Bitch" in the context of animals is simply the canine version of ewe, mare, sow, hen. There is no reason not to use it. There is no reason to use it for a girl or woman.

Speaking as a woman (the cunty sort) it's a word I don't generally use but have no wish to see banned, though I'd certainly discourage its use around small children.

When someone uses it misogynistically I make a mental note... But banned? On FWR? Are you serious?

Plenty of usage is misogynistic, quite a few new ones since Dale Spender's day, eg 'pearl clutching', 'big girl's blouse'... not that I'd dream of using those either.

I don't know why some posters are so determined to insist all of Scotland , whether rural or urban, exists in some sort of Irvine Welsh bubble language wise.

DH Lawrence liked the word, used in a nice way.
I use it rarely and only with adults I know well who would use it themselves.
If I had to consign some words to room 101 then bitch (except for female dogs) and pussy would be high on the list for the reasons stated.
And also because I feel a flicker of annoyance when I use the word bitch in a professional context and see a client mentally flinching. "Bitch pup" is a perfectly respectable correct term. I'm not calling them girl puppies just because the word bitch is used as a hateful gendered insult.

I'm from a farming background.

“is not my experience that it is commonly used in Scotland the way some posters try to suggest.“

Are you in a mc bubble? Because I hear it with incredible regularity in my wc/farming community.

I find bitch worse than cunt. Cunt gets used so much on here and I often think there is a touch of bravado about it - a sort of hey, look at me- I'm so empowered I can talk like this about my body or Hey, I'm so empowered I don't comply with female socialisation. (Just makes me think, how nice for you dear) The issue I have is that I don't think it adds anything to the validity of the point being made.

"Bitch" on the other hand seems to be used quite naturally without any of the self- awareness /self- conciousness of cunt. For many posters , even some on FWR, "bitch" is treated as the mot juste for certain circumstances.

I'd ban bitch (other than when referring to female dogs) first. I don't think I've ever seen that used in a positive, reclaiming manner. And disablist terms - no redeeming features.

But I'd rather not ban any words on MN. If any swear word is used in a post which breaks talk guidelines (eg used in a personal attack) then it should be reported and deleted. This is how 'banned' terms (cis, TERF) are dealt with - they can be used in a post if they're not applied to people who reject them and if they're not being used in an inflammatory manner.

Personally I've got some sort of inhibition about swearing in writing, but that doesn't quite extend to c&p ... this from Floral nearly caused a tea accident:

'A well placed 'cunt' can stop the traffic.'

I found a couple of coney/ cunny explanations. I'm not convinced that either of them aren't recently made up.

From Urban Dictionary
Coney

An alternate, furrier, version of the wordcunny, meaning vagina. This word is a pun - "coney" inBritish Englishmeans "rabbit", but sounds like "cunny", and so it makes an excellent word for furry snatch.

"Get over hereandpetmy sweet littleconey"

bluestarowl.wordpress.com/2013/03/09/cunt-the-reason-for-the-season/

It is not a word that I would use as a rule. People have different feelings about words and we should be respectful. Banning words is v. 1984 and we all know how much we love that.

Bertrand, if you search for ‘cunt coney’ on google books, it will bring you up a varied discussion on it. I’ve no particular link giving a summary! Sorry.

It's all to do with the context, for me. Yes I know many people for whom it's interchangeable with "person" and used with affection (daft cunt, good cunt, the cunt who...) and yes I have heard it used as an insult (you are an absolute cunt) but each and every time the context has driven how the word is received.

I wouldn't ban it at all. I'd much rather think and talk about why some words are considered so awful compared to others (cunt vs dick) and address them openly. My cunt is absolutely fantastic, and I wish we could challenge the thought that it's the ultimate insult rather than encourage the position of it being the ultimate taboo.

I'm in NI and it's not uncommon to hear it here in an affectionate way. When I lived in ROI, it was really commonplace, much more so than MNet.

I don't think it should be banned OP.

“Why is it worse than male genitalia for gods sake?! I think that is incredibly sexist!“

Because of the history it carries with it. Words are more than just their basic meaning.

It completely depends on the context.
I'm from Glasgow, if "so-and-so is a good cunt" This is very much a compliment. Though if "So-and-so is a fuckin cunt!" Not a compliment

I'm originally from the north-east, now live in Edinburgh having briefly lived in Glasgow. No one is trying to ban it but it is not my experience that it is commonly used in Scotland the way some posters try to suggest.

I have heard "fucking cunt" used in anger. I have never heard it used in approbation.

I can see why you don't like it, @Terfing, and I would be totally happy to have a debate and discussion. I'd expect you to be able to put across your reasons for not using it and I could see if I agree or could be persuaded to agree.

I cannot understand why you would just want to ban it completely. That seems controlling and unnecessary.

I’d never use it around children and I don’t let my children (teens) use it. They know ‘bitch’ isn’t allowed either.

I save it for special occasions and retain the right as an adult to use it in the presence of other adults when I deem it necessary. Which isn’t often (usually reserved for when talking to/of XH)

Consider my wrists well and truly slapped, I shall hang my head in shame and recite ten Andrea Dworkins and a couple of Germaine Greers as a penance.

"Cis" is way more offensive in my opinion.

Why is it worse than male genitalia for gods sake?! I think that is incredibly sexist! Reclaim the word OP