People who use the term 'snowflake'?

[yesyesyep]

Aren't the brightest bunch are they?

It's like a script isn't it? Something picked up from the daily mail or another equivalent hate-rag, to shout at people who have the audacity to care about someone other than themselves. It appears to give the user a sense of superiority over someone, when they are just throwing words they like the sound of because they've seen it used to bully others before.

I find it often ties in with people who use multiple exclamation marks after a space. !!!

(Honestly, have a look for the multiple exclamation marks after a space. It's almost poetic.)

I know I probably ABU, but the level of stupidity on this planet at the moment baffles me.

I always thought the term snowflake was someone with little resilience - someone easily upset about trivial things, someone who acts as if they are more precious than others. e.g.

Op these people you are finding (under rocks? ) on the internet are misappropriating the term snowflake from those of us who want to express slight exasperation with the self-obsessed.

Call them out on it!

YANBU. I hate the term 'Gammon' more though

What do you suggest is a appropriate description for people who seem unable to function in society without trigger warnings, anxiety and the shutting down of anyone who disagrees with them.

I know it's poor form to criticism grammar, spelling and style online but it really would help you when trying to garner support, yesyesyep.

I get the impression that a lot of things baffle you.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snowflake_(slang)

What do you suggest is a appropriate description for people who seem unable to function in society without trigger warnings, anxiety and the shutting down of anyone who disagrees with them.

This ^

I think you're missing the point mooncup

It's not that virtue signalling is a good thing, it's that the people who hurl the words "snowflake" and "virtue signalling" about as insults are generally only doing so because they're pretty horrible people who seem to need to insult other people being kind and thoughtful.

It's not that virtue signalling is a good thing, it's that the people who hurl the words "snowflake" and "virtue signalling" about as insults are generally only doing so because they're pretty horrible people who seem to need to insult other people being kind and thoughtful.

That is virtue signalling IMO

Only those who get offended are kind and thoughtful?

You've done the classic snowflake thing - a word is used, and offence is taken, then you try and police the language.

I was called a snowflake by someone on my local face book page after I pull him up for bullying a poster over their bad spelling and grammar - I suspect the first language of the bad speller was not English, either that, or he had some level of learning difficulties. Whatever, he'd written a perfectly polite post asking for information. The bullying was nasty.

If that makes me a snowflake, then so be it.

It really depends. There are some people who speak out against injustice, try to support marginalised groups, try to include everyone and think about other people etc - and then there are those who just can't stop looking for something to be offended by (usually on behalf of groups of other people who can look after themselves, thanks) and think that being absolutely vile to someone who uses the 'wrong' terminology in a discussion makes them some kind of Hero of the Oppressed.

Then there are all those rightwing-ish white men who are Champions of Free Speech (by which they mean: their right to be obnoxious to women and minorities and never criticised; invited on to every panel there is even when there are already five red-faced middle-aged white men out of six participants).

In the middle, you've got everyone else; sometimes being needlessly rude, sometimes being an attention-seeking twat because they misunderstood, sometimes sticking their beak in where they have no business, and sometimes just getting on with stuff.

"they're pretty horrible people who seem to need to insult other people being kind and thoughtful."

That seems like a false premise and I can't let it slip past unnoticed. Why are "snowflakes" kind and thoughtful? Most of the snowflakes I've met were really nasty twats.

I think 'snowflake' refers to people that

• come up with using jazz hands instead of clapping
• need safe spaces at conferences because people might use bad words
• get offended where there clearly is no offence
• get offended on others behalf where its nothing to do with them at all

etc etc etc

I think it was a good term when it first entered online discourse until it hit the Daily Mail et al and now it's misappropriated quite a lot. However I have noticed that a lot of the people who are apparently offended by this term or who think the people using the term are automatically nasty etc, quite happily jump on terms such as Gammon etc with no sense of irony at all.

It's an unsuccessful way for RACIST TWATTAGES to pretend they are not RACIST TWATTAGES....they just have a 'SENSE OF HUMOUR' (yes, but it's a racist one, you twattages)

Taking offence seems to me to be the biggest virtue signalling for all snowflakes. Like is shown here, if someone is 'offended', they must be kind and caring, coming from a good place. Doesn't make sense in any rational way yet 'offence' is always trumped over logic and truth at the moment.

And that is why it gets manipulatively used as a social tool. I'm always wary of people who 'take offence' very quickly.

Professional offense-takers, virtue signalers so this because they want to look good. How can a white person be offended by racism towards a black person? Yes, they can be pissed off, disgusted etc. but offended? I don't think so. Offence can only be taken if it directly impacts you as an individual, disregards you as an individual.

Isn't this what's known as having empathy?

I think there's a notion that some children get told they're unique and precious like snowflakes when growing up, and that this approach to childrearing basically wraps kids in cotton wool and stops them from being rounded people who are resilient enough to weather a bit of adversity/things not always going their own way.

Then it's been warped and skewed to mean anyone who gets upset about something you're not upset about, i.e. liberal causes or the suffering of others. It's a way for people to excuse their own coarseness and failure to care about the world.

I think there's the kernel of a reasonable criticism in the original use of the word, it's sort of an extension of criticising helicopter parenting and not letting kids learn for themselves.

Absolutely - it’s used by people who want to invalidate genuine concerns (about racism, misogyny, the environment, transphobia, universal credit, etc etc) by suggesting that instead of being genuine concerns, they’re just the petty, individual tantrums of people who believe they are too special and unique to cope with the world.

It’s a means of derailing legitimate complaints, of turning the political into the personal, of pretending that the issue is not unjust and oppressive systems, but rather the inability of the individual to cope.

I was called a snowflake by someone on my local face book page after I pull him up for bullying a poster over their bad spelling and grammar - I suspect the first language of the bad speller was not English, either that, or he had some level of learning difficulties. Whatever, he'd written a perfectly polite post asking for information. The bullying was nasty.

I didn't see the facebook interaction, but from what you have written that is not necessarily bullying. It is someone being nasty. They do exist! And yes, you were also right to pull them up on being Nasty but to call them a bully would cross definitions and that is why you were probably called a snowflake - exaggerating the context

A lot of the problem with the young is that they are trying too hard to be good. So they leap into action to defend/include/support someone who is usually left out of things, or can't participate for a physical or mental health reason (and sometimes the helpful young are too helpful and trusting to realise that a specific person they are trying to help is a fucking chancer) - but they don't take into account the fact that sometimes people's specific needs clash. A space with the lights too bright or the volume too high distresses some people, but too dim and too quiet distresses others (if you are hearing impaired or visually impaired for instance).

And then you have all the fun and games when a group of well-,meaning progressive white/comfortably off young people have to contend with some of the poor/BAME/poorly-educated people they are trying to support coming out with horrible racist/sectarian/sexist abuse. (I remember all those Notting Hill trustafarian boys who adored the Nation of Islam and got ever so arsey when that organisation's frankly scary misogyny and anti-semitism was pointed out...)

There are some weird extrapolations by people on this thread.

Snowflakes are not automatically kind and thoughtful. Do please show me where I said that?

What I did say was that the term generally gets hurled at people who are being kind and thoughtful. If you don't agree with the points they are making, address the points rather than lazy name calling.

It's become synonymous with people of a far right persuasion so yanbu

I'm glad someone said it, it's always a certain type of person who uses the phrase. Pees me off

I can honestly say I've never heard this word other than when it's been snowing

What I did say was that the term generally gets hurled at people who are being kind and thoughtful. If you don't agree with the points they are making, address the points rather than lazy name calling

You are making an assumption that the person is being kind and thoughtful. Why do you make that assumption? Maybe they are virtue signalling? Jumping on a cause to look good for themselves? That might be seen as narcissistic? You don't know their reasoning but are happy to blanket anyone who 'stands up to offence' as good and kind?

Then you describe a word, snowflake, as an insult. The irony couldn't be higher