Spot1990 said:
Surely you must acknowledge there's a cruel way to classify though? I mean if someone has insulted you go for it, but what I'm talking about is more along the lines of, say you know an overweight girl, lets call her Sarah. You are friends with her, if someone asked which one is Sarah you must think it's unnecessary to say "The fat one".
If that was the most obvious way to differentiate her from her peers, I might actually. Classifications are never cruel, intentions are. I feel I?ve illustrated the difference in my reply above.
Spot1990 said:
Pretty sure calling someone's weight problem "evil" is a bit of a stretch. For that matter I don't think that quote is referring to things that don't actually affect other people.
It was in response to the condemning/ignoring idea more than calling fat people evil. To avoid a lengthy sociological discussion here, suffice to say that ignoring things which are inherently damaging can have disastrous results. Weight does affect other people as much as any other self destructive habit.
Spot1990 said:
Fat is the cruel way to describe it though. Usually used to hurt someone, not just describe them.
Again, it?s not my responsibility to walk on egg shells. People?s perceptions are their own problems.
Spot1990 said:
Dammit man. I have this horrible thing where if I think something will be funny to say I'll just say it. Case in point I once saw a comedian who said "You know you're a nerd when, while having sex, you shout "Spoiler Alert" just as you finish." That popped into my head mid-coitus and I couldn't now say it. You have now given me another one of these pitfalls.
My bad.
zelda2fanboy said:
I think the point flew right over your head. Replace the word "slut" with any ethnic slur and listen to how reasonable and rational that sounds.
Ethnic slur? It wouldn?t be reasonable because it?s an entirely different set of definitions. ?Oh man, she?s slept with like 100 dudes in one night, she?s such a spic.? Nope, doesn?t really work. I might as well call this thread a slut.
zelda2fanboy said:
It's really not your place or mine to decide what is acceptable with what a woman does with her own body, especially when it comes to sex.
Indeed, a woman and her body is her business. Where did I ever indicate otherwise?
zelda2fanboy said:
I may have misread that, but I think you just compared "sleeping around" to murder.
Yes, you did misread that. It was an inquiry regarding your statement?
Not only that, but people who aren't the intended targets might hear what you say and feel a sense of shame for things they haven't even done.
?made no sense to me. It was the first parallel I made.
zelda2fanboy said:
Labeling people as sluts and whores reinforces a social stigma towards women who have sex. And I assure you, most women actually do want to have sex and spreading lies that it's somehow inherently wrong could fill a person with guilt for even desiring it. I know it does because I have felt a little of it myself for a time. Not only that, but spreading those attitudes around decreases our collective chances of getting laid.
And how would you respond to the slut rallies? A word is simply a word. If one group uses it to shame and another group uses it to inspire, does the meaning change or merely the interpretation?
BloatedGuppy said:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad_hominem
I don?t think I could have asked for a better response than this. Should I point out the difference between name calling and using definitions? Should I point out how defining a characteristic is neither negative or positive? Should I point out how my response can?t be considered an Ad Hominem because I specifically called it an experiment in illustrating the point I was trying to make? Or would you simply respond with additional wiki links to fallacy I?m not actually committing? If you feel I was actually making a personal attack on your character, might I suggest using the report button?
Amusingly, I recall in another forum many years ago where someone created a fallacy in the attempt to point out fallacies so you wouldn?t have to create an actual argument. I see his point remains ever present. But if you?d like to give into a fallacy accusing contest, I could be game.
BloatedGuppy said:
My position is that name calling is a juvenile pursuit, appropriate for children, and the defense of it as an ethical imperative doubly so.
I would agree (mostly). Now kindly point out where I ethically defend the notion.
BloatedGuppy said:
That you are writhing around trying to draw an analogue between "slut" and "obese" shows me how seriously you're taking this discussion, though, so there's really no point in us continuing.
Right? because people haven?t been talking about weights and sexual proclivities in this thread since the OP? I?m the one ?writhing? between the two. Ta ta.