While I said I don't want it to be a struggle session, cool headed good faith discussion is also appreciated. This just came up with some comrades of mine and I couldn't find the last post about it so if anyone has the link that would be great too.

  • Maoo [none/use name]
    ·
    1 year ago

    I think "stupid" and "dumb" fall into a category where they're ableist in etymology but in use they are just a common way to say bad or without sense. A lot of derogatory words have that effect, but they create a problem by associating a group of people with being bad (I'm thinking of the homophobic use of the term "gay" in particular). In this case, I think that's rarely the case, I think they've basically shed their associations.

    I do sometimes try to avoid them. I'll try to remember what I say instead:

    • [X] doesn't make sense
    • Silly
    • [X] is a bad idea
    • I'm not a fan of [X]
    • Absurd
    • Ridiculous
    • [A more specific criticism]
    • [X] sucks
    • Liberal
    • Venus [she/her]
      ·
      1 year ago

      I think "stupid" and "dumb" fall into a category where they're ableist in etymology but in use they are just a common way to say bad or without sense.

      Exactly. It does kind of bother me the way those words are treated here, because nobody actually thinks you're being ableist when you say "x behavior is stupid" but if one of the mods who reads it happens to be a proponent of x behavior you can bet your ass your comment's getting removed for ableism