# A question of insults **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [August 11, 2011, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-of-insults/592292 "2011-08-11T02:52:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-of-insults/592292/41 "2011-08-13T14:11:12Z")
> [@](#): > > **tomndebb** : Most of the anti- (and fewer pro-) religion one-off posts are so stupid that they are simply ignored by the majority… While we are guessing at the motives of others, I would say that most gave up saying anything because it proved perfectly useless. He has his own facts. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-of-insults/592292/42 "2011-08-13T14:24:14Z")
> [@Fenris](#): > > So if disruptive is the standard, it makes sense that Der Trihs can get away with thread-shitting in _every_ political or religious thread. That’s a persecution fantasy, not reality. ---
**Author:** ![magellan01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@magellan01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magellan01)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-of-insults/592292/43 "2011-08-13T17:50:51Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > It’s offensive to liberals and the mentally retarded. Your “and” should have been a comma. Possibly followed by “you know,”. But that’s purely a stylistic thing. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-of-insults/592292/44 "2011-08-13T19:52:41Z")
I’d suggest a colon, but you’ve already shown us yours. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-of-insults/592292/45 "2011-08-13T21:10:48Z")
So libtard is banned because it is insulting. Tea bagger is also insulting but it is allowed because it was 1) inadvertently used by ONE lone member who referred to the group as such and 2) it has been around too long to change??? This is the parsing of the rule so as to allow a leftist insult? How about the term “queers” to describe gay/homosexual persons? It must fit under the new rule because 1) it is used by some in the homosexual community to describe the group and 2) it has been around as an insult WAY longer than “teabagger”. But, I’m going to guess that there is extra nuance that would forbid a poster from creating a thread topic entitled “Queer Marriage in New York. Are our children safe?” I wait for the distinction. ---
**Author:** ![flag\_not\_set](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/848f3c/32.png) [@flag\_not\_set](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flag_not_set)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-of-insults/592292/46 "2011-08-13T22:27:51Z")
I find the subsequent liberal sexual connotation attached to it quite telling. How quickly it was seized upon in the media, entertainment industry and even government officials at the highest level even more so. ---
**Author:** ![flag\_not\_set](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/848f3c/32.png) [@flag\_not\_set](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flag_not_set)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2011, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-of-insults/592292/47 "2011-08-13T23:11:11Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > …it was 1) inadvertently used by ONE lone member who referred to the group as such … No, there was no reference to the group at all. It was used as a verb, not a name, nickname or in any way referencing the people or the tea party themselves at all. The liberals dreamed that and the gay sex part up all by themselves: [http://images.huffingtonpost.com/2009-03-18-tea\_bag\_dems.jpg](http://images.huffingtonpost.com/2009-03-18-tea_bag_dems.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2011, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-of-insults/592292/48 "2011-08-14T01:10:28Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > So libtard is banned because it is insulting. Actually, it is not. code\_grey used the word several times in a short period while posting rants in other threads and was told to dial it back. I have no intention of telling anyone that they may not use “libtard” unless they engage in the identical behavior. > [@jtgain](#): > > Tea bagger is also insulting but it is allowed because it was 1) inadvertently used by ONE lone member who referred to the group as such and 2) it has been around too long to change??? Tea bagger, like “fundy,” “white trash,” “PC police,” “progs,” and numerous other insults, (recall the cries of “coward,” “treason,” and “traitor” during the run up the the invasion of Iraq), will be permitted as long as they are directed against outsiders and not used to denigrate other posters, directly. > [@jtgain](#): > > How about the term “queers” to describe gay/homosexual persons? It must fit under the new rule because 1) it is used by some in the homosexual community to describe the group and 2) it has been around as an insult WAY longer than “teabagger”. Actually, it fits under the old rules because we never ruled against it as long it was not being used to insult a poster. > [@jtgain](#): > > But, I’m going to guess that there is extra nuance that would forbid a poster from creating a thread topic entitled “Queer Marriage in New York. Are our children safe?” I wait for the distinction. You are free to post that thread. As long as it appears to be a legitimate debate and not a BBQ Pit rant in disguise, I suspect that there would be no repercussions. (On that topic, the poster who has had the most threads moved out of GD for off-the-wall rants typically has a pro-homosexual purpose for his posting.) ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2011, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-of-insults/592292/49 "2011-08-16T22:36:49Z")
> [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](#): > > A list of words would mean Mods had to, you know, be consistent or at least least strive for consistency. If words don’t apply, and context rules, then all a poster can know for sure is he’s always on very thin ice. Or, you know, just avoid trying to figure out what labels one can get away with. > [@tomndebb](#): > > Again, it is a matter of disruption. Most of the anti- (and fewer pro-) religion one-off posts are so stupid that they are simply ignored by the majority of posters. Similarly, the one-off comments on politics, (and there we have a similar number of posters attacking the Left and the Right with short, unsupportable nonsense), tend to be too stupid to warrant a response and are generally ignored. This is where I disagree. Far better to call them out and declare them unwanted and not allowed than to allow them because most posters are going to think, “Oh, it’s that moron again. I can skip his post.” Even if most members have learned to ignore those inflammatory posts because they come from a jackass, that doesn’t make the post less inflammatory. Just means some jackassness is allowed - but only if you’re a _known_ jackass.\* > [@flag\_not\_set](#): > > No, there was no reference to the group at all. It was used as a verb, not a name, nickname or in any way referencing the people or the tea party themselves at all. You are confused. **jtgain** was speaking about a specific incident on this board, not some protest rally or whatever. And I’m not sure who that sign is endorsing. Sounds like a slam against Liberal Dems. YMMV. * * * \*No specific poster in mind. Menally fill in as appropriate. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-question-of-insults/592292.md?page=2)