It’s a large part of being highly partisan. The other side is always worse.
If I throw an epithet into what I claim to be an honest, polite debate, then I should absolutely get called on it and judged accordingly. If we’re screaming at each other in an argument in the pit, I would be surprised if no one called the other names.
If you’re calling names or using disparaging terms, get called on it (or have been called on it before), and continue to use them? Don’t expect someone to take your claims of innocent use seriously. And if it escalates from there, claiming disingenuously that you’re just using a term that makes grammatical sense is pure bullshit.
That’s about it for me. It doesn’t hurt my feelings if someone uses it. But if you use it on purpose, own it.
Does that about sum up your particular objection (as differentiated from others’)?
I think they are saying they would prefer “Democrap Party” to “Democrat Party”.
Yep. Because the one is an attempt to hide the intent, and that’s stupid.
I mean, you might get dinged on this board if you say “the asshole party.” Which is one of the things people are trying to avoid by batting their eyes and claiming it’s just not disparaging at all. They wouldn’t be able to hide it if they were using “asshole” so they won’t use asshole.
No one (no one I’ve noticed, anyway) is taking offense. It is truly a trivial slight. We are though noting that “Democrat party” is intended to be offensive. And that is fine, as long as name calling in general is fine, as in the Pit.
What isn’t fine is using it to denigrate, in a place where politeness should inhibit epithets, but then making the excuse that such shouldn’t be offensive because <some bullshit about ‘correct usage’>. When offense is intended, for bog’s sake, own it! Don’t weasel around with bullshit. You’re not using it in some honest but pedantic attempt to correct grammatical usage. You’re using it hoping to get somebody’s goat. The excuses are as childish, and as transparent, as the “I’m not touching you!!” crap kids pull in the back seat on long car trips. (Or am I displaying my age? Are today’s kids too busy playing video games to torment their siblings?)
The only acceptable excuse (other than owning it as intentionally offensive) is the “didn’t know better” defense. And in such a case, being corrected on the official name of the party should draw a reply like “Oh. I didn’t know.” Not “Yeah, but it’s really the correct way to say it, and anyway your side does it too!”
ETA - the generic ‘you’ is intended here. I’m not accusing Bone of any particular action.
Then how can something be “offensive” if no one is taking offense?
Offense is in the intention. Just as trolls are banned from the SDMB even if no one has a chance to rise to their bait.
Yup. The issue here is not whether it’s okay to use obvious insults like “Democrap” or “Teabagger” or “cretin” or “asshole” for one’s political opponents.
The issue is that if you deliberately use an incorrect name for an individual or organization when referring to them, that is discourteous.
If you want to do it anyway because you like being a bit of a dick, hey, knock yourself out. It’s merely a slight discourtesy, and nobody is really losing any sleep over it.
But you don’t get to pretend that it’s not a discourteous thing to do.
Absolutely. It’s an honest insult, not asshole passive-aggressive, trying to be cute, but actually being stupid, insult. The Democratic Party should not be immune from insults. This board, however, should be free from dishonest, feigned ignorance.
Exactly. I prefer an honest insult like “Libtard” to “Democrat Party”. It’s not nearly so weaselly.
Please, we already know you despise us. It’s the feigned innocence that’s icky.
“Icky”. Like you’re a 10-year-old. If you already know we despise you, and that we call your party “Democrat Party” because of that, then just take “Democrat Party” in the (perceived by you) spirit it is offered. Especially since you’re not offended by it.
It’s not a matter of perception. If someone calls an individual or organization by an incorrect name even though they know it’s incorrect, they are being rude. Only mildly rude, but still rude.
If they deliberately choose to continue that rudeness even after their error is pointed out to them, they are being a dick. Only a bit of a dick, but still a dick.
The Republicans’ problem is that they want to continue being a bit dickish to Democrats about this but not have anybody point out that they’re being a bit of a dick.
It’s especially neat to see Terr trying oh-so hard to come up with some way to justify acting like a jerk rather than just own up to being a jerk.
I take offense at it. There’s nothing I can do about it, of course, and I can’t make anybody stop doing it, but it bothers me, especially when its used by people I respect, like some of the people in this thread.
And you would prefer that they would be fully rude by saying “Democrap Party”?
Yes. Cuz no one on this board is a dick. Ever. Right?
It’s offered as a weaselly, passive-aggressive attempt to be insulting. I’m just pointing that out.
Instead of making up silly rationalizations about how hard it is to remember the real name of the party, Republicans should just own it: “Yeah, we’re kind of jerks. We say trollish things just to get a rise out of people.”
Is that why Democrats refer to “shrub” or “teabaggers” or “repugs” or “faux news”? Because they’re kind of jerks?
If Republicans want to be rude to Democrats, that’s up to them. But they shouldn’t try to pretend that they’re not being rude when they are. That’s dickish.
Sure they are. My point is just that one way to be a dick is to use an incorrect version of somebody else’s name when you know it’s incorrect.
Yup, those are totally jerkish things to do. That’s why some of us refrain from doing them.
But you don’t see anyone pretending that saying such things is an honest mistake. Or that logically it makes more sense to call Fox News “faux news”. That would be stupid.
Come on, just own it. You say “Democrat Party” to needle people. You know you do.