# What's the difference between calling a poster a c\*\*t and... **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [May 19, 2014, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718 "2014-05-19T06:50:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/41 "2014-05-19T17:16:48Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > If you say it to a woman, it is not misogynistic. I disagree. If you use the word “cunt” in a context that’s pejorative, you clearly not reclaiming the word. You’re just using it as a swearword. That’s not feminist, that’s just …oh, what’s the opposite of feminist, again? ---
**Author:** ![RobDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f07891/32.png) [@RobDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RobDog)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/42 "2014-05-19T17:18:19Z")
Won’t somebody please think of the cacti? ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/43 "2014-05-19T17:27:15Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > I disagree. If you use the word “cunt” in a context that’s pejorative, you clearly not reclaiming the word. You’re just using it as a swearword. That’s not feminist, that’s just …oh, what’s the opposite of feminist, again? Yes, we get to use words as “swearwords” and not be misogynistic. What a foolish dichotomy you’re attempting to set up. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/44 "2014-05-19T17:30:05Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > Yes, we get to use words as “swearwords” and not be misogynistic. Not when it’s a part of the female anatomy, you don’t. The implication being, of course, that it’s a negative thing. And yes, it’s misandrist to call people dicks, but not to the same degree. > [@](#): > > What a foolish dichotomy you’re attempting to set up. Yes, I spun the whole interpretation about the misogynistic use of cunt out of my own ass … ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/45 "2014-05-19T17:34:03Z")
Good thing a man was around to protect the world from the misogyny of a woman using the word cunt in an insult directed at another woman. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/46 "2014-05-19T17:37:38Z")
> [@RobDog](#): > > Won’t somebody please think of the cacti? 😃 I can’t resist quoting Mencken’s definition: > [@](#): > > Misogynist: A man who hates women as much as women hate one another. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/47 "2014-05-19T17:37:40Z")
> [@GrandWino](#): > > Good thing a man was around to protect the world from the misogyny of a woman using the word cunt in an insult directed at another woman. Gosh, it’s almost like I’ve read that exact same sentence somewhere else… …and what, only women can stand up for women? Take your oh-so subtle accusations of white-knighting elsewhere. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/48 "2014-05-19T17:41:26Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Not when it’s a part of the female anatomy, you don’t. The implication being, of course, that it’s a negative thing. _You_ are deciding that it’s negative for a woman to have a cunt. I have a cunt. It’s not a negative thing. In fact, I would be sad without it. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/49 "2014-05-19T17:46:17Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > _You_ are deciding that it’s negative for a woman to have a cunt. I have a cunt. It’s not a negative thing. In fact, I would be sad without it. Nope. No such thing. I’ve used the word in a positive context myself, many times. But it’s disingeneous to pretend that the negative-context use has gone away, or that that wasn’t the intent in the post under consideration. We don’t jam cactuses up body parts we _like_… ---
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/50 "2014-05-19T17:47:20Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > We don’t jam cactuses up body parts we _like_… I like my ass. I much prefer it to having a colostomy bag. I wouldn’t want to shove a cactus up there. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/51 "2014-05-19T17:54:38Z")
The banned word list has always been interpreted as narrowly as possible. The word “cunt” is specifically banned when used against other posters, as are “variants.” For the purposes of this rule, what constitutes a variant? “Pussy” is obviously a variant of “cunt,” but I do not think the rule was conceived to forbid posters calling each other pussies, which is a fairly tame insult by most standards. If we look at the other words specifically mentioned on the list, they’re almost all (except “fuck off and die”) references to sexual acts. This leads me to interpret the “and variants” part of that rule as a ban on using the word “cunt” in an explicitly sexual insult. So, is “shove a cactus up your cunt” a reference to an explicitly sexual act? IMO, no - no more than telling someone to shove something up their ass is meant to refer to a sexual act. In both phrases, the recommended storage unit is chosen because it would be uncomfortable to the subject. “Stick it in your ear” would be a similar, non-vulgar construction. As for the misogyny angle, I’m just not seeing it. The insult was not disparaging on the basis of gender, nor was it using a gendered term as an insult. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/52 "2014-05-19T17:55:32Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Gosh, it’s almost like I’ve read that exact same sentence somewhere else… > > …and what, only women can stand up for women? Take your oh-so subtle accusations of white-knighting elsewhere. How do you feel about a man calling another man a dickhead or cockface or some such? ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/53 "2014-05-19T17:57:52Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > This thread isn’t directed at you, sweetie. You can be done whenever you want. My cunt of an irony meter just exploded. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/54 "2014-05-19T17:59:43Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Nope. No such thing. I’ve used the word in a positive context myself, many times. > > But it’s disingeneous to pretend that the negative-context use has gone away, or that that wasn’t the intent in the post under consideration. We don’t jam cactuses up body parts we _like_… So, if she had said “Shove a cactus up your NOSE” suddenly the nose would be misogynistic? She used a crude word, _but that does not make the word misogynistic_. “Shove it up your ass” isn’t misogynistic. “Shove it up your urethra” isn’t. “Shove it in your uterus” isn’t. “Shove it in your vagina” isn’t. (Again, if these are used against men, implying that they are lousy and stupid because they are like women, it is.) “Go rub your breasts on a cactus” isn’t either.\* You’re trying to say that someone can’t use a gendered term that some people view as crude and direct it at a woman without being misogynistic, and that’s insanity. - All of these examples are making my body hurt. ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/55 "2014-05-19T18:00:21Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Those ones.:rolleyes: This thread isn’t directed at you, sweetie. You can be done whenever you want. Y’know what’s really misogynistic? The dismissive paternalism you’ve just shown to a woman defending her right to use a word to describe a body part that she herself owns. Also calling a woman “sweetie” in a condescending tone. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/56 "2014-05-19T18:01:44Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > So, is “shove a cactus up your cunt” a reference to an explicitly sexual act? IMO, no - no more than telling someone to shove something up their ass is meant to refer to a sexual act. In both phrases, the recommended storage unit is chosen because it would be uncomfortable to the subject. “Stick it in your ear” would be a similar, non-vulgar construction. Fair enough. I disagree that it wasn’t a sexual reference, but you’re the Pit Mod, so I guess I got my answer. > [@](#): > > As for the misogyny angle, I’m just not seeing it. The insult was not disparaging on the basis of gender, nor was it using a gendered term as an insult. Again, I disagree. Or rather, it was using a gendered term _in_ an insult, which crosses the line for me. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/57 "2014-05-19T18:03:52Z")
> [@GrandWino](#): > > How do you feel about a man calling another man a dickhead or cockface or some such? That he’s being insulting. And when “dick” has the same degree of negative connotation as “cunt”, you can make the gotcha you were trying for. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/58 "2014-05-19T18:08:04Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > So, if she had said “Shove a cactus up your NOSE” suddenly the nose would be misogynistic? Is there a history of the use of the word “nose” as a vile slur? > [@](#): > > She used a crude word, _but that does not make the word misogynistic_Again, if these are used against men, implying that they are lousy and stupid because they are like women, it is. The word wasn’t used against a man. > [@](#): > > You’re trying to say that someone can’t use a gendered term that some people view as crude and direct it at a woman without being misogynistic, and that’s insanity. I disagree. Choosing the worst gendered insult to use, is misogyny. Just like choosing the worst homoerotic insult (“cocksucker” or equivalent) to use against a man (gay or no) is homophobic. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/59 "2014-05-19T18:12:40Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > The word wasn’t used against a man. That’s exactly my point. If you insult a man by saying he’s got female body parts, that’s misogynistic. You cannot insult a woman by saying she’s got female body parts. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2014, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718/60 "2014-05-19T18:14:20Z")
> [@Fenris](#): > > Y’know what’s really misogynistic? I’m sure you’ve just been _itching_ to tell me, **Fenris**. > [@](#): > > The dismissive paternalism you’ve just shown to a woman defending her right to use a word to describe a body part that she herself owns. “Women can’t be misogynistic”? Is that the best you could come up with? > [@](#): > > Also calling a woman “sweetie” in a condescending tone. It was _meant_ to be condescending - she was leaving in a huff after making wrong-headed accusations about me moving goalposts. I didn’t intend it to come across as paternalistic, though, so I apologise to **Rachellelogram** for doing that. I was going more for “Bless your heart!”, but I guess I fell short. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-difference-between-calling-a-poster-a-c-t-and/688718.md?page=4)