# Why is calling Trump Supporters MAGAts allowed? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [July 31, 2024, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060 "2024-07-31T14:23:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/181 "2024-08-26T15:11:35Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > Simply calling them what they _are_ is a “dehumanizing slur”. Fascists, sadists, without virtue, malignant, traitors, dishonest, irrational, fanatics, just about everything one can honestly say about them is an insult. They are a conglomeration of vices and flaws. Sure, call them all those things. I never said you should be nice to the Right, and if your insults are both accurate and not dehumanizing, then by all means, fire away. I do think that “weird” is probably going to beore effective than “fascist” but that’s just because our electorate, when aggregated together, acts pretty stupid, and weird appeals better to the lowest common denominator. You probably shouldn’t called them a homophone of “Maggots” though. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/182 "2024-08-26T15:13:39Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > > [@Babale](#): > > > > Either dehumanization is bad _in and of itself_, which is the claim the Left generally makes, in which case it doesn’t matter what Republicans call Democrats > > Which way does your finger point-To the worst, or to the Democrats? Apparently, it _does_ matter…to you. My finger isn’t pointed at anyone. I’m simply saying that if you make the argument “dehumanizing language is inherently bad”, you should not use dehumanizing language. I haven’t heard Republicans make the argument that dehumanizing language is bad, so when they use dehumanizing language, I’ll criticize them for doing so, but not for hypocrisy (in that particular area, they’re plenty hipocritical elsewhere) ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/183 "2024-08-26T15:15:02Z")
I am desperately trying to find an animal that follows Trump and wears those ridiculous red hats, but no luck so far. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/184 "2024-08-26T15:15:04Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > You say “finger,” singular, like he only has one. As an Ibex, my hoof is cloven, so I have two fingers per hand. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/185 "2024-08-26T15:15:39Z")
Please do not dehumanize yourself. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/186 "2024-08-26T15:17:58Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > I am desperately trying to find an animal that follows Trump and wears those ridiculous red hats, but no luck so far Oooh, I understand the source of confusion. These are maggots: ![](https://media.tenor.com/7Ixh6zyphfkAAAAM/karesz-kareszka.gif) They are the larvael stage of flies. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/187 "2024-08-26T15:18:44Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > I am desperately trying to find an animal that follows Trump and wears those ridiculous red hats, but no luck so far. How about a red-headed 'pecker? [![](https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTgN4EMTRP-iBNPQ9s6A_ZfsKVA3RXsjyY_UeiA2FxAuHq2Dxdb) ](https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTgN4EMTRP-iBNPQ9s6A_ZfsKVA3RXsjyY_UeiA2FxAuHq2Dxdb) ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/188 "2024-08-26T15:19:59Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > > [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > > > Simply calling them what they _are_ is a “dehumanizing slur”. Fascists, sadists, without virtue, malignant, traitors, dishonest, irrational, fanatics > > Not one of those is a term that applies to non-humans. Someone has never watched a documentary about chimpanzee troops! They can certainly be sadistic at a minimum, and possibly fascistic if you’re generous enough with the definition 😉 Meanwhile Bonobos are practicing Fully Automated Gay Space Communism while in the Stone Age. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/189 "2024-08-26T15:21:33Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > Someone has never watched a documentary about chimpanzee troops! They can certainly be sadistic at a minimum, and possibly fascistic if you’re generous enough with the definition It’s a fascinating question whether chimps have enough theory of mind to be sadists, or whether that’s anthropomorphizing them. It’s barely possible that such a question is outside the realm of ATMB. In any case, if an insult applied to chimps is potentially anthropomorphic, applying it to humans is definitely not dehumanizing. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/190 "2024-08-26T15:24:08Z")
You mean the ones spelled with _two_ "g"s, the first three letters not capitalized to denote a popular Trumpian phrase, with an “ot” so as to not represent the red hat those others wear? ---
**Author:** ![Stratocaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stratocaster/32/16393_2.png) [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/191 "2024-08-26T15:27:04Z")
FWIW, I always took “MAGAts” to suggest “maggots.” I offer this since I know I’m a role model for the board. I hope this settles matters. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/192 "2024-08-26T15:30:13Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > You mean the ones spelled with _two_ "g"s, the first three letters not capitalized to denote a popular Trumpian phrase, with an “ot” so as to not represent the red hat those others wear? I mean the ones who are pronounced identically to ‘MAGAts’, yes. From Wikipedia: > [@](#): > > “MAGAt”, a derogatory term used for supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump, named for his slogan “Make America Great Again” (MAGA); the term is a homophone of “maggot” Of course, you have had this point cited to you, in this very thread, multiple times now. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/193 "2024-08-26T15:36:01Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > I mean the ones who are pronounced identically to ‘MAGAts’, yes. Some do, some don’t. I _have_ noticed that, in real life, those that pronounce them the same seem to be right-wingers that insist that the far left all pronounce them the same. In fact, I often wonder if the use of that word that denotes Trump followers might drop off the face of the Earth if it wasn’t made a distracting cause by the Right. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/194 "2024-08-26T15:48:41Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > So, which is it? Is dehumanizing always bad because of the impact it has on the person doing the dehumanizing, or is OK if the other side is nasty enough? It’s OK if it’s not actually dehumanizing. Dehumanizing means suggesting that some subset of humanity is less than human and should be treated accordingly. It’s what the slave trade did to Black people, and what the Nazis did to Jews. It’s not what posters here do when they refer to Trump cultists as either “MAGAs” or “MAGAts”, with or without the silly redundant “t”. The implication to any reasonable person is that they’re being ridiculed for being uninformed idiots, not that they’re subhuman. I’d be fine with dropping the “t” but I never thought it was a big deal. There seems to be much love here for the descriptor “weird” for Trump and Vance and his cronies, and I like it too, but it serves an entirely different purpose. A term is needed for the core of Trump cultists, which is not the same as the much larger group of Trump supporters in the sense of likely Trump voters. “MAGAs” or “MAGAts” serves the purpose, and is shorter than “MAGA cultists”. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/195 "2024-08-26T15:52:05Z")
Considering the bad history the word “Maga” has, it (slightly) surprised me when they took it up/ ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/196 "2024-08-26T15:53:51Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Some do, some don’t. Yawn. Here’s another cite: > [@](#): > > Origin & history > Blend of MAGA and maggot. MAGA is the acronym of “Make America Great Again”, Donald Trump’s campaign slogan. [https://www.wordsense.eu/MAGAt/](https://www.wordsense.eu/MAGAt/) And another: > [@](#): > > Blend of MAGA +‎ maggot. MAGA is the acronym of “Make America Great Again”, Donald Trump’s campaign slogan. > > Pronunciation > IPA(key): /ˈmæɡət/ > Audio (UK): > Duration: 2 seconds.0:02 (file) > Rhymes: -æɡət > Homophone: maggot [https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/MAGAt](https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/MAGAt) ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/197 "2024-08-26T15:58:50Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > It’s not what posters here do when they refer to Trump cultists as either “MAGAs” or “MAGAts”, with or without the silly redundant “t”. With the T, you’re calling them “Maggots”. That’s precisely why the T was added. Call them MAGA, or call them Trumpers. Or admit that if you think someone is vile enough then calling them a “maggot” is totally acceptable. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/198 "2024-08-26T16:02:26Z")
It’s funny that people are denying that “MAGAt” means “maggot” but we have had multiple threads complaining about “Democrat Party” because “DemocRAT”. > [@RESOLVED: Using the term "democrat party" should be a bannable offense](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/resolved-using-the-term-democrat-party-should-be-a-bannable-offense/920174): > > It’s trolling, pure and simple. It’s ignorant and juvenile beneath the dignity of posters here. It’s obnoxious. From a recent thread: Oh, and don’t worry, I’ve been deliberately leaving democrat party uncapitalized and without the “ic.” “MAGAt” is exactly equivalent to Demoncrat or DemocRAT or whatever. ETA: ha! That thread has a wonderful post in support of our side by dear Czarcasm: Continuing the discussion from [RESOLVED: Using the term "democrat party" should be a bannable offense](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/resolved-using-the-term-democrat-party-should-be-a-bannable-offense/920174/42): > [@RESOLVED: Using the term "democrat party" should be a bannable offense](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/resolved-using-the-term-democrat-party-should-be-a-bannable-offense/920174/42): > > > [@RESOLVED: Using the term "democrat party" should be a bannable offense](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/resolved-using-the-term-democrat-party-should-be-a-bannable-offense/920174/37): > > > > I think both sides should cool it. Democrats here don’t like the term “Democrat Party,” and I’m sure Republicans don’t appreciate being called repukes or repukelicans > > The difference is that there aren’t any Democrats pretending that they don’t understand why anyone would be insulted by “repukes” or “repukelicans”, or insisting on using those terms in what are otherwise civil discussions ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/199 "2024-08-26T16:07:31Z")
Your first cite calls “MAGAt” derogatory slang. Your second cite calls it “offensive” and “derogatory” slang. The idea that it’s “dehumanizing” seems to be your own invention. > [@Babale](#): > > “MAGAt” is exactly equivalent to Demoncrat or DemocRAT or whatever. Pretty much, yes. It’s silly. It’s offensive and certainly should be avoided in anything but extremely informal contexts. But “dehumanizing” is just an inappropriate and wholly inaccurate criticism. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060/200 "2024-08-26T16:11:24Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > It’s funny that people are denying that “MAGAt” means “maggot” but we have had multiple threads complaining about “Democrat Party” because “DemocRAT”. No, at least for most, it’s because there isn’t a fucking Democrat Party in the US. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-calling-trump-supporters-magats-allowed/1005060.md?page=11)