Star Date - Language

Last weekend a question circulated about whether or not someone should get offended by the use of certain words. Like my friend Kate stated: "Language is a breathing entity."

Unfortunately for all its wisdom, language is not very bright. It can (and has) been perverted into a war machine. Certain words can (and do) change with emphasis. Inflection is everything, but that doesn't excuse the speaker from fault in a given situation. Let me give an example.

The words that always seem to be at the crux of this debate are racially cognisant words. Words like Nigger, Spic and Gook are no doubt offensive, but unfortunately due to "modern lingo" they are now used all too frequently but get cast aside as being taken out of context or meant in jest. These days people use them as easily as words like "it" & "and" with no second thought about how they may be construed by the listener. It shouldn't matter if you (or the listener) are White, Black, Asian or Hispanic; and it shouldn't matter if the word is used in a different pronunciation to erase the negative connotation, the word was invented to be harmful and more times than not, it's still delivered as such.

The same can be said of defining words. Retarded is one of the main words used in today's lexicon that is not meant to be taken as harmful. When put to the question, most users will say they "didn't mean any disrespect" by using it and most probably, they were not, but that doesn't mean it was not taken as such. Retarded, by definition is someone who has a mental or physical condition to which they have no control over. This word, when used out of context holds the same punch to some as using a racially charged word toward the offending race. And much like saying "Nigga" in place of "Nigger" then claiming to be erasing the negative by changing the pronunciation; using altered terms like "Fucktard" are just as offensive as calling someone a "Retard"

Bottom line, we use language as we see fit. And unfortunately, today's society has deemed it acceptable to use offensive words in everyday life and we are now expected to accept it as the norm. We are not perfect and sometimes a joke IS just a joke, but there is a finite line that we must all take into consideration before when we speak. Are some people too touchy and sensitive? Sure, but there are also people who are way too insensitive to others when they speak. You have the freedom to speak however you see fit, but that doesn't mean a little decorum isn't appreciated or even the right thing to do.

Those who use language must always treat it with respect. Humor, incite, negotiation and daily conversation are all tools that language instills that allow us to use it. It is up to us, as intelligent beings to craft language, to coddle it, to make it worthy of being heard. Without it, we are destine to fail. With it (used properly & judiciously) the sky's the limit.