JamesMC Posted July 3, 2014 Posted July 3, 2014 I know TPR has a sense of humor..... I get it..... I do not get offended easily...... HOWEVER..... I don't like the use of the term retarded....and here's why..... My cousin Craig was born completely normal....Unfortunately, he fell down the stairs at two years old with a concussion and a resulting high fever.....he is two years older than me and has the mental capacity of a 12-13 year old because of this. He is a low capacity functioning adult... My mother had a series of strokes and is now in a nursing home for three years....she is "mentally aware" but "physically retarded"....she can never ever go home again......she cannot walk or complete a sentence......She understands everything, but cannot respond...... Retarded as a word is just not funny.... I don't mind Crazy, Nut Job, Weirdo, Loony, Freaky, etc. etc...... Would you ever say "Retarded" at the Special Olympics if you were on the sidelines???? It's not their fault.....and it really isn't funny. Could we please drop this word from member titles...... Just a suggestion...... Thank you!
SharkTums Posted July 3, 2014 Posted July 3, 2014 The only member titles that have that word are specific to a person, no one would get one for no reason like the standard donkey titles. The word is also not being used in a derogatory sense like how many people use it. Ex: "That's so retarded!" It's a medical term and is still used today. I worked for Special Olympics for several years, including when the Jackass type movie came out and using the word was just fine and the Special Olympics even embraced the movie! We all know or have people with 'special needs' in our families and nothing is being said against them. Heck, some of the words you mentioned that we should use instead have very troubled pasts and came out of mentally ill people! Ever heard of the "loony bin"? Like you said, this is not a serious site and it's best to just let it go!
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