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'Master' and 'slave': Tech terms face scrutiny amid anti-racism efforts
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Zero999:

--- Quote from: james_s on July 18, 2020, 12:18:50 am ---
--- Quote from: Simon on July 17, 2020, 09:09:43 pm ---What he says is very accurate, an just like we think not saying nigger anymore means we are not racist anymore is wrong, so is tearing down statues and changing words not going to make a blind bit of difference unless we actually want to get rid of racism.

--- End quote ---

I don't disagree with him, although I do think that racism is not as common as many think, at least a lot of things that people blame on racism are not. It's one of those things though where if you believe everyone is racist then you're going to see racism everywhere you look whether it is there or not, it's a form of confirmation bias. A great many people project their own racism on everyone else too.
--- End quote ---
There is racism and then there are those with a persecution complex, which might have been brought about by racism, but now they feel as though the world is against them. I've been there myself, not because I've been the victim of racism, but because I was picked on at school. As a late teen-young adult I suffered from depression, social anxiety and went through a phase of being very, paranoid, defensive and aggressive. It didn't sit very well with those who I worked with, at the time, but I didn't lose my job, until there are redundancies on the cards, so I took voluntary, because I felt strongly that I'd be made redundant anyway. I got a big payout, took a year of work to try to get my head straight, found another job, but then went into a downward spiral of depression and an eating disorder, so I lost that one too to redundancy. Eventually I got help, a new job and am mostly fine now, although I accept there will be occasions when I'll have flare ups again, most recently just after returning to work, after lockdown. Fortunately I didn't get involved with gangs or drugs, although I did go through a phase of binge drinking.

I'm not saying everyone is the same, but can understand why someone who's had a hard time may thing the world is against them.


--- Quote ---Regarding that word, given how broadly offensive it is to many people it seems better if nobody uses it, at least not in the context of referring to another person. If the black community wants to have it as their word, fine, who am I to tell them not to say it, but as long as people keep saying it, it's going to stay in the vocabulary. As with all these other words that have been discussed though, it's not actually the word itself that's the problem, but the message it is used to carry.

--- End quote ---
Yes, people get triggered too easily. Notice how when someone is angry, anxious or depressed, they often can't take a joke? This is no different.
SilverSolder:

--- Quote from: Zero999 on July 18, 2020, 07:04:28 pm ---
--- Quote from: james_s on July 18, 2020, 12:18:50 am ---
--- Quote from: Simon on July 17, 2020, 09:09:43 pm ---What he says is very accurate, an just like we think not saying nigger anymore means we are not racist anymore is wrong, so is tearing down statues and changing words not going to make a blind bit of difference unless we actually want to get rid of racism.

--- End quote ---

I don't disagree with him, although I do think that racism is not as common as many think, at least a lot of things that people blame on racism are not. It's one of those things though where if you believe everyone is racist then you're going to see racism everywhere you look whether it is there or not, it's a form of confirmation bias. A great many people project their own racism on everyone else too.
--- End quote ---
There is racism and then there are those with a persecution complex, which might have been brought about by racism, but now they feel as though the world is against them. I've been there myself, not because I've been the victim of racism, but because I was picked on at school. As a late teen-young adult I suffered from depression, social anxiety and went through a phase of being very, paranoid, defensive and aggressive. It didn't sit very well with those who I worked with, at the time, but I didn't lose my job, until there are redundancies on the cards, so I took voluntary, because I felt strongly that I'd be made redundant anyway. I got a big payout, took a year of work to try to get my head straight, found another job, but then went into a downward spiral of depression and an eating disorder, so I lost that one too to redundancy. Eventually I got help, a new job and am mostly fine now, although I accept there will be occasions when I'll have flare ups again, most recently just after returning to work, after lockdown. Fortunately I didn't get involved with gangs or drugs, although I did go through a phase of binge drinking.

I'm not saying everyone is the same, but can understand why someone who's had a hard time may thing the world is against them.


--- Quote ---Regarding that word, given how broadly offensive it is to many people it seems better if nobody uses it, at least not in the context of referring to another person. If the black community wants to have it as their word, fine, who am I to tell them not to say it, but as long as people keep saying it, it's going to stay in the vocabulary. As with all these other words that have been discussed though, it's not actually the word itself that's the problem, but the message it is used to carry.

--- End quote ---
Yes, people get triggered too easily. Notice how when someone is angry, anxious or depressed, they often can't take a joke? This is no different.

--- End quote ---

On the upside, people who didn't arrive here "by the straight and narrow" often have more interesting perspectives on things, and don't tend to take everything for granted...   Everything in life is life experience, even the hard parts.  (Perhaps especially the hard parts.)
0culus:
This past week we started getting some emails circulating at work about how they are going to cram 'inclusive' replacements for well established technical terms down our throats. It's quite frankly a total dumpster fire. Many of the proposed new terms totally lose the meaning inherent in the established term. To the point where it's going to turn into a comedy watching people try to explain what they mean in technical documents and such.

And then what happens 5 years later when we decide one of the new terms is now offensive to someone?  :palm:

To the folks who think this is a good idea: look at yourself in the mirror. Ask yourself why you think it's going to be effective to upend years of technical jargon. What problem is it solving? If your answer is "because I felt offended", or "I want to virtue signal", here's a hint. Blacklisting (and yes I use this term unapologetically in it's widely accepted meaning in this context) technical language is not solving any real issue that actually affects anyone. Grow up, be an adult and stop looking for reasons to be offended. Instead, direct your energy to solving real problems. Then you can actually feel good about yourself.
james_s:
At least the "N-word" has no other meaning that I'm aware of, it's relatively unique in that regard, not like it's been used for decades to describe something else that has nothing at all to do with racism the way master, slave and others. I'm much more supportive of voluntarily retiring a word that has no other use other than as a highly offensive slur. As long as people continue to use it, it will remain in circulation but it's easy enough to not use it myself.
PlainName:

--- Quote ---the "N-word" has no other meaning that I'm aware of
--- End quote ---

Ditto for 'rosbif' and I expect an outcry and complete ban on that too. Hereinafter referred to as the r-word.
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