Why be unkind?

[ZackT]

I personally am against all forms of censorship, because it sets a standard of which certain people will have to decide what's allowed and what isn't, and when you give any group of people that kind of power, it inevitably will be lusted after and abused.

Not to mention, I think it's stupid to bleep/silence words out of shows or songs because you'll know what word was being used almost every time...so what's the point?

I'm someone who can come forward and say that I'm extremely guilty of using words like queer, gay, homo, and fag in my daily language, even now. However, when I am around someone who I know (or think) is homosexual or bi, I stop myself from saying them until I've determined their stance on it. I'm also someone who doesn't give a shit what you call me, whether joking or not.

I personally don't want to go around pissing people off. I think it's great if we can all say what we want without reprucussions, but I don't see the point in callously ignoring how other's feel just to satisfy some internal desire to be dominant and allowed to say whatever.

That being said, I think if anyone is getting sick and so stressed out that even seeing a show with a title like "Queer eye for the straight guy" causes them mental anxiety, then that's something they personally need to deal with. That's a bit extreme if you ask me, and I honestly get annoyed when people are so damned sensitive. And that applies to any example you want it to, not just gayness.

For example, I worked at Chili's as a cook and one day my friend (fellow cook) and I were talking and it was busy as hell and I said something to the effect of "Oh god if I could just blow my brains out". There was a waitress on the other side of the heatlamp table and she got all offended saying I shouldn't talk like that because her grandfather committed suicide by gunshot and shit. That sort of incident is what annoys me. How is a stranger or even a friendly acquantance supposed to know something like that? And furthermore, should you rationally expect to never hear someone jokingly say something about shooting themselves or someone else just because of a tragic incident in your family?



So what I'm ultimately saying is, these words are just words. If everyone stopped giving a damn about them, then they wouldn't be a problem. That goes for nigger, cunt, faggot, bitch, queer, dyke, spic, coon, faggot, and any other curse word or racial/gender/sexual slur you can come up with. Words are just words and if people stop getting so up in arms over it, then we'd all have at least 1 less thing to stress out about.