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So, what should you do if someone keeps calling you a crypto-nazi in a televised debate? I'm pretty sure that if Buckley and Vidal had been having a debate abou
by ellyagg 17y ago
So, what should you do if someone keeps calling you a crypto-nazi in a televised debate? I'm pretty sure that if Buckley and Vidal had been having a debate about civil rights, and Buckley repeatedly called Vidal a "crypto-faggot", under the pretense that doing so was vaguely related to civil rights, and then if Vidal had made a rejoinder similar to the one quoted, you'd be applauding it.
Remember, it was Vidal's essay about Buckley that twice inspired libel suits and forced Esquire to print an apology.
(Note: Not a Republican and not a fan of Buckley, but a fan of the truth.)
- rgrieselhuber 17y agoSurely you're not saying that being labeled a Nazi and being called gay should evoke a similar, combative response?
- wendroid 17y agoBeing called "faggot" is not the same as being accused of homosexuality.
- rgrieselhuber 17y agoThat's the (disparaging) meaning I grew up learning. What else does it mean?
- JoachimSchipper 17y agoTo the best of my understanding, the difference between "homosexual" and "faggot" is about the difference between "African-American" and "nigger". Objectively, the meaning is the same; but you wouldn't use the first to insult someone, and you wouldn't use the second in a policy document.
- rgrieselhuber 17y agoWhich, unless I'm somehow confused here, brings me back to my original point. If someone calls you a Nazi, they are calling you something horrible. But if someone calls you a homosexual, even if they do it in an insulting manner, they aren't saying anything horrible about you at all. They are just showing their own ignorance and bigotry through their choice of words. So that's why I objected to indirect comparison of calling someone a Nazi vs. calling someone a homosexual.
- wendroid 17y ago"crypto-faggot" is not "crypto-homosexual"