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I don't have a dog in this fight re: spin, just playing the word game. "consistent" for a positive spin or "steady" for more neutral. "Flat" is fairly uncharit
by RickS 8y ago
I don't have a dog in this fight re: spin, just playing the word game.
"consistent" for a positive spin or "steady" for more neutral. "Flat" is fairly uncharitable but also on the table.
For example, I suspect one's wife would rather know her beauty has been "consistent" over the years, rather than "stagnant", despite technically both meaning "stayed the same".
- ryanwaggoner 8y agoYep, the wives of the HN userbase and their ongoing obsession with maintaining their beauty. :eye roll:
- TheAdamAndChe 8y agoAre you saying people(wives included) shouldn't care about their beauty? This seems like a completely unnecessary response to the comment.
- ryanwaggoner 8y agoNo, I’m pointing out that it’s a weird sexist comment that sounds like something from a scene of Mad Men.
- RickS 8y agoI would assert that the genders could be reversed, say, for a husband's handsomeness, or any other quality in any person, and the metric would apply. And of course persons could be removed altogether – that's the point – we started out talking about cell phones. The purpose of my anecdote, and the reason I chose something with such sentiment, is to highlight the semantic difference between words by placing them in a more emotionally charged context. One likely doesn't think too hard about the praise they bestow upon their iPhone. One hopefully thinks harder about the praise they send their lover. The heightened importance of word choice in situation B makes it easier to understand situation A. If degrading sexist tropes are your mind's first destination in in the context of this conversation, I believe you are a hammer in search of a nail.
- ryanwaggoner 8y agoI perfectly understood what you were trying to say. It was just awkward and stereotypical. Again, like something from Mad Men. Like we’re all married men talking about how our wives are obsessed with their beauty. It’s a mildly anachronistic and sexist trope. I found it amusing so I left the comment. Really not a big deal, and from your closing line, I’m sure there’s zero chance of you examining your behavior or assumptions, and I’m not going to waste time arguing about it. Have a great day!