3 ms·

amusing what is acceptable and not in our society: pansy 2. a usually disparaging : a weak or effeminate man or boy b usually disparaging : a male homosexua

amusing what is acceptable and not in our society: pansy 2. a usually disparaging : a weak or effeminate man or boy b usually disparaging : a male homosexual

Skywing 16y ago
Don't take it so personal. I'm about 99% he didn't mean it to be too offensive. Probably only offensive enough to make people take action.
- spooneybarger 16y ago
  I'm not. I don't take anything all that personally... especially as I'm not gay but I can think of plenty of slurs that no one would ever consider putting in a blog post title casually yet pansy is perfectly acceptable. I'm going to assume.. o o look out... that you would find... chink, nigger, gook, spic and lord knows what else equally acceptable and make a snippy little comment to anyone who pointed out how some might be offensive as being well... chinese, black, vietnamese etc... BTW... this is the part where you can respond and pretend you didn't try to insult me as a person by calling me a pansy. Only problem... I don't care and... well I'm going to keep it civil and end right there. EDIT: p.s. nice edit of your comment btw to make it less... well... you know...
  - Skywing 16y ago
    Um, what? I didn't call you a pansy. I didn't make the original post. And, no I don't use those words, but hey .. nobody claimed that making an assumption was wise. My edit only added an additional sentence so that you, being the sensitive little thing that you are, wouldn't get offended. Quit being such a pansy.
    - spooneybarger 16y ago
      And there you go again, aren't you witty... Let us see how the chain went... I pointed out that pansy is considered acceptable now despite its meaning and you said, don't take it personally. I responded. You CHANGED your response to seem less ass-ish. I responded. You try to explain and then... try once again to insult someone who doesn't care about your slur. High road you are on there. I can wait to see your next 3rd grade playground response ( perhaps a little EDIT revisionist history? ).
  - ipince 16y ago
    I must say your posts are incredibly hard to understand... I'm still a bit confused. Anyway, WRT to "slurs", I'm among those who believe that people should focus on the meaning of a person's speech, rather than the words they chose to use. If they want to use words like faggot, nigger, spic, etc, so be it, so long as their intention is not derogatory.
    - sophacles 16y ago
      Some words do have derogatory meanings -- as a fundamental point of them. For instance, if I walked up to some guy and said "Hey douchebag, you are a fucking idiot", the meaning is much different than, "Hey guy, you are acting foolishly". While I tend to be forgiving of word choice based on context, the meaning of words and their connotations are pretty important.
  - sophacles 16y ago
    Are you really trying to claim that all slurs are the same? Different ones have different levels of offensiveness, and that is by fucking design. If I call someone an idiot it is more insulting than calling them foolish. If I call someone a prick it is less offensive than calling them a douche. There are levels of slur. For instance I think you are a disingenuous prick, but I probably wouldn't call you a douchebag hypocrite, as that might be a bit over the top in this situation.
pvg 16y ago
It's often used in a fairly gender-independent way, but b? not unless you're trading bawdy tales with some octogenarians down at the VFW hall.
- spooneybarger 16y ago
  many people use terms that were meant as derogatory in a way they think 'isnt offensive'.. bully for them. i use derogatory terms and when i do... i mean it for effect. if you are going to use a derogatory term and say you didn't mean to offend, some of use will think you are either disingenuous or clueless. but... that wasn't my point... there are tons of derogatory terms that almost no one in 'polite' society would use, some however, still have defenders and people who will say that it isn't offensive. thank you for proving my point. i look forward to future hn posts where people explain why all the various slurs of history are no longer offensive and if you find them offensive you are an old foggy hanging out at the VFW. Totally unrelated sidenote... new user- love pinboard.in even if I think your view drips of privilege.
  - pvg 16y ago
    Nobody uses 'pansy' when they want to call someone a homosexual, in a derogatory way. Really. Whether 'pansy' itself is offensive or not, other than you assuming it, it's not something I brought up or plan to discuss. Glad you like pinboard!
    - spooneybarger 16y ago
      like is the wrong word. LOVE would be more like it but still... "Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it." or another way... a slur is a slur. some are just more acceptable than others. I find it 'amusing' which ones are considered acceptable or 'not really offensive' by many who wouldn't use lots of the 'big slurs'- you can see them below ( or wherever the comment moves later... http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2078517 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2078517 ) where mr. edit decided to try to slander me in a way that i don't take as slander. i look forward to his future edits, more justifications for slurs and awesome pinboard features and honestly, none of that was ironic. i firmly believe in agree to disagree especially when it comes to language and what is and is not acceptable. if pansy was used to make a point like ( o o o topical ) 'nigger' and 'injun' are used in huck finn, i would have no problem- the author would be making a point rather than just having a tin ear ( i assume the best in people ). but... as it is, i am going with at best... tin ear. EDIT: btw... 'nobody' is a strong word and i call bullshit on that. if you think nobody means pansy in a derogatory fashion then you are either naive or have you head up your ass or live on big rock candy mountain. and if live on big rock candy mountain, can i get on for the same pricing as pinboard?
Jach 16y ago
Dictionaries are historians of usage, not legislators of meaning. I take pansy to mean either idiot or weakling or coward and some variation of those. Would you prefer the title be "Stop being stupid and do something", or "Stop being weak and do something", or "Stop being a coward and do something"?
- spooneybarger 16y ago
  Christ, seriously? Do have to stay up all night and argue this... Do people really believe that 'pansy' is not still a slur? Is 'faggot' not a slur? Really? Come on... Christ.. I started with an observation and now I am wrapped up in this crap. And yes... i think stupid is less offensive to many than pansy. are you as, what i assume is in an intelligent person, arguing that you think pansy is consider a slur by fewer people than stupid? really? seriously?
  - sophacles 16y ago
    I think your reply here is disingenuous as you still are refusing to state what your real, honest, actual problem is.. that it is a slur, or the specific slur. Quit redirecting to you're bullshit fake bafflement and just answer a simple question about what your objection is.
    - spooneybarger 16y ago
      My simple statement is the beginning what... I find it assuming what slurs people find acceptable and what they dont. I'm not familiar with anyone who isn't aware of pansy not being a slur. It is just some people decide... 'o i didnt mean it that way'. There are many slurs you can get away with say 'i didnt mean it that way' and most people will look the other way and many that people won't. If you talk race, you probably can't get away with saying 'i didnt mean it that way' If you talk gender, well that is harder to classify, it is more of a middle ground. If you talk sexuality, well... i think there most of it is still fertile ground for slurs, intended or not.
  - Jach 16y ago
    > are you as, what i assume is in an intelligent person, arguing that you think pansy is consider a slur by fewer people than stupid? How did you come to that? I have no idea of the numbers. Though I'd probably counter-intuitively vote for stupid anyway since it seems to be in more use and I rarely see 'pansy' on forums such as youtube where insulting remarks happen all the time. I wouldn't put a high wager on my vote though. Anyway, consider a short parable. "So MC Bob, can you explain to us why you write such sexist lines such as 'All you pussies get out of my way, I'm pushing all you down 'cause you're gay'?" "What?" "Pussy. Is there something wrong with a vagina, or having one?" "...Hell no, pussies are great, that's why my last album was exclusively about getting good pussy!" "So you're not being demeaning to women?" "No! I suppose 'pussy' is like 'gay' in that sentence, they're both meant to be taken as insults but are by themselves very meaningless. When I was growing up in Utah, everyone would gasp if you even quoted a swearword, let alone used one in an insulting fashion! It was the taboo of the word that made them offensive rather than any meaning behind the word, and it's like that in many rap songs today. Eminem's not a homophobe, there's just a lot of things that rhyme with faggot or gay or homo."

amusing what is acceptable and not in our society: pansy 2. a usually disparaging : a weak or effeminate man or boy b usually disparaging : a male homosexual

Skywing 16y ago

Don't take it so personal. I'm about 99% he didn't mean it to be too offensive. Probably only offensive enough to make people take action.

spooneybarger 16y ago
I'm not. I don't take anything all that personally... especially as I'm not gay but I can think of plenty of slurs that no one would ever consider putting in a blog post title casually yet pansy is perfectly acceptable. I'm going to assume.. o o look out... that you would find... chink, nigger, gook, spic and lord knows what else equally acceptable and make a snippy little comment to anyone who pointed out how some might be offensive as being well... chinese, black, vietnamese etc... BTW... this is the part where you can respond and pretend you didn't try to insult me as a person by calling me a pansy. Only problem... I don't care and... well I'm going to keep it civil and end right there. EDIT: p.s. nice edit of your comment btw to make it less... well... you know...
- Skywing 16y ago
  Um, what? I didn't call you a pansy. I didn't make the original post. And, no I don't use those words, but hey .. nobody claimed that making an assumption was wise. My edit only added an additional sentence so that you, being the sensitive little thing that you are, wouldn't get offended. Quit being such a pansy.
  - spooneybarger 16y ago
    And there you go again, aren't you witty... Let us see how the chain went... I pointed out that pansy is considered acceptable now despite its meaning and you said, don't take it personally. I responded. You CHANGED your response to seem less ass-ish. I responded. You try to explain and then... try once again to insult someone who doesn't care about your slur. High road you are on there. I can wait to see your next 3rd grade playground response ( perhaps a little EDIT revisionist history? ).
- ipince 16y ago
  I must say your posts are incredibly hard to understand... I'm still a bit confused. Anyway, WRT to "slurs", I'm among those who believe that people should focus on the meaning of a person's speech, rather than the words they chose to use. If they want to use words like faggot, nigger, spic, etc, so be it, so long as their intention is not derogatory.
  - sophacles 16y ago
    Some words do have derogatory meanings -- as a fundamental point of them. For instance, if I walked up to some guy and said "Hey douchebag, you are a fucking idiot", the meaning is much different than, "Hey guy, you are acting foolishly". While I tend to be forgiving of word choice based on context, the meaning of words and their connotations are pretty important.
- sophacles 16y ago
  Are you really trying to claim that all slurs are the same? Different ones have different levels of offensiveness, and that is by fucking design. If I call someone an idiot it is more insulting than calling them foolish. If I call someone a prick it is less offensive than calling them a douche. There are levels of slur. For instance I think you are a disingenuous prick, but I probably wouldn't call you a douchebag hypocrite, as that might be a bit over the top in this situation.

pvg 16y ago

It's often used in a fairly gender-independent way, but b? not unless you're trading bawdy tales with some octogenarians down at the VFW hall.

spooneybarger 16y ago
many people use terms that were meant as derogatory in a way they think 'isnt offensive'.. bully for them. i use derogatory terms and when i do... i mean it for effect. if you are going to use a derogatory term and say you didn't mean to offend, some of use will think you are either disingenuous or clueless. but... that wasn't my point... there are tons of derogatory terms that almost no one in 'polite' society would use, some however, still have defenders and people who will say that it isn't offensive. thank you for proving my point. i look forward to future hn posts where people explain why all the various slurs of history are no longer offensive and if you find them offensive you are an old foggy hanging out at the VFW. Totally unrelated sidenote... new user- love pinboard.in even if I think your view drips of privilege.
- pvg 16y ago
  Nobody uses 'pansy' when they want to call someone a homosexual, in a derogatory way. Really. Whether 'pansy' itself is offensive or not, other than you assuming it, it's not something I brought up or plan to discuss. Glad you like pinboard!
  - spooneybarger 16y ago
    like is the wrong word. LOVE would be more like it but still... "Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it." or another way... a slur is a slur. some are just more acceptable than others. I find it 'amusing' which ones are considered acceptable or 'not really offensive' by many who wouldn't use lots of the 'big slurs'- you can see them below ( or wherever the comment moves later... http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2078517 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2078517 ) where mr. edit decided to try to slander me in a way that i don't take as slander. i look forward to his future edits, more justifications for slurs and awesome pinboard features and honestly, none of that was ironic. i firmly believe in agree to disagree especially when it comes to language and what is and is not acceptable. if pansy was used to make a point like ( o o o topical ) 'nigger' and 'injun' are used in huck finn, i would have no problem- the author would be making a point rather than just having a tin ear ( i assume the best in people ). but... as it is, i am going with at best... tin ear. EDIT: btw... 'nobody' is a strong word and i call bullshit on that. if you think nobody means pansy in a derogatory fashion then you are either naive or have you head up your ass or live on big rock candy mountain. and if live on big rock candy mountain, can i get on for the same pricing as pinboard?

Jach 16y ago

Dictionaries are historians of usage, not legislators of meaning. I take pansy to mean either idiot or weakling or coward and some variation of those. Would you prefer the title be "Stop being stupid and do something", or "Stop being weak and do something", or "Stop being a coward and do something"?

spooneybarger 16y ago
Christ, seriously? Do have to stay up all night and argue this... Do people really believe that 'pansy' is not still a slur? Is 'faggot' not a slur? Really? Come on... Christ.. I started with an observation and now I am wrapped up in this crap. And yes... i think stupid is less offensive to many than pansy. are you as, what i assume is in an intelligent person, arguing that you think pansy is consider a slur by fewer people than stupid? really? seriously?
- sophacles 16y ago
  I think your reply here is disingenuous as you still are refusing to state what your real, honest, actual problem is.. that it is a slur, or the specific slur. Quit redirecting to you're bullshit fake bafflement and just answer a simple question about what your objection is.
  - spooneybarger 16y ago
    My simple statement is the beginning what... I find it assuming what slurs people find acceptable and what they dont. I'm not familiar with anyone who isn't aware of pansy not being a slur. It is just some people decide... 'o i didnt mean it that way'. There are many slurs you can get away with say 'i didnt mean it that way' and most people will look the other way and many that people won't. If you talk race, you probably can't get away with saying 'i didnt mean it that way' If you talk gender, well that is harder to classify, it is more of a middle ground. If you talk sexuality, well... i think there most of it is still fertile ground for slurs, intended or not.
- Jach 16y ago
  > are you as, what i assume is in an intelligent person, arguing that you think pansy is consider a slur by fewer people than stupid? How did you come to that? I have no idea of the numbers. Though I'd probably counter-intuitively vote for stupid anyway since it seems to be in more use and I rarely see 'pansy' on forums such as youtube where insulting remarks happen all the time. I wouldn't put a high wager on my vote though. Anyway, consider a short parable. "So MC Bob, can you explain to us why you write such sexist lines such as 'All you pussies get out of my way, I'm pushing all you down 'cause you're gay'?" "What?" "Pussy. Is there something wrong with a vagina, or having one?" "...Hell no, pussies are great, that's why my last album was exclusively about getting good pussy!" "So you're not being demeaning to women?" "No! I suppose 'pussy' is like 'gay' in that sentence, they're both meant to be taken as insults but are by themselves very meaningless. When I was growing up in Utah, everyone would gasp if you even quoted a swearword, let alone used one in an insulting fashion! It was the taboo of the word that made them offensive rather than any meaning behind the word, and it's like that in many rap songs today. Eminem's not a homophobe, there's just a lot of things that rhyme with faggot or gay or homo."