this post was submitted on 16 Apr 2025
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[–] Fiivemacs@lemmy.ca 1 points 6 days ago (2 children)

Sure? I'd do it all day. It wouldn't bother me on the giving or receiving end. it's a word with a definition and as long as it applies to the situation/male I'm speaking with it'll be business as usual. In fact, I'll use it to address every single male I encounter for the next 24 hours, in and out of work. That's how confident I am that nobody, that is male would bat an eye or care.

What about the term ladies..is that 'socially acceptable'. It's got sexual connotations like ladies of the night. Which is another way of sayings street whore. Should that be shunned too? Perhaps we should just abolish English or even language altogether for fear that someone gets offended.

I really do not understand these weird feelings people put on things, then expect the world to ensure they follow some rule of feelings. It's absurd.

[–] Varyk@sh.itjust.works 0 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

"I'd do it all day."

this is exactly your problem, that you're okay insulting people. You are bragging about not caring about others.

You care about your own feelings and want everyone to listen to only your feelings.

Insulting people or claiming that you wouldn't mind being insulted doesn't matter here, it's that you're hurting other people.

"as long as it applies to the situation/male I'm speaking with it'll be business as usua"

that's how definitions work, not people, not intention, not culture, and not objectification.

you can choose in your mind to believe that an insult is not insulting, but that doesn't stop the insult from being insulting.

You are exclusively targeting women here.

You can attack gay people on the weekends and swear that you just like hitting people with bats, it has nothing to do with them being gay, but if you are exclusively targeting homosexuals, then you are attacking gay people, it doesn't matter what your asserted beliefs are.

You can claim you don't mean an insult as an insult, but if you use that insult, then you are insulting people.

You are hurting others despite what your feelings are.

"What about the term ladies."

that is socially acceptable depending on the social group and your intentions.

you can say "punk" as a friendly jibe with a friend or you can call someone a punk in a bar and get yourself ostracized or even get your ass beat.

your problem with using "female" is that it's used primarily as an objectifying term in casual conversation, so again, you can choose to claim an insult is not insulting, but that doesn't negate the insult.

Your feelings do not negate the feelings of others.

When you use that term, you are insulting all women using a shorthand to show that you do not respect any woman as an equal person.

"street whore. Should that be shunned too?"

yes, "street whore" is another insulting term that should not be used to refer to half of the human race.

"we should just abolish English..."

that is an impractical and unrealistic solution to your specific bigotry.

There's no reason to punish everyone for your selfish bigotry.

"I really do not understand these weird feelings..."

This is probably a symptom of focusing internally rather than on the community you are a part of.

Empathy is the key. If someone tells you how they would like to be treated, treat them that way.

If they tell you they would not like you to insult them, then don't insult them.

You can choose to insult them if you want, but that doesn't make you a revolutionary, just an asshole.

"hey follow some rule of feelings. It’s absurd."

This is correct because it's what you are insisting.

You are insisting that everyone follow your feelings alone and to ignore the feelings of everyone else.

Which is absurd.

[–] pixxelkick@lemmy.world -2 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

What about the term ladies…is that ‘socially acceptable’.

It is, yes.

"Female" is the term to refer to the sex of an animal, which does include humans but its usually the term you use when describing a... dog or cat or whatever.

People however prefer when you specifically use any of the multitude of human gender terms for us.

So Woman, Lady, Maam, Gals, Girls, Chicks, etc. These all still are what you call a person

Consider the inverse: When you refer to an animal with those terms, its an act of respect, you've humanized it. If you walk up to a cow and say "Hello maam" it's usually inherently signaling "I like/respect this animal to the degree Im using a human pronoun for it"

Or if you have a pet deg and you go "Lookit this distinguished gentleman" or "How are you today sir?", same diff, you humanized it via the pronoun, which is a way to signal love/affection/respect.

When you do the opposite and call a woman a female or a man a male, it's inherently disrespectful. You've effectively implied you classify them at the same tier as an animal in a laboratory. It dehumanizes.

If you think about all the classic insults for people, a lot of them just boil down to calling them an animal. "Pig" "Bitch" "Cow", "Sheep" etc, if you call people by these terms its usually considered at minimum sorta offensive, but often very offensive.

"Female" is the same, when you refer to a woman.