You’ve got to check out this handout at a mandatory assembly for public school students, according to Cheeky Pink Girl. I think its intention is to increase sensitivity as the assembly was called “Expect Respect” or some such idiocy.
Wow. I guess the thinking of these school administrator types is consistent though. You can’t stop kids from having sex just like you can’t stop them from hurling insults at each other, all you can do is just try to make it safe as possible. Give them condoms and a thesaurus, I guess.
You can hear some rap jingles students recorded for the assembly here.
For the full story behind it, check out Cheeky Pink Girl. (Warning. She does use some colorful language.)
March 1, 2010 at 10:17 pm
PC FAIL.
Your observation on "safe insults" is right on, though. "Give them condoms and a thesaurus," indeed.
It looks as if the message of the assembly should have been, uh, not insulting others *at all*. Hurling insults is only bad when the insults are insulting to others besides those you are insulting, it seems.
March 2, 2010 at 1:59 am
What these administrators are missing is teaching the children the dignity of the human person.
March 2, 2010 at 3:20 am
Did you vote in the last national election? Last state election? Last SCHOOL BOARD election?
March 2, 2010 at 5:06 am
The word vulgar means common,pertaining to the common man,practiced by the common man,vernacular,national. Given that this was Public(common)School, I'd have to say the list of 'vulgar' words are the result of sending kids to Vulgar(public)Schools.Well done Vulgar Schools, well done.
March 2, 2010 at 3:07 pm
Perhaps I'm just feeling a bit ornery today, but in glancing over the list I came up with substitute words which would be every bit as insulting as the original list. This is, of course, what people naturally do when deprived of the use of certain words. Consider, for example, the turnover of terms to describe the LGBT community: gay, homosexual, queer, and so on (to say nothing of terms which are actually meant as insults, like faggot and fairy-f***). The word becomes insulting after a short period of use because it has become associated with their community, which has been and will long continue to be a shameful group (to say the least). Thus, the "pc" term is constantly changing, because the old pc term is suddenly used as a degrading insult. Similarly for most other terms on the list posted (the exception being those which refer to the black community, though the pc term for this group has also undergone a number of changes). Talk about your self-defeating exercise.
March 2, 2010 at 9:50 pm
Whore, slut and ho aren't very good anyway. It's best to replace them. I always substitute them with "strumpet" or "harlot". Much better words!
March 3, 2010 at 12:01 am
Those poor parents. And am I the only one who sees the possiblity that they just wanted a less vulgar word to insult people with?
Instead of calling someone gay/retarded, call them dumb/stupid. They'll respect you for it!
March 3, 2010 at 2:24 am
That this in a way reflects "the condom mentality" is also what I was thinking upon seeing that worksheet. As if changing the word changes the meaning.
It doesn't change the behavior. It just makes it sound 'nicer' (if that is possible). But in the end, an intended insult is still an insult.
A vulgar word by another name…
-carina
March 3, 2010 at 6:23 pm
And as on SNL: and you have a nice day.
March 4, 2010 at 1:28 am
What the hell happened to the C word? Don't they use that anymore? We pulled that one out when the B word just wasn't enough.