As an autist, you other "autists" who are offended by the word "retard" are well... retarded, realistically and metaphorically.
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So they shouldn't be offended by a word you are explicitly using as an insult? That makes sense.
And just because you "personally" don't find the word all that offensive, apparently, doesn't mean people, especially people targeted by a word can't be offended.
‘Retarded,’ like ‘imbecile’ and ‘cretin,’ was originally a clinical term. An attempt to describe an actual condition free of insult. Which was quickly used as an insult. Some people came to be offended by the clinical term, which has been used almost exclusively as an insult in our culture.
I’m an autist myself. And while I’ve never been called a “retard” to my face, I at least have the decency and empathy to realize how that would be offensive to most of us. Autists are waaaay too often stigmatized as “mentally disabled children who scream a lot” by ignorant jerks…
Though, on a related side-note, I AM greatly offended by any asshole who uses the term “autistic screeching” to make a complainer (no matter how legitimate) seem wrong.
Reminds me of a conversation I had with a guy I met in college.
Him: I heard you have a learning disability, so then you’re retarded?
Confused?
So were we! You can find all of this, and more, on Fundies Say the Darndest Things!
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