Chick gets fired for threatening the president on facebook

[Howie Roary]

do bitch and bastard contain equal weight?

on a gender level, no, you might be looking for "asshole"? a modern gender trade off term for a "mean man" to borrow Plow's description

I really don't think there is a word that easily describes and degrades a man as easily as bitch does, the only ones I can think of, usually relegate him to having female characteristics like being called a "pussy"

[Blubbartron]

Hate speech? I suppose. The question really boils down to if the label fits. Obama is about the furthest thing from a nigger. Chick is seriously a bitch though. Would you have preferred I referred to her as a cunt? It's an equally apt label. Shit, pick a synonym, I don't care. The intent is always the same. Not all women act like her, but when someone acts like that, I calls 'em like I sees 'em. Next thing you know people are going to say we shouldn't label others based on their behavior, because it's "dehumanizing." No, that's just the way the human brain works. Association. Chick acts like a bitch, she goes in the bitch box in my head.

[Demosthenes11]

on a gender level, no, you might be looking for "asshole"? a modern gender trade off term for a "mean man" to borrow Plow's description

I really don't think there is a word that easily describes and degrades a man as easily as bitch does, the only ones I can think of, usually relegate him to having female characteristics like being called a "pussy"

Bitch = female dog
bastard = out-of-wedlock son

you can't really call a man a bitch or a female a bastard with any weight, so are we going to say bastard is just as bad as bitch, or not because males are not discriminated against as much?

I know it sounds like I'm insinuating something, but I'm serious lol

[Byrthnoth]

Derogatory terms for females are very old. I've always felt that the derogatory terms for women outweigh the ones available for men both in their clarity and poetry, which I almost find sad. Perhaps it is evidence that our forebearers were just as assholeish as we are.

Trivia:
* It is thought that the "wolf" that raised Romulus and Remus story of the founding of the Roman empire was actually a prostitute, as that was the slang at the time.
* Pica means magpie and is still a bad female insult in some part of Italy. It is also a female insult in Czech, but with a different meaning (slut/bitch/etc.)

[Kohan]

Bitch = female dog
bastard = out-of-wedlock son

Although "bastard" is more commonly associated with men, it's a gender-neutral term. I would say that it carries more weight when used against a man, but less when against a woman; however, in neither case would I call it as degrading as "bitch." I don't believe they carry equal weight, no.

[Callisto]

people up in arms about a woman oblivious to what might be wrong with saying "nigger", sure are comfortable referring to women as bitches:

it's okay I'm friends with a couple of bitch-er, girls

[Ksandra]

bastard can't be as bad as bitch because when british people say "bastard" it's so damn cute and/or sexy.

[ronin sparthos]

"Nigger" has weight behind it because overall as a society we're still close enough to the age of lynchings and open racism in the US for the word to be considered a grievous insult. I'm sure if you looked hard enough you could find some old black people who remember when the word ran off the lips of white overlords as a way of reinforcing the status quo. As we still exist in a transitory period where (black) discrimination is veiled but still present, the word evokes memories this country chooses to leave in the past.

Bitch on the other hand has become a general term for anyone male or female which once was a term aimed primarily at women and it has lost its verbal bite to time much like "Nigga" is the attempt to remove the weight behind the original term. If you're more cynical, it's a grand joke perpetuated by whites to perpetuate the cultural insecurities of blacks.

If you're looking for a word that approaches the verbal punch of "nigger" as it applies to females then "cunt" is the word of choice and even that word isn't used often in the states.

[Gokku]

harlot?also yea Cunt is like the end of days when you call someone that here in TX. shit in some parts of town im sure nigger holds less "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE" reaction then cunt does.

[Abandon]

harlot is a funny word. girls these days are idiots, as you can call them that and they haven't a clue as to why it's such a bad thing. However, isn't nice to do so. I find "cunt" to be a particularly nasty word.

[Lucavi]

Cunt is probably the worst "gender" word out there, IMO. I can't think of a single situation where calling someone it, or using it in reference to someone, elicits a positive thought or response.

[Howie Roary]

Hate speech? I suppose. The question really boils down to if the label fits. Obama is about the furthest thing from a nigger. Chick is seriously a bitch though. Would you have preferred I referred to her as a cunt? It's an equally apt label. Shit, pick a synonym, I don't care. The intent is always the same. Not all women act like her, but when someone acts like that, I calls 'em like I sees 'em. Next thing you know people are going to say we shouldn't label others based on their behavior, because it's "dehumanizing." No, that's just the way the human brain works. Association. Chick acts like a bitch, she goes in the bitch box in my head.

I don't think we're talking about if the shoe fits the accepted meaning of an insult. Hate speech doesn't have to be intended as hate speech, the word is a slur. You undermine your argument by choosing another gender based slur when you claim it's based on behavior.

Is it too much to ask that insults be a little more intelligent and descriptive, rather than base and yes, dehumanizing? Call her a clueless, backward, bigot or something.

[Plow]

cunt is more about the word itself being considered really offensive than being so insulting

[Kuya]

The best part about this thread was the libertarian complaining about private companies being to punish you for speech.

[test123]

The best part about this thread was the libertarian complaining about private companies being to punish you for speech.

That is not what I complained about, it was how some religious speech can be protected in the workplace while racial slurs are not. Either protect all speech or nothing at all.

[Kuya]

That's not something a libertarian should be saying. The free market is incompatible with protected speech. If employers are unable to fire you for the things you say, then that is not a free market.

[Trichocyst]

Use the term "slattern" if you really don't want people to know what you're saying.

[test123]

That's not something a libertarian should be saying. The free market is incompatible with protected speech. If employers are unable to fire you for the things you say, then that is not a free market.

Well, i'd rather have everyone equal to the law then have some exempts for whatever reason.

[Plow]

Don't you get it Kuya?

He was just tricking us all into finally realizing how incredibly unfair it is that he can be fired for calling people niggers, but he can't fire people for being niggers.


It's so obvious and reasonable, how did we never see it before?

[Kuya]

Well, i'd rather have everyone equal to the law then have some exempts for whatever reason.

No arguments here. As a greasy liberal, i would love nothing more than more limits to employers' powers over employees.