Divisive language

[tugrik]

I think it's time for folks to admit it: The whole 'bash things like the childfree folks do' language is officially done with. What was once a community's original way of venting has turned into a huge, directionless mass of 'me-too!' jargon-chanters. These monkey-hear-monkey-repeat flame warriors gleefully froth out their slurs at the expense of making nobody take their points seriously any more. I wouldn't be surprised to find a good percentage of them don't even share the same 'childfree' convictions; they just enjoy trashing people with these 'new kewl wordz they saw on the net'.

Sprog, kidlet, moo, crotch-dropping, bratling -- it's all just such a tired, divisive lingo. It makes me miss the more creative groups, like VHEMT. At least they have a catchy sound-byte of a logo: "May we live long and die out". :)

(An addition to the thoughts above before too many folks take this post the wrong way: Please note that what I'm ranting about is folks [ab]using one group's verbiage to the point of making those words pointless anymore. I've got no complaint about the childfree folks themselves! I'm definitely in agreement that this world has far too many irresponsible acts of breeding going on.)

Comments

[auryanne.livejournal.com]

Riiiight, because everyone who's childfree talks like that. Nice try. No cigar.

[tugrik.livejournal.com]

Actually, no. A lot of my friends are into the whole Childfree mindset. Most of the ones I know personally don't talk like that at all! I've got no problem with the Childfree way of life or the folks who encourage it.

This came up because someone on one of my motorcycle boards started using the terminology because he thought it was 'cool'. It's bashing-words for bashing-words sake at this point -- a biker using a term out of context. So I'm sayin' that the termonology that came up from there is now getting abused by others who have no clue, and as such is getting 'tired'.

This can be said about a lot of group-lingos. Here's an example that goes the other way: The term "Cager" that a lot of motorcyclists use in a derogatory fashion to describe car drivers. That word got tired too, as it got way-overused. Luckily it's mostly burnt out and isn't being thrown about as much as it was earlier.

Don't take things so personally. :)

[selasphorus.livejournal.com]

I've noticed terms like "sprog" and such pop up in other communities, like customers_suck. Granted, it's for ranting about crappy workstuff, and screaming temper tantrums or potty accidents can make for crappy workstuff thanks to kids. But even if I don't appreciate some stuff kids pull, I don't want to use that sort of language on them. A spoiled brat is a spoiled brat (and about as strong as I want to get for children, who usually don't know much better), no need to turn them into some sort of kobold bent on causing havoc.

[shatterstripes.livejournal.com]

Jargon is part of how we create and bind together communities. If I say, for instance, "Ooh, that was a bad mav - excuse me!", you know that I just said something in the wrong channel, that the polite response is to chuckle and try to forget hearing it - and you know that I am a social mucking type; other realtime fora have terms for that act, but distinctly different ones with their own histories and possibly subtle differences in their loadings. Me using this weird slang and you using it brands us members of the same comminity, creating a bit of instant commonality!

Relentlessly using a community's jargon is a way of declaring one's intent to join it - look, for instance, at the notes on hacker slang in the preface to The Hacker's Dictionary, noting that excessive use of hacker slang is a trait often observed in young proto-hackers. It's a way of repeatedly declaring "I am part of this community, really, I am, though I may not be a full-fledged member yet".

[turbinerocks.livejournal.com]

My problem with some of the childfree people is the idea that because a kid is acting up, it's automatically the paretn's fault. Because a child is inconviencing someone, does not mean A) the parent is a bad parent, B) the child is worthless, or that C) the act of having children is worthy of contempt. Not all childfree people are like this, but enough are (and enough of them are in their early teens themselves) that it gives the whole idea a sort of bad taste to me. I agree that there are bad parents, and too many people having kids that shouldn't.

But since I am effectively a professional babysitter for a living, I can say with certainity that sometimes kids (and retard adults) act up for no reason, and there's nothing anyone can do about it. And venting is fine, but venting constantly just reinforces what everyone wants to hear, that "kids are disgusting and worthless because they were screaming and crying and making me unconfortable as I was waiting in line for my latte."

I am digging that there's motorcycle slang for people who drive cars. :D I will state for the record that I am terrified of riding a motorcycle, and I'm probably exactly the kind of guy who motorcyclists make fun of, the "my car is my temple" type.

[tugrik.livejournal.com]

Heh... The term 'cager' is for those who are 'locked off from the world in their little cage'. The most important trait is that they're blissfully unaware of the world outside their cage -- or at least they don't respect the reality of how much mass*velocity they're in control of. This term can be expounded on to way past its original design and become quite derogatory.

It is used as a slam by bikers in two main ways: For one, showing a driver's inattention. For two, showing a motorcycle rider's more elite by virtue of being 'more involved in their immediate environment'. Calling a car-driver a cager suggests that the motorcyclist using the term is, by comparison, a Free Person, liberated of their cage.

Not-so-funny-story: I picked up the term as a newbie to cycling. I loved it and used it regularly. To me it had become harmless; it was just a way to say 'car driver'. I didn't know its baggage and threw the term around. One of my anti-motorcycling friends, however, knew the word and took great offense at it. First time I used it around him it provoked a nasty response and ensuing argument.

I had to take a step back and realize that while the term was just 'community inclusive' to me -- it was hostile to many others. So I chose to stop using it.