From: gts (gts_2000@yahoo.com)
Date: Wed May 07 2003 - 10:01:16 MDT
John K Clark wrote:
> If I were making a documentary about the Holocaust it is not
> inconceivable that the word "monster" would creep in
> regarding my description of the Nazis, perhaps the word
> "evil" too. If you object to this then it proves that
> political correctness is not the exclusive domain of the far left.
I would not object to this, though I might think your documentary was not
very professional if you over-used those words.
The key is that in your example you are doing a documentary. You are not in
a debate with a Nazi.
> Do you really disagree, do you really think the person was not an idiot?
What I think about people who believe in the Easter Bunny is not the issue.
Everyone is free to think poorly of other people. Ad hominem is something
that is communicated.
> The word has a meaning, there must be times when it is
> appropriate to use it and if not then when? Or perhaps you
> think the word "idiot" should be expunged from the English Language.
The English dictionary is merely a collection of words that English people
use. The words "idiot" and "moron" were at one time perfectly respectable
synonyms for "mentally deficient" or "mentally retarded." These words then
became epithets used by ill-mannered people who can't find the patience to
be civil even to those who are misinformed.
-gts
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