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the euphemism treadmill is a description of linguistic patterns, not a get out of rule free card
(files.catbox.moe)
Using ableist language as insults is always bad, even if the words seem innocuous. Some may reference the "euphemism treadmill" to try to justify their behavior, but it's crucial to understand that the treadmill is merely a linguistic observation. It does not exist to normalize ableist behavior.
what is the euphemism treadmill for those who dont want to google
correct, it’s not (or shouldn’t be), but it’s being used as one, especially recently!
precontext: i said i could see both sides of some non-important debate. something about whether a community mod should be heavy or light with bans, and i was like, “well it depends on what the motivations and needs are.”
their response to that?
in this post i hope to call attention to the same destructive processes happening to “neurodiverse” as to all the other terms. particularly i want to call out the ableist motivations behind it.
Without the context it doesn’t come off as insulting.
I’m autistic, adhd, and I had a brain injury. Triple neurodivergent. 🙄
Go ahead and block me, I don’t really care, I think without context you taking offense to calling someone who is gullible “neurodivergent” seems over sensitive. Autistic people in particular unfortunately can be gullible and people abuse that.
okay sorry. i had no patience at the time to try to walk you through how the above is an obvious insult. unblocking because i value ND individuals having a voice, thanks for being chill and bearing with me in my stupidity
Really unkind in which threads? Yeah, I’m an asshole about politics, because I’ve had it up to here with backstabbing liberals who vote blue no matter who and scold the left while losing elections like it’s their job (because it is, they exist as a ratchet to prevent any kind of left wing reform). I’ve spent the last two and a half decades watching this country fall to fascism while there’s zero real opposition to it. As a queer neurodivergent I don’t have any more patience left for liberals.
ugh i apologize. i can’t find any specific incidents that i remember so i must be incorrect. yesterday i was quite frustrated at people implicitly calling me a liar or overly sensitive to something that was quite obvious to me and i remembered your username and the vibe of your “asshole about politics” behavior (which is totally understandable btw) so i made a snap decision to single you out rather than checking the actual quality of what i remember.
you have my formal apology. this place is hella stressful and i do my best to be kind but this was an instance where i failed that, and it impacted you semi-directly.
give me a few minutes i’ll remove all my baseless and unkind commentary surrounding you.
It’s all good you don’t need to worry about it. I’m just some random on the internet.
When I was younger I used to get in arguments (usually political nature, I guess politics and power are unfortunately one of my special interests) online with random people. I’d get all upset about it, and it’s fair because it is upsetting. I was terribly, horrifically, violently bullied from kindergarten to college for being visibly queer and neurodivergent and have major trauma and ptsd from it (and other things too). As I’ve gotten older I realized that I was just constantly recreating the abusive conditions I grew up under, feeling bullied online just like I did in real life. The stress is in some ways addictive, it’s what your body knows and wants because it’s familiar and comforting even if it’s not ‘normal’ or healthy. I’ve been banned from every major social media platform for being militantly anti fascist. I’m an asshole and I’m proud of it. I’m a product of the violence I received when I was younger, which is why now as an adult I’m more militant than ever as this country falls deeper and deeper into fascism, aided by the tech industry that silences any voices truly critical of the direction we’re heading in. They amplify hate because it brings them revenue. They manipulate the masses because it brings them power.
Most of the people you argue with online probably aren’t even real and are bots used to manipulate public sentiment in favor of the elites (even division is favorable to them, far more so than unity). The people who are real are likely tweens and teenagers and have a naive view of the world, not being beaten to shit by it yet like adults are. And then there are the real people who are adults… but it says a lot about them (and me, shit) that they choose to spend their time arguing with strangers on the internet. Healthy people are too busy enjoying life to be wasting their time arguing with idiots on the internet.
damn thats hella insightful! and this is why i stick around :3 i like hanging out with genuine cool people