this post was submitted on 08 May 2025
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This isn't what 50501 should include in its movement.
Where has the high road gotten us?
Soap is the first box, and based on the failure of the second and third, soap has necessarily failed.
For anyone not familiar with the metaphor, it's
In other words, first try talking. Then voting. Then the legal system. And if all of that fails, force (guns).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_boxes_of_liberty
R3V01U710N
"They go low we go high....right into fascism"
We can surely insult Trumpers without "bitches" and gargling balls. My feelings aren't hurt but like, this is asinine on a sign. Too low brow for my ivory tower sensibilities I guess
words have power, but only the power we, as in everyone, give them. going up to fascist narcissist nazis and saying "here's a list of words you're not allowed to say ever never never" doesn't mean they're going to understand or abide by or even have a shadow of an ounce of respect for those "rules," all you're doing is saying "here--take this list of weapons to use against us and hurt us" and with zero consequences to boot
excuse me, but fuck that. there are so many things we could be talking about rather than whether WE should use the word "bitches" or not, since it clearly didn't work with nazis
as it has been pointed out in several other comments in the thread: we are, right now, exactly where the high road led us. and the end point of this road is NOT a good place. we need to change direction NOW
I agree with you, words have power, but only the power we give them.
By adopting this growing strategy of using gay coded innuendo as a weapon - we are telling the maga crowd that we respect it as a weapon, we are validating that we think it has power.
What you mistake for "oh the soft weak left has a no-no list that holds us back" was us not reacting and thus not giving power to using gay innuendo as a weapon, so that lgbt peoples existence isn't thought of as a weapon.
We were quite close too - I Haven't heard much anti gay rhetoric used as insults by the right, no where neat as much as 10 20 30 years ago. The right had realized that that stuff had lost effectiveness and thus switched to different insults.
But here with these stupid memes and signs that I see more and more often are re-weaponizing anti-gay discourse and I hate it and it definitely will lead to a lower quality of life for lgbt people, it will definitely keep more lgbt people in the closet, and all the knock on effects of that including suicide.
Words have power, and we give them power by using them. Think about what you are giving power to.
remember when no one said "fuck" out of fear they might give some frail old lady a heart attack? or when it was verboten to say "pregnant" on television? or when "gay" really was a slur? now it's literally one of the letters in LGBTQ. same as "queer"
it's not using the words that give them power. it's allowing yourself to become injured by them that turns them into weapons. bitches
At the end of the day, we are arguing your right to say "bitch" here. We aren't defeating fascism by saying "bitch." Not remotely. "Bitch" is insulting because not only is it a dog, but a female dog. It's completely loaded with misogyny, and attempting to "reclaim" the language doesn't work here. Fuck is a completely different scenario. The gay/ball gurgle problem has already been excellently pointed out above. It also applies to women.
I'm not worried gramma is going to have a heart attack. I'm worried that we are instinctively using language that inherently insults and denigrates minorities. How we use language shapes how we think, and vice versa. There are plenty of other insults we can hurl
lol i already have the "right" to say bitch, same as everyone else, and same with any word in any language. i'm sorry you have such a long list of words that hurt you
I don't get your combative, angry attitude. Just having a discussion. Clearly I mean "right" as in right to say something without critique or consequence, not as though I am the final arbiter of language. I support the intent behind the sign and his right to put whatever he wants on it. I think the wording is poor and could be more effective.
I'm here for it
You don't get to pick
If you’re not going to help then for the sake of the future of humanity get the fuck out of the way
Hey look. Another arbiter of what belongs.
Cut it out.
🤡