Long ago, my father would inspect hospitals and would have to call in his reports and I’d frequently hear the r-word - in its original form - in those instances, at least originally. And like you say, that word was originally meant as a euphemism since it just means “slowed”.
A term that was more frequently slung around on our playground, probably more than the r-word was “sped”, which took me a long time to connect with the shorthand for saying SPecial EDucation.
Yeah, I’ve never liked the outrage surrounding this because people are such hypocrites. People will censor you for using r*****, but then turn right around and call you an idiot or a moron, as if they aren’t the same thing with the same shitty sentiment behind it.
Euphamism Treadmill
Long ago, my father would inspect hospitals and would have to call in his reports and I’d frequently hear the r-word - in its original form - in those instances, at least originally. And like you say, that word was originally meant as a euphemism since it just means “slowed”.
A term that was more frequently slung around on our playground, probably more than the r-word was “sped”, which took me a long time to connect with the shorthand for saying SPecial EDucation.
Yeah, I’ve never liked the outrage surrounding this because people are such hypocrites. People will censor you for using r*****, but then turn right around and call you an idiot or a moron, as if they aren’t the same thing with the same shitty sentiment behind it.