+251 Political Correctness is getting ridiculous. Whatever you call people, it won't change the fact that they are who they are. It should be okay to refer to people as "black" or "white" or "mentally retarded" as long as you're not trying to be rude. amirite?

by Anonymous 13 years ago

i agree. "mentally retarded" is not demeaning unless you're using the term to insult someone. it irritates me when people get so sensitive about the term. "no, don't call them that, call them handicapped or disabled." no thank you, i understand what the word "retarded" means and thus have the capacity to use it. there are so many other demeaning terms that are so much worse than "retarded."

by Anonymous 13 years ago

About the mentally retarded thing. It's perfectly fine to call a person who has mental disabilities mentally retarded. However, that is basically never the case as of now. People use retarded just like they use the word gay-as an insult. Which is completely not okay. My brother has special needs, and I've honestly never heard anyone at his school or hospital correcting someone when they say mentally retarded. Honestly, the word retarded isn't horrible, just the way people have come to use it makes it hurt so much when someone says it. I know I said my brother has special needs instead of my brother is mentally retarded, it's just what I'm used to saying. If I say he's retarded, people just think I'm like the people who use it as an insult, which I am most certainly not. And one last thing. The people who ask people to stop using retarded as an insult are not stuck up or prudes, they just know how much it hurts to hear a word that describes someone you love being used as an insult.

by Anonymous 13 years ago

By the way, I didn't mean to comment anonymously, I thought I was logged in. Whoops.

by Anonymous 13 years ago