I thought this went without saying.

[feuervogel]

But due to the comments on the LJ xpost of this, I apparently have to make it explicit.

COMMENTING RULES
1. DO NOT use slurs against marginalized groups. This includes lame and retarded.

2. BY NO MEANS DEFEND your usage of these slurs, because meanings change/etymology/it's a minority opinion/wtfever. If you do, I reserve the right to call you an asshole, a privileged jackass, or a jerk.

Thank you.

Comments

[thegreyghost.livejournal.com]

Since I've been named, I'll chime in to clarify a bit.

I mostly conceded in exhaustion, taking pause to reflect and regroup. Also because there's only so much I can dispute when approached by the person who is directly affected by the topic.

Additionally, akiko comes from a position that strongly opposes bigotry. While I'm not a fan of it either, I come from a position that strongly opposes censorship. It was on the message of her previous post that our swords crossed.

I don't know if we'll ever come to an exact agreement on this, but I'm willing to better understand her perspective. I believe that we both want a better world and we'll never defeat the enemy if we're at each other's throats.

[steuard.livejournal.com]

Opposing censorship is important, I agree! When I see any of this class of issues presented in a tone of "You Must Not Say These Things", it grates on me and raises my anti-censorship hackles, too. But at its core, most of the aspects of this stuff that I fully support boil down to Wheaton's Law (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wil_Wheaton#Wheaton.27s_Law): "Don't be a dick!" (Supplemented in this case by the frustrating warning that, "There are subtle ways of being a dick that may not have occurred to you.")

If someone simply forbids me from saying something, I'll usually object. But if someone tells me that saying that thing hurts them personally or gives a clear argument that it could do unanticipated harm to others, I'll take that into account when I choose my language in the future. And I don't consider that to be censorship at all.

[corpsefairy.livejournal.com]

I don't think it's censorship to say that "saying such-and-such makes you look like a jerk." And I don't think having commenting guidelines like akiko's is tantamount to censorship.