Offensive Shmoffensive

[ATaurusJoker]

Is anyone else sick of the word offensive?

I sure am...

The word offended is a junk word that we are obsessed with. It is the greatest defense against any arguement. If you are offened than someone must have done something wrong to you. Offending someone has become our greatest fear. We hold back our words and actions in fear that our statements will offend someone.

What do others think of this issue???

[ATaurusJoker]

Is anyone else sick of the word offensive?

I sure am...

The word offended is a junk word that we are obsessed with. It is the greatest defense against any arguement. If you are offened than someone must have done something wrong to you. Offending someone has become our greatest fear. We hold back our words and actions in fear that our statements will offend someone.

What do others think of this issue???

[gamblefish]

I think we all know what I think.

The words "I am offended" make me http://home.neo.rr.com/gamblefish/puke.gif

[Snoboy]

The forum's purpose is to uphold the benefits of naturism/nudism. I have never believed that it was intended to attack one another or make fun of individuals. Nudist's come from all walks of life and should all be treated fairly and equally. When a post offends or hurts one individual then it hurts all of us. The forum was a fun place to visit daily, until the remarks become unkind and maligned individuals. I backed away from participation for a while, but decided to give it another try in the past days, but I still see a lot of attacks on individuals and poking fun at individuals which I feel is not the intended purpose or representative of INA's guidelines. I am a paying member and feel that perhaps a separate Forum should be established to reduce the incidence of hurtful remarks. /infopop/emoticons/icon_frown.gif

[ATaurusJoker]

Yes Snoboy but the problem lies in the fact that being offended is objective.

If I were one of the people who had made fun of others in the forum than I may have been offended by your remark that people like us are ruining the forum.

Good and Evil are not objective. They exsist plain and simple. I don't get offened by murder. It is wrong plain and simple.

I am offended by people who are deliberately rude, unkind and inconsiderate of others--particularly toward those who can't defend themselves. The strong often prey on the weak. There are many things I dislike, some very strongly, whether because of religious beliefs or personal preferences, but none of them actually "offend" me. Being more sensitive than tradition says a man should be, I tend to be hurt by persoanl verbal attacks because of the way I grew up.

I agree that the word "offended" is overly used. I hear of people being "offended" by nudity. What is there about the natural state of the human body to offend anyone?

[missouriboy]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by gamblefish:
The words "I am offended" make me http://home.neo.rr.com/gamblefish/puke.gif <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>Hear! Hear!

I think too many people have confused "offended" with "insulted." Let's be sure of what we speak before we complain.

I perceive the current, PC, use of "offended" as a whine about another's action that was not even specifically directed toward the so-called "victim." Such as someone being "offended" by you, by your nudity, or some action, or whatever, when you aren't even aware of their existence. And such "victims" always whine to some third party instead of to the "offender," with the underlying intention of stirring up trouble. This is immature and childish.

An "insult" on the other hand is an offense directed specifically toward an intended victim, and this is what I bet many people are really referring to when they say "offended."

So, yes, the original poster is on the right track in saying the term has become overused. I say it is in fact being misused, in addition to overused.

You can't properly solve a problem until you first define it correctly. So if changes are made to this forum, I hope good consideration is given to the question, "Which actual problem does this change address?"

Just my 2-1/2 cents.

[shãybare]

I most definitly agree with you guys. It seems anytime someone disasrees with a person, that person is offended. Being offended has become a too common defense for too many people on the forum. What to do about it? I really don't know. Perhaps a good start has been made here on this thread to educate some of the "offender/offendees" to what real dialogue should be.

[ATaurusJoker]

Thanks for your posts everyone!!!!!

When someone uses the word "offended" my eyes glaze over (literally, its amazing!) The word means nothing to me.

Why you ask. Im sure some of you are thinking that people have the right to be offended and that Blah blah blah blah...

In High School I was called names everyday. I wasn't called a geek or a loser I was called a ***got. (Not sure if that word is appropriate for the forum but it is what I was called.) So when I read or hear that someone is offended just because a person has an opinion that...

A. Comes off as having a back bone

B. Dosen't fill itself full of fluffy buffer talk like "Now this is just my opinion and I have nothing against these people people because I respect people of all religions but I personally wouldn't choose, now this is just me of course, to suck the blood of people in hopes of becoming Immortal... these are just my opinions however. Remember I love everyone!" This talk makes me want to gag. (despite the fact that I have found myself doing it once or twice. I am working on getting rid of it.)

C. Criticizes someone for a specific kind of behavior. (For Example: I think that the band TOOL is stupid for using LSD)

I want to kick that person in the teeth. For all the crap that people deal with every day of every month of every year you think that the little dispute that "offended" you is a big deal??? Go to high school for a couple days and see what kind of hell that is. I don't think little sue or timmy who are being called Fat and having rocks thrown at them are too concerned about whether or not they are offended.

It bugs me that people get offended over little comments while people are called horrible names daily.

ATaurusJoker

P.S. For any who are wondering, this is only about 2 percent related to the recent issue with people being offended in the INA forums. I didn't even know about the issue until after the original post and have also read my fair share of ebrassive comments.

P.S.S No one will find the above comment offensive because its ok to make fun of people who do drugs.

[Jochanaan]

I'm with you! In fact, I started a similar thread a while ago, to mixed responses.

"I am offended" is a sure dialogue-stopper. And it seems that some people use those words for just that purpose. Maybe they can't prove their point logically or by experience...? Or maybe what they really mean is "I'm uncomfortable with such-and-such so you'd better not do so-and-so around me!" Arguments are good if based on logic or experience, and discomfort is legitimate, but "offendedness" seems merely a cover for wanting one's own way.

O ye who are offended, face the facts! Some things exist whether you are offended at them or not. Don't waste valuable energy being angry or "hurt."

[Rik]

There's a really good article about offensiveness as it relates to nudity at http://www.bodyfreedom.org/alliance/essays/offense.html .

Rik

[missouriboy]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by ATaurusJoker:
...Im sure some of you are thinking that people have the right to be offended and that Blah blah blah blah... <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>A fellow named Lewis Napper wrote a delicious piece I've mentioned before, part of which is appropriate here. I'll just include the Preamble and the subject Article for your enjoyment! /infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif

BILL of NO RIGHTS

We, the sensible of the United States, in an attempt to help everyone get along, restore some semblance of justice, avoid any more riots, keep our nation safe, promote positive behavior and secure the blessings of debt-free liberty to ourselves and our great-great-great-grandchildren, hereby try one more time to ordain and establish some common-sense guidelines for the terminally whiny, guilt-ridden, delusional, and other liberal, commie, pinko bedwetters. We hold these truths to be self-evident: that a whole lot of people were confused by the Bill of Rights and are so dim that they require a Bill of No Rights.

...

ARTICLE II. You do not have the right to never be offended. This country is based on freedom, and that means freedom for everyone -- not just you! You may leave the room, change the channel, express a different opinion, etc., but the world is full of idiots, and probably always will be.

...

There are ten articles in all, just like the original.

[CalgaryMark]

][/QUOTE]A fellow named Lewis Napper wrote a delicious piece I've mentioned before, part of which is appropriate here. I'll just include the Preamble and the subject Article for your enjoyment! /infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif

MO-boy, could you tell us where to find Napper's text, or post a link, please? - Tx - CalgaryMark.

[missouriboy]

I don't know if it's on the net or not. I copied it when someone posted it on a bulletin-board that is now defunct, and now all I have is a printed copy since I no longer have my old computer.

Tell ya what, though: should anyone create a new thread asking for it, I'd be happy to type the whole thing... when I find the time, of course.

[gamblefish]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by ATaurusJoker:
(For Example: I think that the band TOOL is stupid for using LSD)

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>OMG!!!! TOOL uses LSD?!?! Are you sure? Really? I knew it! Oh, no way man!! Drugs!? Oh, like, wow man...that explains why they sound so deep, ya know? Like, "why can't we not be sober...just want to start this over...". Yeah, now I get it...

[wifdog]

I agree with Jon-Marc I am in the same boat and its the way we were raised, I have a hard time getting close to others because of the problems of my youth so I stay to myself most of the time.

[Christian]

I read through a lot of the topics posted in this forum and I am AMAZED at how many people say they are offended by what someone else has written. There have certainly been comments posted that have made me cringe or think that someone was not quite with it but never was I offended. An offense occurs when things get personal. If someone calls you fat or ugly, it's ok to be offended. Other than that, it's just opinions and overly sensitive people who have trouble dealing on a human to human level with those opinions like to feign offense as an escape mechanism. Bottom line, if someone writes something with which you disagree, then hash it out until you come to a common ground and maybe, even if you still disagree, you won't be offended by it. :-) There's more but I will cut it short now. . .

[Trailscout]

Offending someone is against the law in some states.

If you go to the Naturist Action Committee Web site (http://www.nac.oshkosh.net/index.html) ,

then go to their page on state laws, you will see that if the law decides that your nudity was intended to "offend" people, you have commited a misdemenor or even a felony.

Some states are reasonable and interpret this to mean something like jumping naked out of the bushes and yelling something obscene to a young woman passing by.

Other states might take a harder tack and arrest you because some woman with binoculars saw you naked on the beach a half mile away and was offended by your nudity.

With this much up to interpretation, we really have some bad laws on the books that are just waiting to be abused by someone looking for an excuse to legally stop nudity.

Arkansas has literal restrictions against nudity or even advocating nudism. It's easy to target them, but other states are a lot more subtle about how they take our rights away.

[Raised_by_She-Wolf]

<font color="dark red">
[b]
Come now, folks! Every person needs to be offended by something at least once in their lifetime! Otherwise, the old farts at ACLU (Always Causing Legal Unrest) will be out of work!