"Yes, I've actually heard (the c-word) used as a term of endearment."

[Fenris]

Oh, you guys are going to love this....

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/3419466/detail.html



DENVER -- The president of the University of Colorado would not say in a sworn deposition whether she considered a certain slur against women "vile," and later said she had heard it used as "a term of endearment," according to media reports.

CU President Elizabeth Hoffman (pictured, left) made the statement in a deposition for lawsuits filed by three women who allege they were sexually assaulted by football players and recruits who went to a party at one of the women's apartments in 2001, the reports indicated.

<SNIP>

When asked if it could ever be used in a polite context, Hoffman replied, "Yes, I've actually heard it used as a term of endearment."

University spokeswoman Michele Ames said Hoffman knows the current use of the word has "negative connotations" but in its original use, centuries ago, it was not a negative.

"Because she is a medieval scholar, she is also aware of the long history of the word dating back to at least Chaucer," Ames said. Geoffrey Chaucer, one of the earliest English writers, lived in the late 1300s and used the word in "The Canterbury Tales."

-------------

Oh, there's more, but I think you get the gist of it.

[meegbear]

1. Awwww, what a sweet ....

[arwalden]

2. Cute? Cuddly? Cear? Ceautiful? Carling? Cweetheart?

[boobooday]

3. Okay, but only if Chaucer calls me the C-word . . .

:wtf:

http://www.wgoeshome.com

[Fenris]

5. Now, in her defense (sort of),

There are parts of the world (the British Isles) where the word has morphed into a sort of swear word aimed toward males. Still, don't expect to hear it on the BBC.

Still, this woman is completely wrong. If someone at CU said it to a female, it wasn't a term of endearment.

[Loonman]

4. If the shoe fits

Oh, calm down, I'm kidding. :P

[Magrittes Pipe]

6. Well, for Chaucer, it was actually the Q-word.

[Richardo]

7. Eric Idle: "What a silly bunt."

"I can't say the letter 'B'."
"You mean 'c'."
"Yes."
"Well then, why don't you substitute the letter 'K' instead?"

[Book Lover]

8. Well, this medievalist

wouldn't be overpleased if the word was tossed at her, and I suspect Dr. Hoffman wouldn't care for it either.

I wish the story gave more info about the charges and circumstances and so on. This article makes it sound as if she were defending the accused, which may or may not have been her intention.

[Richardo]

10. It's the football team - and she's definitely on their side.

...from what little I know about the case.

[bluestateguy]

9. I use that word to describe Ann Coulter all the time

and I'll do it again too.

[Richardo]

11. Not as a term of endearment, I'll wager...

:scared:

[Fenris]

12. As much as I'd hate to say

She deserves it.