On Ed And The Word "Slut"

[MrScorpio]

I know that some people think that Ed shouldn't have needed to make amends for calling that reprehensible jerk, Laura Ingraham a "Slut". And it's understandable that these same people think that Ingraham deserves to be called that name, because she pretty much is doing her shitty schtick for nothing more than the Almighty Dollar.

However, I feel that Ed fucked up. I really do.

Now personally, about that word "slut"; I would ONLY use that word as a compliment for someone that I liked and who ONLY takes it in the complimentary spirit in which it is given. I never use it like it's a bad thing or an insult… I love sluts too much to use that kind misogynistic language. The same works for other words as well (You know which ones I mean, wink-wink)… That's just the way good friends and lovers talk to each other from time to time.

Ed, on the other hand, wasn't playing verbal banter with a good buddy when he used the word in the worst way possible against that asshole, Ingraham. It was used in a way to insult women in general, including fucking Right Wing nimrods, like Ms Laura.

Of course, a windbag like Ingraham needs to be called out, after all, she's a fucking heartless pimple on the ass of humanity, but attacking her gender by calling her a "slut" is just plain wrong.

I know that Ed wanted to call her a "talk slut" in an angry act of revenge, but the fact is that he wasn't thinking when he said it. We need to call our own on the carpet when these sorts of lapses in judgment happen. It's only the right thing to do.

If anything, Laura Ingraham's gender, even if she's definitely a crappy mouthed fuckwad of the first order, should be respected. Insulting her gender, even when you're telling her to go eat shit and die, is just poor form.

As I mentioned before, Ed fucked up. He just needs to take his lumps and move on. The next time he wants to call that hard-hearted shit-stain, Laura Ingraham, a name he should be careful NOT to use misogynistic language.

I'm absolutely positive that all my good slut friends would agree with me here.

[leftstreet]

1. Why was he talking about this Ingraham woman?

I haven't heard anyone say why he was going after her

:shrug:

[MrScorpio]

4. Who needs a reason?

Why should anyone with a lick of sense not be going after her at any given time?

That bastard, Ingraham, should be at the top of everyone's Hit Parade.

[leftstreet]

7. A whole lot of people out there don't even know who she is

..or who Ed is for that matter

It's just odd that whatever deeds she's done have gotten lost in the word controversy

[MrScorpio]

11. Well , Ed knows who that turd-sucking dingleberry, Ingraham, is...

And so do I… It's knowledge that comes from paying attention to the political sphere.

The woman is worthy of as much derision that can be heaped upon her.

However, I feel that her gender should be left out of the equation.

[Anakin Skywalker]

27. She is evil. That's enough reason! LOL

[MrScorpio]

28. May The Force Be With You nt

[DainBramaged]

2. Nope

No apologies, we have to stop checking our feelings at the door dealing with the Right....just think, Barack the Magic Negro, and we should be nice to these scumbags?


Another 40 years of Republican rule up next....we've given up

[hlthe2b]

6. well, I don't know that it has worked to adopt their tactics...

Maybe it is time to try Gandhi's "Be the change you wish to see in the world" :shrug:

[DainBramaged]

8. We have never adopted their tactics and what has it gotten us?

A merit badge for taking the hight road?

[hlthe2b]

10. Use of that slur is like using the "n" word

Please see my post down below on the Magdalene Asylums and perhaps it will make more sense to you.

[DainBramaged]

12. No, I'm not going to change my mind over what has happened here

DU's collective hair caught on fire. Instead of simply waiting for Ed to think about what he said and apologize, many many many here called for his head.


Instead of letting the issue take it's natural course, a firestorm broke out here, and who won?


Who won?


I might as well post cat pictures on Facebook, we will never fight the Right on level ground, we will always concede to them because WE take the high road while they win elections.


PS if you compare the word "slut" to the "N" word, I think my time here commenting is over. NOTHING compares to that, nothing.

[hlthe2b]

13. what happened here? we were all reacting to what happened

before our eyes. Before any of us even knew what happened, he was on tv apologizing and announcing his suspension. None of that happened because WE demanded it? As I said before, i think a week's suspension is an overreaction, but that doesn't mean I don't think he was wrong to use the term. A simple, exceedingly brief apology on his radio show, should have sufficed, though, IMO.

[rainlillie]

21. You are wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy off base here. Calling someone a slut

is not equal to calling someone the n-word.

[hlthe2b]

23. Educate yourself...

BBC Radio did a nice piece on the history of these "laundries" where women deemed to be "sluts" were basically enslaved through their lives to hard labor doing laundry or mass producing clothing. Knowing this history, perhaps some of the men here can understand why the use of "slut" or other gender-based slurs is every bit as offensive as the "N" word is to African Americans.These victims have tried repeatedly to appeal for redress or even an official apology and been rebuffed. It was not merely an Irish thing, either. A BBC documentary about these poor women was made in 2003 and is still available. These women were enslaved.

Magdalene asylum (Madalene Laundry)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magdalene_asylum
Magdalene Laundry in Ireland, c. early 20th century

Magdalene asylums were institutions for so-called "fallen women". Asylums for "fallen women" operated throughout Europe, Britain, Ireland, Canada and the United States for much of the nineteenth and well into the twentieth century. The first asylum in Ireland opened on Leeson Street in Dublin in 1767, founded by Lady Arabella Denny. In Belfast there was a Church of Ireland run Ulster Magdalene Asylum (founded in 1839) on Donegall Pass, while parallel institutions were run by Catholics on Ormeau Road and Presbyterians on Whitehall Parade.<1>

Initially the mission of the asylums was often to rehabilitate women back into society, but by the early twentieth century the homes had become increasingly punitive and prison like (at least in Ireland and Scotland). In most asylums, the inmates were required to undertake hard physical labour, including laundry and needle work. They also endured a daily regime that included long periods of prayer and enforced silence. In Ireland, such asylums were known as Magdalene laundries. It has been estimated that up to 30,000 women passed through such laundries in Ireland.<2> The last Magdalene asylum in the Republic of Ireland closed on September 25, 1996.

****************
The Magdalene Sisters
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Magdalene_Sisters
The Magdalene Sisters

The Magdalene Sisters is a 2002 film written and directed by Peter Mullan about teenage girls who were sent to Magdalene Asylums, otherwise known as the 'Magdalene Laundries': homes for women who were labeled as "fallen" by their families or society (though the film questions this). The homes were maintained by individual religious orders in the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland.

Peter Mullan has remarked that the film was initially made because victims of Magdalene Asylums had received no closure in the form of recognition, compensation, or apology, and many remained lifelong devout Catholics.<2> Former Magdalen inmate Mary-Jo McDonagh told Mullan that the reality of the Magdalene Asylums was much worse than depicted in the film.<3>

[rainlillie]

24. Life has educated me. Not some lame article. I know

How about we do a poll and ask African Americans if they feel both words are equal.

[emilyg]

25. How about we do a poll

and ask women.

[rainlillie]

26. You do relaize that

the word "slut" applies to women from every race. When folks use the n-word, they're usually talking about one particular race. If we were talking about calling a woman the c-word, I might consider your point. To me that's the most vile name you can call a woman. I like your idea for a poll. It will be interesting to see the results.

[rainlillie]

22. ITA!

[hlthe2b]

3. Thoughtful discussion....

;)

[Name removed]

5. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[hlthe2b]

9. there was a piece on BBC radio tonight on the religious "laundries"

where women deemed to be "sluts" due to having out of wedlock children or what the men of society and the church (both Protestant and Catholic) deemed lewd behavior. These women were basically turned into slaves for their entire lives forced to scrub clothes by hand or mass produce clothing in institutions now known as Magdalene Asylums. They were literally slaves since no payment was received and they were not free to leave. A long history of using women's sexuality as a reason to control them.

Can you not see why the term "slut" has such an abhorrent meaning for women--on the same level as the "n" word for African Americans?


Here is a bit of background on these horrible insitutions:
Magdalene asylums were institutions for so-called "fallen women". Asylums for "fallen women" operated throughout Europe, Britain, Ireland, Canada and the United States for much of the nineteenth and well into the twentieth century. The first asylum in Ireland opened on Leeson Street in Dublin in 1767, founded by Lady Arabella Denny. In Belfast there was a Church of Ireland run Ulster Magdalene Asylum (founded in 1839) on Donegall Pass, while parallel institutions were run by Catholics on Ormeau Road and Presbyterians on Whitehall Parade.<1>

Initially the mission of the asylums was often to rehabilitate women back into society, but by the early twentieth century the homes had become increasingly punitive and prison like (at least in Ireland and Scotland). In most asylums, the inmates were required to undertake hard physical labour, including laundry and needle work. They also endured a daily regime that included long periods of prayer and enforced silence. In Ireland, such asylums were known as Magdalene laundries. It has been estimated that up to 30,000 women passed through such laundries in Ireland.<2> The last Magdalene asylum in the Republic of Ireland closed on September 25, 1996. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magdalene_asylum

[liberalmike27]

15. You know

If we could expect equal treatment from the right, it'd be one thing. But apparently they can call democratic women whores, sluts, bitches, whatever, and they never get fired.

I'm so tired of Democrats being "fair." "Oh we've got to be good, we can't stoop to their level." In other words we just keep on losing, and losing, and losing. And Ed, why volunteer for a suspension. Apologize if you're going to do it once, then let it go.

This is just like Keith, he's got one foot out the door. They'll wait a couple of months and he'll be out. Last night they put stupid-a**ed tornado coverage on all night. Did Comcast forget that they had a channel that everyone with MSNBC has, called The Weather Channel. If I wanted some idiot driving around in a pickup through a tornado, trying to get himself, perhaps others killed, I'd be watching TWC, not MSNBC. So they are doing everything they can to get them off the air, without jus firing them all.

Personally I think he just meant it like ahole, or dumbass, or any other group of words. Maybe he should be more classy, but emotions come into play. I'm keyed up like crazy tonight, about everything, about how they get to lie endlessly on their channels, they can say anything, but one little slight by the left, and they go crazy. Tensions are high--I can forgive they guy. And the right is never fair, FOX isn't going to fire anyone unless they act like an idiot for a year or two (see Glen Beck). So why are we so unfairly treated on our side??

[hlthe2b]

16. I undersstand the frustration...

As I have said elsewhere, I think Ed was wrong to use that term, but the reaction to it--the one week suspension-- all of that is an overreaction by MSNBC management.

[Hannah Bell]

19. +100. but arguing over words = good distraction from the real issue.

[cascadiance]

14. Cindy Sheehan should speak up and try to provoke Glen Beck now...

... to see if she get him to call her a "tragedy slut" or a "tragedy pimp" again. Then we should all get behind her and DEMAND that Beck match what Ed did and leave Fox Network early. He's going to get his own network soon anyway and copy what Oprah's done. Why can't he copy Ed in being a civil human being?

[Hannah Bell]

17. "slut...doing her shitty schtick for nothing more than the money" = wrong word.

"slut" = for the love
"whore" = for the money

[MrScorpio]

20. You are quite correct

Thanks for the clarification.

I should have said that she's doing her shitty schtick out of her pure enjoyment of servicing the wrinkled members of the Right Wing Elites.

Getting well paid for her actions is an entirely different matter.

[DemoTex]

18. I just heard Ed's apology and I thought it was for a much worse transgression.

In my mind I pictured him calling her a c*nt. He was so contrite. Although "slut" is a bad slur, it is one I really don't understand. Like Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart's comments on porn ("I know it when I see it"), I "feel" that the term "slut" is bad. But what exactly does it mean and what is the etymology of the word? Is it an acronym?

Strange tales from strange times, to steal from Dr. H.S. Thompson.