Reply #116: to be perfectly honest

[ant]

I do not support banning the word. I see both sides but personally feel it's better to address the issue as it comes up individually rather than issue an outright ban. I think that in that way you can change the attitudes reflected in the word, rather than driving them underground.

HOWEVER, after reading these threads and seeing how the women who support the ban are being treated, the level of sexism on this board is ASTOUNDING to me. I don't post that often and have only occassionally witnessed this, but not so much that I thought it was an epidemic.

It's really quite sad to see so-called progressives behaving this way on women's issue. There's just no respect or even an attempt to understand why the women who object would object. There's just no consideration for the idea that, whether you agree or not, you are offending someone who is supposed to be part of your struggle. You are hurting her. And it's not just indifference, either, it's outright derision and a belittling of concerns.

The word bitch doesn't offend me all that much, but the behavior I've seen in these threads certainly does.