N/S--Flacco says Superbowl in cold weather is "********"
Wish granted.
Let's be afraid to use actual words in their real context because ignorant people have prescribed those words to be derogatory.
So, if you choose to say the word is hurtful, you're just as ignorant.
Case in point, if you want to use a word, think about it; stand behind your own thoughts and don't be a puppet on what others tell you to say and believe.
I don't recall Joe Flacco sitting in the press room staring at a mentally handicapped child and calling him "slow".
Which brings us back to the root problem. You're now putting words into people's mouths.
In the scientific community, the word "******" is used liberally for what it's main root definition is. Let's make sure we call any scientist or engineer we see daily that he's a bad person for using a stupid word.
If you are choosing to use "********" in a derogatory manner to express stupidity or something bad, then yes, you are ignorant. That's just my belief. Sorry if it hurts your feelings. Joe Flacco meant to say the Superbowl in a cold environment is a stupid idea. Instead, he used "********," which is ignorant of him. He recognized it immediately, and he apologized. Good for him. I'm not going to jump your bones if you misuse the word, but I will definitely be thinking in my head, "Okay, that guy is ignorant."
Also, I am a member of the scientific community. I have a degree in Biology from Loyola University, and my professors and I have had many conversations about down syndrome (especially in my genetics class), and never once have I heard them reference someone with the disorder as "********." If anything, they use "mentally handicapped" in place of "********." But no, the preferred method of discussion is "Down Syndrome" or "DS", so you are wrong.
Most importantly, it's not bad to use those words. You just have to use them in context. If you are referring to a mentally handicapped person, then you can call him "********." If you meaning to call someone stupid, and you decide to use the word "********" instead, then that's a problem. Same with the word "gay." There's no problem calling a homosexual "gay," but you should use it in a derogatory manner. For crying out loud, they refer to themselves as the "Gay and Lesbian Community."
I'm done preaching. I've said my peace. If you want to misuse the words, then that's your prerogative, but you are still wrong for doing so...