Topic

"Deadpan Dike"

Maybe there are other slurs/jabs/etc. in the game and I just haven't noticed them?

But this really rubs me the wrong way. (I am avoiding creating other potential names that you could use if you're going to take up this line of naming.)

Posted 16 months ago by clare Subscriber! | Permalink

Replies

  • @dopiaza -- Derivations, plural? Meaning that... the full etymology of the word isn't certain and it the two words may, in fact, have a relationship stronger than simply sounding similar? Such as one being derived from the other or both being derived from the same place?

    ETA: @Gitchy -- The thing is that is has been argued that they etymology may not, in fact, be 100% separate, though there is no way of knowing this. Maybe conclusions have changed since I red up on the words a few years ago but when I looked into it that was what I came across.
    Posted 16 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • And I would like to state, again, that this recent discussion spawns from the argumentative nature of a word I used as an analogous example but doesn't change the fact that it's not okay to just use random words that do have hateful meanings.

    Like the word faggot. Another word we can't be CERTAIN of the origin of WHEN IN THE CONTEXT OF BEING A PEJORATIVE TO GAY INDIVIDUALS. Some say that this is a reference to a bundle of sticks used to burn gay individuals during the crusades or whatnot. Others say otherwise. But it doesn't change the fact that it is a verbal assult when in the context of being, well, intended as a verbal assault.
    Posted 16 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • It's pretty well documented that the etymologies of both words are completely unrelated & it's purely a coincidence that they sound similar. (Wikipedia has oodles of links to support this, if you need hard proof.)

    You're totally right when you say, "...it is a verbal assult when in the context of being, well, intended as a verbal assault." When I was a kid, I used to call people "Pancreas" when I was mad. Obviously the denotation of the word is not an insult, but the context was a verbal assault. (It was pretty funny though.)

    Also, I think it's interesting that a discussion that started about a possibly homophobic slur evolved into one about a racist term. I know it was a very natural flow, but sometimes I feel like racism is an easier subject for people to talk about than homophobia. Agree/disagree?
    Posted 16 months ago by Gitchy Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I will have to agree to disagree with you about the etymology.

    As for racism vs. homophobia, in some ways I agree but in some ways, no. I think that racism has been so widely discussed and that society generally sways towards being "anti-racist," making it easier to discuss, whereas many more people seem hesitant to be "anti-homophobic." Though in some ways the two are equal, as they are both simply ways of saying "discrimination against a certain population of people."

    ETA: As a social worker, I have had to talk about both extensively, so maybe I'm simply more accustomed to doing so and just cofortable with it because of it. Also, being a victim of both, it may also be easier to speak about since I have had to experience both first-hand. Though some may argue it should be the opposite.
    Posted 16 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • With any word that has double meanings, it's the intention that matters. I don't think we should stop using words just because they might have some offensive meanings.

    I fully defend anyone's right to have a gay old time sniggering, enjoy a fag (it might kill them, but that's their choice) and then go home to enjoy a nice plate of faggots with chips and gravy.

    I will most likely slap them if they tried to shout abuse at anyone for whatever reason.

    Just saying.
    Posted 16 months ago by Saro Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Saro -- EXACTLY. +1 million. Which is why I said I don't find the use of the word "dike," especially because it's essentially a different word, offensive here.
    Posted 16 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • "I will have to agree to disagree with you about the etymology."

    I'm sorry, etymology is a matter of fact, not opinion. Please do cite additional facts though if you believe the etymology to be different. 
    Posted 16 months ago by dopiaza Subscriber! | Permalink
  • +1 Saro.

    And I really like how you worded your thoughts on racism vs. homophobia, Cerulean. 
    Posted 16 months ago by Gitchy Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I think it's because, Gitchy, the lines on racist slurs/dialogue are more clearly defined for most people than they may be for homophobic slurs. I would think that a street name including the n-word, or something phonetically similar, would be judged by most players as inappropriate, regardless of the extent to which the word has been reclaimed by some communities. The reaction, however, has clearly been different for 'dike,' even though my personal reaction to it is the same.

    Again, as I said in my first post, I'm sure that there was no offensive intent behind the name and that's why I'm not upset about it, and why I won't be upset if it's not changed. But I think it's important for people to think about things like this, and to discuss them in a rational and civil manner. The thing that has bothered me most about all of this are the people coming out to squash the thread by accusing others of being "too PC." If you're not interested in the topic, click on through. But telling people that they should shut up about something they find offensive because *you* aren't offended is just, well, silly.

    Forgot this: "I know this is a controversial thing to say, but I also don't believe that being homosexual necessarily gives anyone more of a right to voice their opinion than being heterosexual. That's discrimination. " Nope, I believe that everyone has the right to voice their opinion all the time, and most of the time they have a *responsibility* to do so. It might be someone's opinion that I shouldn't be offended by the use of the word "dyke," because some people call themselves and their friends dykes. But that doesn't mean that I won't be offended, or that I don't have the right to be offended, or that it's okay for someone to call me a dyke because they don't think it's a slur.
    Posted 16 months ago by Tally Subscriber! | Permalink
  • As with all artworks, the connotation of a word in some cases is not necessarily relevant.  If I call my friend a dyke, she may not care.  If I call someone -- even her -- a dyke in anger, this is a different application of the word.  Similarly, if I use the word fag as a substitution for cigarette in a poem because it suits the meter, even though I am American, and such usage is not normal for me, and the poem is for some reason taught to a literature class, would it be terribly relevant that there is another meaning?  It would, if the sentence itself were a double-entendre.  If it were not, then you would simply be reading imagined things into art, as people do all the time -- it is the primary basis for banned artworks.  If you honestly think that Tiny Speck is trying to be offensive, then be offended.  If you honestly think I am trying to be offensive by making a simple point, be offended.  Do not, however, expect anyone to take you seriously.  If there were any other evidence that TS were having fun at your expense, I would perhaps see it differently...
    Posted 16 months ago by FlirtyvonSexenhaven Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm just adding a data point, fwiw. I'm a lesbian who abhors the term "dyke," and Deadpan Dike didn't trigger anything for me besides wondering if there was a visible or interactive water feature in the street. If there were a y in it, I'd be really pissed off. But there isn't.
    Posted 16 months ago by Gloopy Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Dopiaza, you clearly aren't understanding what I am saying, and I'm not going to bother trying to argue with someone who tries to derail me with accusing me of things that aren't even occuring.

    @Gloopy -- It triggered a gutteral reaction for me for about a second but then I relaized what it really meant, haha. And I actually looked for a water feature, too! I couldn't help but wonder why it had that name if there wasn't going to be at least some sort of moat... or puddles. :p
    Posted 16 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Speaking of etymology, Cerulean, I'd like to hear your "guttural reaction"! Or do you mean just "gut"?

    /kinda off topic
    Posted 16 months ago by Saro Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Cerulean - I believe you were suggesting that you felt there was a reasonable probability that 'nigger' and 'niggardly' shared a common derivation, despite the apparent evidence to the contrary. On re-reading, I still think that's what you were saying. I am interested in language and how we use it, however I do agree that it's not worth arguing about that further here. Ignoring our etymological disagreements, you do make many perfectly good points and I don't wish to detract from those.
    Posted 16 months ago by dopiaza Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Lol, Saro, "gutteral" is something I hear (and use) often colloquially as a psychotherapist, and it does refer to our "gut instinct." :)

    Dopiaza, I appreciate that. What I was intending to say was that I did have a different understanding of the etymology of the word, though when I last researched the words, there still seemed to be some professional opinion that the two words were related, though that wasn't the consensus. Back when I was looking into the use of the word, I was actually practicing journalism, myself, and had been fact-checking with sources that, AT THE TIME, I thought were accurate. I had been taught very strictly to fact check and only publish the truth that I had this fallacy that all publications stuck to the same standard. It wasn't until recently that I realized that journalism is a lot dirtier than that (even at the Times papers). It's apparent to me now that the sources I had initially utilized, though trusted at the time, were skewing what was actually going on and therefore skewing my perception of the word, haha. Up until this point it really had been my understanding that, professionally, the two words were more linked than what I have been told about their etymology in this thread today. But again, if in the future this argument were to come up and I were to say "MY SOURCE IS A THREAD FROM GLITCH," that clearly would not be enough and I may need to go do further research instead of relying on what's been said here today.

    Wow, sorry for the tl;dr-ness of it all...
    Posted 16 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • (still off topic) "Guttural" means "to do with the throat". "Gutteral" isn't a word. I'm pretty sure it's just a commonplace-but-still-wrong usage!

    If I were to say "guttural reaction", I would mean that I saw something and I purred.

    Purrrr... =^_^=

    (/end off topic)
    Posted 16 months ago by Saro Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Saro -- LOL, I know, but mental health professionals usually have lots of words that aren't widely recognized as "real words." In fact, "antipathy" is another word that some of us use a lot but, from what I know, isn't in the more "official" dictionaries. :p
    Posted 16 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Cerulean "antipathy" is Dictionary.com-able. Unless you're using a different meaning? :)

    Disclaimer: I don't claim to be good at English, only good at Googling.
    Posted 16 months ago by Saro Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Saro -- I know, that's one of the ways I justify using it. But I don't believe it's in Oxford or MW. And all of my spell-check failsafes underline it whenever I use it, lmao.
    Posted 16 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Antipathy is a perfectly good word. It's in my Concise Oxford :-)
    Posted 16 months ago by dopiaza Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Is it?! Good. Then Firefox and MS Word need to get their act together, lol.

    I know we have other words that are much more colloquial than official in this profession, but I just can't remember them right now. :p Well, one is countertransference. But sometimes I see that hyphenated in a way that doesn't set off any red-flags, haha.
    Posted 16 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Fag in British English is used every day by tens of thousands of people to have a cigarette I am not going to change the way I use the word sorry people, and wank is something I do from time to time..
    Posted 16 months ago by Phochai Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Or maybe you just made a mistake, geez... 
    Posted 16 months ago by FlirtyvonSexenhaven Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Maybe they could just change it to Deadpan Ditch, and then we wouldn't have to argue about this anymore. 
    Posted 16 months ago by glum pudding Subscriber! | Permalink
  • since feeling is first
    who pays any attention
    to the syntax of things
    will never wholly kiss you;

    I love that bit of poem (read the whole thing here). And I always think of it when people get caught up in the exactitudes of anything. 

    This doesn't add to the discussion. Just what popped into my mind.

    ----

    Meanwhile, here in San Luis Obispo, CA, where I live, we have a lingerie shop called Fanny Wrappers. Any Brit who's ever visited me has demanded their photo to be taken outside the store, pointing up to the sign.

    The word fanny is pretty meaningless to me, but I know it is extremely offensive to others (can that really be true? It's so funny.)

    Another aside, Flickr. The word flicker is a very mean-spirited derogatory word for a gay man in Dutch. I remember many Dutch people writing in to Flickr about how offensive the name was.

    I wonder if the real issue is simply the word Deadpan in front of the word Dike. Would it have been less offensive with a different combination?
    Posted 16 months ago by emdot Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I think that's the case, emdot. "Deadpan" is a human characteristic, which makes it sound more like a pun than a different word might. Like I said previously, I don't think something like "Diggory Dike" would ring nearly as many warning bells.
    Posted 16 months ago by Tally Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm Roma (not Romanian, Romani), and "gypsy" is a pejorative to us... even when (or, especially when) it's intended as some sort of romanticized stereotype. I've seen more than one person here with that as part of their name (and typically, actual Roma wouldn't use it to describe themselves, even to each other). All I can do is disregard them and realize they have no idea why others might find it offensive to refer to oneself as "PurpleGypsy" or whatever.
    I don't know that it's reasonable to expect that everyone know what offends everyone else. I doubt most people are intentionally offending people (and Glitch itself surely isn't).
    Posted 16 months ago by Djabriil Subscriber! | Permalink
  • They probably aren't, Djabriil.  I knew 'gypsy' was a loaded word but I've heard varying opinions on exactly how offensive it is. It's hard to gauge for me, especially in English since I've had zero contact with Romani in the English world.  I try to be careful with it, but just by googling I see a lot of Romani organisations use it! 

    Would you mind telling me why it can be offensive? (I am not contesting that it can, I'm just trying to understand the reasons) Is it because of that romanticised and yet often pejorative stereotype, or is it because it bundles a whole diverse society into what is essentially a storybook character, or...? 
    Posted 16 months ago by Cefeida Subscriber! | Permalink
  • (edited - I am not feeling rational enough about this conversation to want to go down as having participated.)
    Posted 16 months ago by Kipple Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Gloopy, that's what struck me about Deadpan Dike as well... no water.  It's in the middle of a plain.  Although with this game, who knows what it is holding back. Maybe there will be a look into the past where the dike has significance.

    As for excising the word "dike" from its original use for a kind of earthen embankment due to the fact that it's used an insult, well, you know, I think that's sort of like giving in.  We're surrendering a perfectly word to only be used by those who would use it in a pejorative fashion.  It'd be as if the word "chicken" became synonymous with "coward" and we had to come up with a different word to refer to "those birds we squeeze for grain".
    Posted 16 months ago by Blitz Subscriber! | Permalink
  • People are way too sensitive, when are we going to stop letting politically correct ruin everything?
    Posted 16 months ago by Gordon Gekko Subscriber! | Permalink
  • As far as I can see, Bane, nothing in this thread has ruined anything for anybody. 
    Posted 16 months ago by WindBorn Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I think its ridiculous that this thread even exists. This is a game, it caters to a large range of people. As adults it is often expected we have the maturity many different themes. This is a very diverse environment. when we are associating with a large range of people we need to be mindful that we may not always agree with the way a theme is presented. What becomes offensive to one is funny to another and should be more loosely taken in this community. 

    It is designed to cater to a large range of people with varying interests. It becomes counter-productive to police every avenue about something that could potentially offend someone. In the large scheme of things people need to learn to be more easy going and shouldn't expect special treatment because something could potentially offend someone. Complaining about every little creative slur is a bit immature and draws way too much unneeded attention. We all have a choice to be offended and it is the over-dramatic reactions that are becoming a nuisance around these forums.
    Posted 16 months ago by Gordon Gekko Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I don't think it's ridiculous at all that someone expresses theuir feelings. No one's feelings are invalid. Just because you may not agree, that does not mean that it is ludicrous that someone feels this way. Also, telling people to take things more loosely is hypocritical if you're upset that they're telling you to take things more seriously. It is also not immature to try to utilize every opportunity to have a discussion about things that may be potentially harmful to others. The only people this is counter-productive to are those that want to uphold a status quo in which certain individuals aren't being treated equally. As for "We all have a choice to be offended and it is the over-dramatic reactions that are becoming a nuisance around these forums," we also have a choice to not be offended by people being offended. Just a thought. Oh, also, it's not over-dramatic to react to things that trigger feelings of times when we have been treated poorly solely for who we are. I don't know if you've ever experienced discrimination from people that may include your own mother (you know, as I have for being a gay man), but it's certainly not fun and it very legitimately makes me sensitive to even the slightest jab at QUILTBAG individuals.

    And I'm saying this as someone who also has a different viewpoint than the OP. Not a viewpoint that is any more or less valid, but one that is different.
    Posted 16 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Also, as mentioned before, politically correct is simply another way of saying "when are people going to stop trampling all over my first ammendment right to be an ass and say prejudiced things to others?!" You still have that right. It's just that a lot of us have the right to say stuff back (not offensively, but to say "hey, that's not cool"). Sorry if it bothers you that we want to be treated equally.
    Posted 16 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Well said, Cerulean.
    Posted 16 months ago by Mahkia Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Long ways up this thread, I read: 
    "For instance, would you go around wearing a swastika because it actually means good luck?"

    As an Indian, I would. In fact, I believe many Indians who live outside of India paint the swastika on the front porch of their house. I know my family friends do. It was a big point of contention between me and my friends that history has chosen to misuse the word Swastika for the NAZI symbol that is most definitely different from the Indian religious one. 

    Extrapolating from this case, I believe I agree with Gitchy. Perhaps it's a far too progressive a view, a naive view, but words indeed do have the meaning we give them. If one of the discriminated groups takes offence, then that needs to be dealt with between individuals. If they cannot coexist peacefully, there are plenty of places where they can live without seeing each other's faces for the rest of their lives. Until the day when people come to truly respect one another and are not using these terms in a derogatory manner, these are the valid choices I see. Manners or politeness don't enter into it. 

    On the other hand, I do see where I would personally never use the n-word. Or faggot. These are idiosyncracies that keep me from living that kumbhaya ideal I profess. I suspect this is because my life experience as a 20 year old has only seen their use in negative terms. I honestly can't say what the solution is except to maintain optimism that the person using the word is doing so without any cruel intent, alongside a skepticism to objectively evaluate in what way the person is using the term. 

    My two cents anyways.  
    Posted 16 months ago by Sharapu Subscriber! | Permalink
  • :) Cerulean

    Bane, I also speak as someone who doesn't think the street name is offensive, but I really disagree with what you said about this reaction being over-dramatic. You can't please all of the people all of the time, but it's not really surprising that some subjects will be more sensitive than others. As adults and (I presume) Nice People, we have to try and be careful around those subjects.

    To you, it's clearly 'a little thing' which does not need to be paid attention to. To me, even though I disagree with the original poster, it's an opinion worth listening to and considering. Why? Well, because of the context. And the context is that non-hetero people do get a lot of crap thrown at them. They routinely suffer from discrimination which is sometimes completely unintentional- it just happens because the majority of the world is hetero, and they can't be expected to be aware of every detail that simply doesn't concern them, and never will concern them. So they go on quite happily, not even realising that a tiny change in their attitude could result in a significant change in a non-hetero person's well-being.

    That's why it's not ridiculous for someone to speak up when they feel something is hurtful. Speaking up is giving others the chance to see something from our perspective.
    Posted 16 months ago by Cefeida Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Cefeida, you are a breath of rational, cool, common sense.

    +Pi.
    Posted 16 months ago by jasbo Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm jumping into this a bit late, but I enjoy etymology so here's a more complete explanation of the word's origin:

    Old English (i.e., the language spoken in England up to around the year 1000 that was the basis for the language we speak today) had a word "dic" which meant something like a trench, but which could also mean a mound (perhaps the earth piled up from digging?) or a dam. There are similar words in languages related to English, like Dutch (dijk), Icelandic (dik), Swedish (dike) that have similar meanings. There's also a German word "teich" that means a pond.

    It's important to remember that most people back then weren't literate, so words developed according to their sound. The original word "dic" was pronounced "dich" by some people and "dik" by others, and the vowel in "dik" evolved into "dyk" and then "dyke" or "dike" - we use both spellings today. But all of these words across all languages still share the same characteristics - they refer to a hole in the ground, or a pond that's left when the hole is filled with water, or the earth wall of  a dam, or a long stretch of raised ground that looks like this earth wall. In geology it means a crevice filled with a different material, just like a dike is a hole filled with water.

    Now, how did the slang term for lesbians develop? The Oxford English Dictionary is unsure but *I* think it comes from a slang term for being well dressed - "diked up", probably from the older word "deck" (as in "deck the halls with boughs of holly). Lesbians in old books and movies are often depicted (rightly or wrongly for the period, I have no idea) as women wearing men's clothes. So they're women who were "diked up", and they eventually became known as "dikes" or "dykes", with the latter spelling probably influenced by the term for a ditch that I discussed earlier.

    Anyway, here's my two cents. It doesn't really matter what the etymology of a word is, if it offends people. But in this case the word "dyke" or "dike" is really important in geography and geology, it's used all the time, and it's important not to let people get the idea that it's even a little bit offensive in those contexts. There really isn't a good substitute for it, and it would be silly to be forced to say things like "the long earthen retaining wall built to keep out a flood".
    Posted 16 months ago by Tanga Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Is there any chance we can just kill this thread? Clare was perfectly within her rights to say she was a bit perturbed by the use of 'dike', but I think it's been fairly conclusively shown and agreed that using it is not offensive, nor meant to be.

    Now it's just spun off into back and forths about each other's grasp of language - and to be honest you can't ever really legislate for someone misunderstanding words entirely, giving new and incorrect meanings to existing words or confusing one offensive word with another inoffensive one.

    Can't we just leave it be and get on with proper game stuff?
    Posted 16 months ago by wurzel Subscriber! | Permalink
  • (by which I mean: I don't want to niggle, but I have a real antipathy for these never-ending threads about offence when there's much more fun to be had elsewhere)
    Posted 16 months ago by wurzel Subscriber! | Permalink
  • The wikipedia entry on the word has some interesting notes on the etymology too, though there's no clear-cut explanation. Definitely worth reading if you're interested in that sort of thing.

    I don't think that anyone here is arguing that the word "dike" should never ever be used, even when referring to the geographical feature. I certainly haven't argued that. But I *do* think that in a game where many names are double entendres, it's worth considering that using 'dike' in a street name may have unintended connotations that could offend some players. 

    Edit: wurzel, with all due respect, I think that the only time a thread needs to be "killed" is when it's devolved into unproductive name-calling and nothing else is going to be accomplished. I think this thread overall has been remarkably civil, and I've found it very interesting. If you don't think it's interesting, don't read it. Then it won't get in the way of your 'proper game stuff' at all!
    Posted 16 months ago by Tally Subscriber! | Permalink
  • personally i had no problem with the name, and don't think it was meant as a slur or a jab, and can totally see why glitch staff named something that way..

    because really, they've gone through pretty much every other geological and geographical term while naming streets, it was only a matter of time before they used "dike".

    but c'mon .. attributing a legitimate concern to some sort of "PC Oversensitivity" is unfair.

    the combination of "Dike" with "Deadpan" is the issue. Deadpan describes a person, not geography, and increases the perception of "Dike" referring to a person.. Deadpan could also have a negative connotation when combined with a term for a gay female .. playing up the glib stereotype of the overly serious, grumpy lesbian.

    in combination, i can see how someone would take offense to Deadpan Dike.

    i'm up in the air about whether it should be changed though. it's sorta vaguely offensive but not really but maybe it is but who knows really. it could be referring to a lesbian or not. it could be attempting to evoke the image of a stereotypically serious lesbian or it could be evoking the image of a lesbian with excellent comedic delivery.

    it's a tricky one. i don't think it is conclusively anything.
    Posted 16 months ago by striatic Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Sooooo, are we asking for the street to have its name changed or not? Tiny Speck may have had a similar discussion when naming the street and may be ok with it, but as the game goes live TONS of other people will play and some may feel the same as Clare. The bottom line is that at first glance it could incite hurt.

    We don't want people to push their sensitivities on us, but we cannot force our world view onto them either. This is not the way of mutual respect. With such a stirring street name, you have to imagine that this exact same thread will bubble up again once the game goes live. I motion we nickname it "Controversial Canyon" and give +100 XP to everyone who contributed to this thread.
    Posted 16 months ago by Spellbound Subscriber! | Permalink
  • i'll admit that after reading the OP and sort of cluing into the wordplay my first thought was of Ellen Degeneres, who is up there with the likes of Bob Newhart with her ability to deliver comedy through understatement.

    though i'm not sure the term would be particularly complimentary if applied to her in this context.
    Posted 16 months ago by striatic Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Agree that in combination with the word "deadpan", the word "dike" is personified and a deeper stir for an emotional response.
    Posted 16 months ago by Spellbound Subscriber! | Permalink
  • +2 Spellbound.
    Posted 16 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I don't even have the mind power to read all of this probably very interesting discussion about word roots and etc.

    I just however saw that more than one person wanted "the affected party's" opinion, so I wanted to say that as a human being with female genitals, who dated another human being with female genitals, thus temporarily at least fitting the derogative term "dyke" (before moving into a zone of ambiguous definition), and having been called such in an unfriendly way at least a dozen times, I personally do not take offense at the name.

    I honestly don't believe that it was meant to be harmful. Even if it was intended to be an insult (which I doubt), it is such an ineffective one that I can't even begin to be offended by it.
    Deadpan is not an insult, it is the act of remaining expressionless, often used whilst telling a joke.
    Posted 16 months ago by Biohazard Subscriber! | Permalink
  • +1 BioHazard

    I'm sure I could find all kinds of things to be hurt by in this game, if I twisted things in ways they were never meant to be twisted.
    Posted 16 months ago by NutMeg Botwin Subscriber! | Permalink