The Rude Pundit ought to just steer clear of sexist/homophobic

[NuclearDem]

288. You clearly don't get it.

I actually like TRP. He's a hell of a talented writer. The earlier post there was just an example of how one can be rude and still avoid unnecessary hurtful words, not my true feelings about TRP at all.

Which is a big reason I'm so fucking furious over this. I've read his work, and he's so much better than this.

Example: Jamie Kilstein is one of my favorite comics ever. He's extremely funny, and equally passionate about progressive ideas. But several years ago, he had a bit about same sex adoption which was nothing but supportive of the community's right to adopt children. Unfortunately, his act used the word f****t in that specific context, and after a show, a young gay kid approached him and told him that, even though he loved the show, his using that word felt like a dagger in his heart.

For a while, Jamie was defensive about it, and refused to take that word out of the bit. He figured he was a good enough progressive that he could get away with using it in that context. But eventually he came to the realization that as a progressive, he's supposed to empathize with the people he purports to care about with his words, and realizing how painful that word was for so many gay kids in his audience, he did away with it.

And what do you know, the joke is still in there, and it's still funny--it just no longer uses the slur.

That's what I'm talking about. Words have power, and that power demands responsibility.