An "N-word" for us Dems

[ochazuke]

There's the word "Democrat", which is a perfectly good word. Then there's the word "Democratic", which is also a perfectly good word. But, they must be used properly. The Republicans (not a very nice word), especially the radical right among them, refuse to use the word "Democratic". It's always "Democrat" with them.

And when they mis-use that word, it hits me like a racial slur.

Examples:

The Democrat party
The Democrat compulsion

Where did this deliberate mis-use get started? Was it originally a corruption in some grammatical backwater?

[Spiffarino]

1. Probably Grover Norquist

He's always playing linguistic games when creating right-wing talking points. It's his evil genius at work.

We need think-tanks like that, ones that are adept at putting RWs on the defensive. I hate them like hell because they do nothing to promote good ideals, but it's do that or disappear into oblivion at this point.

[Racenut20]

2. I remember when Dole started using it.

[TOhioLiberal]

3. Rush Pusbag uses it...

makes me grit my teeth. :grr:

[NinetySix]

4. Newt Gingrich

Among others in a long list of words to use and not to use, Gingrich counselled Republicans not to use the egalitarian-sounding "Democratic" because it had a positive connotation, but to use "Democrat" as an adjective because it sounded more curt. It does sound like a slur when used as an adjective, as in Bob Dole's 1976 nomination-losing utterance of the phrase "Democrat wars" in describing the 20th century as the history of aggression by the Democrat(ic) Party.

[Kenneth ken]

5. ALWAYS

tell people who use "Democrat" where the correct usage would be "Democratic" that they are too ignorant for you to consider any of their opinions. "In a nation with two major political parties, you can not correctly identify both. How can I possibly think you informed enough on more substantive issues to offer a worthwhile opinion?"

[Name removed]

6. Deleted message

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

[sadiesworld]

7. You aren't even trying...

Why bother?

[mitchum]

8. Waiting to see your profile change

I don't think I will be waiting long

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

9. Better than a few extremist asshat knuckledraggers who use books

to wipe their ass with..

[Cleita]

10. It's grammatically incorrect, and the current "slash and burn

the English language" Republican leadership seems to like sounding ignorant because they think it's a common touch. To me democratic is usually an adjective, and democrat is a noun. They use the noun as an adjective. They think it's a slur, but I'll bet the term got started in the south somewhere with a politican who made the error and no one wanted to show him up so it became common usage in that club. Could it have been Strom Thurmond, or Jesse Helms? How about our own Zell Miller?

I have no problem correcting pukes when they use it around me. I tell them very nicely that I am a Democrat and that my party advocates democratic principles.