But language changes and evolves, and words get imbued with additional meanings over time through a bunch of complicated factors and contexts.
Just because ‘idiot’ and ‘retard’ were used similarly once, doesn’t mean they’re the same now
We don’t need to fully understand the process in which the word has changed to know that lots of people find it particularly insulting, degrading and oppressive, and to decide to stop using it because of this
Interesting idea! What do you do if you’re busy in the evening and miss a show - save it til next week or do you catch up?
I think that’s a very narrow view of religion though, albeit one that is true of a lot and I agree is toxic. Ironically since you’re a UK person, it’s a type of religion I associate with the US and the American right (though I also know through friends growing up that it can be fairly common in some Muslim and Hindi groups)
I think a lot of times religion is used as a kind of cultural link: ‘this is why we have these traditions, this is a moral we have that we can explain with this story’ etc. And with that context I think it can be fine, even helpful to raise someone within a religious tradition
I guess I broadly agree with you mostly, but I would say that religion can be coherent with critical thinking and open-mindedness: it’s cultural as much as its about fundamental belief
(and when it is about fundamental belief then yeah it’s often awful)
Sometimes a lazy answer is worse than no answer
That is a very specific usage: ‘The Government’ as a proposer of law, Parliament as approvers. Outside of a PPE course it isn’t how the term is used and I think you know this.
In day to day use the government (small g) can be talked about as comprising anyone involved in governance, from the PM down to local councillors, depending on context
Calling people out on this based on a technicality is like correcting people when they say ‘speed’ instead of ‘velocity’, and it’s super irrelevant in a thread about MPs acting in a political capacity
You seem to be confused. The phrase ‘government official’ refers to anyone acting on behalf of the government, including backbenchers. This could even include unelected aides, spokespeople or some civil servants.
You’re thinking of the cabinet. You do not have to be in the cabinet to be a ‘government official’.
As a fellow brit, these Americans correcting you are right.
I’m the younger end of millennial - I did watch these as a kid but I was young enough that I don’t remember much. Don’t remember artax.
I wanna say there was a big big chill mammal thing but when I try to remember more I just picture Oppa from Avatar
Often in lower league football (soccer?), if there’s huge game (cup match against bigger opponent, playoff etc), tickets are prioritised for those who have been to more regular games. Makes sense, the more committed fans get priority and avoids scalping.
This just seems like the same thing to me
Is pepperoni and jalapeños not super common?
In the UK, that’s called ‘an american’
It’ll be okay as long as you have that recipe again
“what is a personal pronoun”
These 100 year old Kentuckians are far too woke
I agree with your broader point about linguistics, but Chesterton’s fence has never sat right with me. Consider the inverse:
This annoying and unnecessary fence is an inconvenience, but since nobody can remember what it’s for, we dare not remove it
Smoke some cigarettes. The smoke will suffocate the bacteria in your stomach.
Just in case you’re not joking, that’s the point of this meme. That the big reveal and emotional moment at the end of the film has been misunderstood and reduced to a plot hole
I hate everyone on lemmy but at least I’m hating people
100% there’s a culture of gatekeeping and elitism all too common around classical music - but it’s not the music’s fault
These potatos are woke, not enough salt
BUT a lot of peated whisky is aged in bourbon casks imported from the US. I wonder if that’s included in any tariffs or separate?
It is how you use it, even if you don’t mean to.
If you use ‘gay’ as an insult, that doesn’t become OK if you only say it to straight people. It’s still some massive drive by homophobia.
The reason to stop using this as an insult isn’t to protect the people you’re insulting, it’s to protect a third group which has a dark history with the word