Posted by reaperv September 5, 2010 12:09pm PDTReply | Report Abuse

In our day and age, certain words really dictate a different meaning than what they meant a few years ago. I suppose the definitions and context change generationally. I would never be so insensitive as to call an ACTUALLY mentally-handicapped person a "retard"; no, that term is often reserved on the internet for those people that THINK they are above all else, yet spew ignorance at will. The more politically-correct term would just be "ignorant," but it lacks the bite often needed to convey a tone of voice when referring to somebody... at least without the use of actual swear words. For example, I might be referred to as a "retard" for going on the internet to argue over the environment, while driving a race car that at times gets 10 mpg on premium T_T (I'm not ignorant of the polution, I'm just selfish and not yet willing to change... hence why I'm "retarded"... it has very little to do with motor or comprehensive skills). I was not trying to offend anybody, so I'm sorry, and I will take your request to modify my diction in future replies :).