Since its Womens Week, can we get rid of the perjorative "douchebag"?

[milestogo]

It's totally misogynistic.

[VermontKevin]

1. No.

It's a symbol of men telling women how to care for what does not need to be cared for in that manner.

[dhol82]

2. True.

Still remember when I was young women were advised to douche regularly for feminine hygiene.
Then someone told me that if you stink that bad you have a real problem and should go see a doctor.
Douchebags are ridiculous archaic items.

[VermontKevin]

4. Thus, why calling Jeff Sessions " douchebag" is appropriate.

[dhol82]

6. Totally!

[milestogo]

16. So then why can't we stop using it?

Using "douchebag" to insult a man has the byproduct of implying that women's bodies are rank and disgusting.

[SunSeeker]

46. No, it does not imply women's bodies are disgusting.

If anything, it implies what comes out of men's bodies is disgusting, since that is what a woman douches to get rid of.

[VermontKevin]

48. No, it means certain men think women's bodies are rank and disgusting.

[TheBlackAdder]

44. Without that word, we wouldn't have masterpieces like this. . . which I post on GOP threads.

.

.

[cwydro]

3. We should have a list; I cant keep up.

Someone said “hysterical” could not be used.

Douchebag is a word I don’t think I’ve ever used. It simply never had any appeal to me as a word.

[Caliman73]

41. hysterical I agree with.

Hysterical is tied to women's ovaries or uterus, which medical professionals believed made women act crazy and as such, society used to keep women from fully participating in society.

I could drop douchebag as an insult without a problem.

[Shrike47]

5. No. Its synonymous with Ted Cruz.

[Sneederbunk]

7. Scumbag must go too?

[Irish_Dem]

8. Miles, it looks like men want to hang onto this one.

Sigh.

[Lil Missy]

9. No.

[pintobean]

10. I never see it here any more

since a certain member stopped posting.

But, banning words is never a good idea.

[crazycatlady]

18. I hear it all the time IRL

I also hear 'toolbag' a lot (same meaning).

I'm in my 30s and my social circle is people in their 20s and 30s.

[ProfessorGAC]

55. I Can't Agree

Toolbag is not the same meaning at all. Referring to a guy as a "tool" is the same as calling him a "dick". The "tool" reference is referring to a male anatomy part. Your conflating two different etymologies.

[milestogo]

21. I saw it right before I started this thread

and I see it routinely. It makes me cringe.

[hlthe2b]

11. Just use the term "enema bag".... a non-gendered term that conveys soo much...;)

[riverwalker]

12. I never understood

Why “F... You” was derogatory, if sex is a good thing, why do we sling it like a curse.?

[RhodeIslandOne]

13. I think it's an invitation to f oneself with a painful object n/m

[crazycatlady]

19. I've told people to go f themselves with rusty scissors

[TheFrenchRazor]

14. this really shouldn't have to be explained, but the anti-female aspect of insults is exactly what

makes them "insults," according to more than a few people, including some women. misogyny is so ubiquitous that people don't see it just like a fish doesn't see the water.

[milestogo]

15. Apparently it still does have to be explained.

[cwydro]

17. It seems to be a word adolescents use.

Since most of DU is not chronologically adolescent - hopefully it will fade out.

[temporary311]

22. Chronological age

doesn't always line up with mental age.

[cwydro]

51. Exactly.

That’s why I phrased it that way.

[Kirk Lover]

20. You wanna get rid of it for just the week? No problem it's already Wednesday!

[customerserviceguy]

23. I've never liked the term

I have a whole lot more ways to describe Repukes than something that offends women.

[superpatriotman]

24. Don't censor me

I am an adult who is responsible and accountable for the words I choose to use.

On edit: happy Women's Week!

[milestogo]

25. Don't use words which are offensive to half the human race.

[RhodeIslandOne]

27. All women are offended by the word?

Did you take a poll?

[milestogo]

29. I don't need a poll to tell me that the use of the term is misogynistic.

That's what we're talking about here. Its inherently offensive.

[KentuckyWoman]

33. It's not inherently offensive to me

granted I may be the lone female on the entire planet who doesn't get all worked up over certain words in and of themselves.

But then again, while I RARELY use disrespectful language either. I do, but am fairly particular about where I aim it.

Aiming "douchbag" in certain circumstances at certain individuals does not offend me in the least.

[3catwoman3]

35. It doesn't bother me, either, nor does...

...bitch. I primarily use them only when talking to myself.

[cwydro]

50. Same here.

I don’t think this kind of censorship is a good idea.

[Igel]

38. The maxim

"seek and ye shall find" is appropriate here.

Lots of words that are terms of abuse or otherwise non-formal in nature go back to sex. Some times straight, sometimes gay, but back to sex.

"That blows."

"That sucks."

Even "fuck" was probably originally a kind of threat directed either at the opponent's masculinity or at the virtue of his mother.

(Some, of course, just goes back to disgusting stuff. But usually bodily ejecta.)

Remove such things, now rather removed from their original referents, from the English scatological lexicon and it would be a thin tome, indeed.

It's like insisting on the etymological meaning of "hysterical" as the "true meaning". Etymology fallacy, of course. Or is there really sexual innuendo in the word "fallacy" that means we should cut that word off from our lexicon? (Oh. Wait. Many already have.)

[pintobean]

30. You don't speak for half the human race

Hell, you haven't even gotten one rec in support of your attempt at censorship.

[milestogo]

42. Thanks for your awesome sensitivity on the issue.

[Chasstev365]

26. Can I still assert that Donald Trump has a small penis?

It's appropriate!

[Igel]

39. Only if you like making fun of those with genetic oddities.

Or perhaps birth defects.

[DBoon]

28. Should we use "dickhead" instead?

nt

[GusBob]

31. Bring back Trumad! Lol

He called me that once a week. Others everyday

You're wasting your time

[Corvo Bianco]

32. What the hell?

Nobody is taking the word douchebag away from me. How am I supposed to warm my sister that guy's a total douchebag?!

[milestogo]

34. Tell her you can see a lot of yourself in the guy.

[Corvo Bianco]

37. I've gotta report this thread to Bill Maher.

[BannonsLiver]

36. Reminds me of an old SNL sketch

[HughBeaumont]

40. Hmm hmm hmm hmm . . .

. . . pick your baaa-ttles . . .

[anneboleyn]

43. What about dick, cock,or asshole? Plus douches (for women) went out in the 70s at the latest.

[SunSeeker]

45. No.

Last edited Wed Nov 22, 2017, 02:53 AM - Edit history (2)

The swill from a bag of douche perfectly describes Donald Trump.

I don't see the misogyny. It is an insult aimed at a man, not a woman. What you tend to douche out are, um, deposits left by men. To call a man a douchebag (and I have only heard men called douchebags, not women) is to state that he is nothing more than discarded jizz. Much like Santorum.

[JI7]

47. Douchebag most Refers to Certain Loser Types of Men, like Paul Ryan

nobody is thinking of women or anything female related when they see this

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

49. Can we say French shower instead?

The French word for shower is douche.

[lapucelle]

52. Out of curiosity...

Is there anyone here who has ever referred to a woman as a douchebag?

[lapucelle]

53. I wasn't aware that this is Womens Week.

I was, however, reminded that November 19 was International Men's Day.

http://www.internationalmensday.com/

[Vinca]

54. No. And I won't stop calling people dicks either.

[lillypaddle]

56. oh FFS

gimme a break.