Newsflash: Words that are gender-specific aren't inherently sexist. [View All]

[FlyingTiger]

I can't believe the amount of uproar that I sometimes see here over the use of particular words. I've completely lost count of the number of words that various knee-jerk reactionaries target with barrages of caps lock-coated vitriol against the perceived notion that merely by suggesting a gender, a word inherently insults said gender. Oh, and by the way, it only counts for one gender.

sex-ism. noun. discrimination against people on the basis of sex; especially discrimination against, and prejudicial stereotyping of, women

Merely using words in the appropriate context in which they are supposed to be used is not sexism. You want to know why some people call Hillary a "bitch" instead of a "dick" or an "asshole"? Because the latter options are naturally used for men! I'm sure many of us manly males could go on long rants about how merely calling us our own sexual organ is an insult, and therefore reeks of sexism itself, if, you know, that actually were the case. It's not.

The English language is filled with words that are commonly accepted as either generally female or generally male. Moreover, whenever there is a word that is female-oriented, there is at least one male equivalent virtually every single time, and vice-versa. Simply adhering to the common practices of the language, especially when those practices carry no implication that the gender orientation of a specific word is any worse than its male/female counterpart, is not sexist.

But, hey, I'm sure the Sexism Brigade will rush to McCain's defense the first time someone calls him a "jackass." Right?