Quote:
Originally Posted by SWTXBelle
If a man uses the term, I don't see how anyone could believe he holds a high regard for women. Any women, greek or no.
It is like a racial slur in that it is deliberately demeaning - reducing women to sex objects. If I were to refer to a dark minority member as a "Sambo", he would be rightly offended, because I have reduced him to a stereotype. If indeed other women use it, it doesn't make it any better than minorities using racial slurs affectionately or as a joke. Some women will refer to others as c**** - I think that's wrong, too.
So the score - Offensive - 1
Not offensive, hey, it's joke - 1
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I'm not saying it's not offensive. I'm just saying that because we're offended doesn't actually mean that a person using the term feels what you are assuming he does.
Jokes can still be offensive.
ETA: And I apologize in advance for this example: I think it's sort of like using the word "bitch" or "bitches" especially when it's used in the sense that Tina Fey used it on Saturday Night live recently. Sometimes its use will be predictive of someone's attitude towards women or a particular category of women; other times, it's going to be used humorously by people who hold women in high regard. I'm afraid that "sorostitute" because it's so commonly used, especially in jest, doesn't reveal as much as maybe we'd like it to.