Why are people so easily offended these days?

[Hama]

Also, why do people actively try to perceive everything said to them in the most offensive way? Why do they seek to get offended? I don't understand.

Almost everything nowadays is offensive. And I'm getting pretty sick and tired of political correctness enforcers, who go and get offended for other people. What the hell?

[Klaus van der Kroft]

One would almost think you are offended by that.

[Alzrius]

Hama wrote:

Also, why do people actively try to perceive everything said to them in the most offensive way? Why do they seek to get offended? I don't understand.

Almost everything nowadays is offensive. And I'm getting pretty sick and tired of political correctness enforcers, who go and get offended for other people. What the hell?

Are you saying I'm oversensitive?

[DM Torillan]

Not sure about the rest of the world, but here in the U.S. it seems that some think that they will get a "pass" if they can convince others they are a victim of some sort. IMO, the fact that some want to pigeon-hole everyone into separate groups has led to this.

Once we can see beyond what one looks like or who their father was, we can all revel in the fact that we are nothing more than slightly evolved primates with a built-in inferiority complex.

My $0.02...

[Hama]

Alzrius wrote:

Hama wrote:

Also, why do people actively try to perceive everything said to them in the most offensive way? Why do they seek to get offended? I don't understand.

Almost everything nowadays is offensive. And I'm getting pretty sick and tired of political correctness enforcers, who go and get offended for other people. What the hell?

Are you saying I'm oversensitive?

Are you?

[Klaus van der Kroft]

DM Torillan wrote:

Not sure about the rest of the world, but here in the U.S. it seems that some think that they will get a "pass" if they can convince others they are a victim of some sort. IMO, the fact that some want to pigeon-hole everyone into separate groups has led to this.

Once we can see beyond what one looks like or who their father was, we can all revel in the fact that we are nothing more than slightly evolved primates with a built-in inferiority complex.

My $0.02...

2 cents? That's all? I mean, couldn't you give like 4 cents? It's like you don't value the topic at hand at all!

[Sissyl]

Are you claiming that I am being offended by what you say in your original post? Are you? Because it sure seems that way from where I am standing. Which is interesting, because there is nothing in your post that is offensive, Hama. I would have to be an extremely difficult person to be offended by that. Are you saying I am difficult? Don't go accusing people of things, okay?

[Bill Dunn]

Hama wrote:

Also, why do people actively try to perceive everything said to them in the most offensive way? Why do they seek to get offended? I don't understand.

Almost everything nowadays is offensive. And I'm getting pretty sick and tired of political correctness enforcers, who go and get offended for other people. What the hell?

I doubt the tendency to be offended is any different. What's different is probably the willingness to confront that which offends rather than meekly accepting it. I don't see that as a necessarily negative development.

[kaishakunin]

I think that the oversensitivity of groups and individuals comes from our society's faulty notion of political correctness which commands that anyone can proclaim his or her grief or hardship or ridiculously archaic notions of human idealism and have them acknowledged as equally important, equally justified, equally valid, as every other idea. They're not! It is the victim culture, that many people suffer from, which ensures that anyone who feels offended can call for moderation, retraction, and all too often, for political correctness and censorship. One doesn't need to be rude, hostile, or hateful to express an opinion - especially an unpopular one - but the again, neither does the retort to that opinion. I see the notion of the respected adversary vanishing (people who disagree, but they still respect those who oppose them as human beings). Honest debate has been reduced to the importance of a misspelled comment on you-tube...

[Cynic]

It helps if you hate everyone equally. They all hate you back, and you don't have to worry about who you offend or not, because everyone already hates you, and you already hate them.

[TriOmegaZero]

Dude, every society has had complex rules to avoid offending others.

It's just that nowadays, you don't try and murder every person that offends you.

[Caineach]

COmmunities are structured completely differently than they have been in the past, thanks to increased mobility and connectivity. Those with minority oppinions can now find others with similiar views and act as a sounding board for their ideas. People see that they are not alone, and are now more like to talk out about things that are bothering them. There is no less offense, but those who are being offended are more likely to speak out.

You now must also interact with those from much large and more diverse communities. In the past, groups congregated into locations and were insular. People in the bible belt never really intereacted with places like Provincetown MA, so while the 2 groups views clashed greatly they didn't have to interact with eachother. Now, opposing views easily meet eachother online.

A side effect of having a global community is having to interact with people from different parts of the globe who do not share your cultural views of the world.

[Terquem]

when most of the interactions we have are with little pictures of cartoons and fantasy characters, and all that we express is reduced to a few typed sentences, the need to feel something, anything, grows disproportionately to our sense of well being - thus feeling insulted becomes better than feeling nothing at all.

[thejeff]

We've also decided, as a culture, that maybe we shouldn't just pick out sub-groups to insult and denigrate. And those sub-groups are no longer prevented from pointing it out.

I suspect African-Americans, for example, have always been offended by racist language and behavior, but back in the Jim Crow days complaining about it would get them lynched.

[Seeker1728]

Agree with Kaishakunin, but I'm not a good person to offer up anything much past that because I'm known as being politically incorrect. I deal with reality more than theory and have always believed you are what you allow yourself to be. The human spirit is like steel, its forged in fires of adversity, not excuses.

[DeathQuaker]

From the other point of view, how come so many people are self-entitled jerks who think they should be able to just say anything and get away with it, regardless of how it affects other people?

Let me also clarify, as someone can misread above as that I am personally offended by Hama's post, I am not personally offended by Hama's post. Just spinning things around a bit, for the purpose of discussion.

I DO however believe there IS a culture of self-entitlement and just plain disrespectfulness that is growing in prevalence in many, especially Western societies, and the people who follow this culture then get offended when other people take offense to them--even though, in fact, their behavior is worth taking offense to.

Also, since when is taking offense, in and of itself a bad or horrible thing?

I mean, I get where in part the complaint is coming from is that yes, sometimes there are people who take personally any and everything, when very often the case is that whatever it is they're upset by actually has nothing to do with them. There's a cultural prevalence to that to... it's kind of the flipside of self-entitlement... "everything must be about me, so therefore anything said must be directed toward me"--even when that's clearly not the case.

The best thing to do in a case where someone is taking offense to something that is not actually intended to be offensive, toward them or anyone is to say, "Hey, sorry you're upset, but this isn't about you and it wasn't meant to be hurtful." They can choose to remain upset and you can't do anything about that, but you have at least tried to clarify what's going on and can go about your day.

But sometimes... it's not that.

Sometimes... people take offense... because people are being offensive.

And all the better people stand up for themselves against offensive people, so that they know they ain't gonna get away with being asshats.

But you REALLY want to stop the cycle of the offensive and the offended trading blows with each other? Treat other people with courtesy and civility. Take responsibility and apologize when you are truly in the wrong (even if unknowingly until someone pointed it out). Acknowledge other people's feelings even if you personally disagree with them (it's okay and possible to disagree with someone and still credit their viewpoint). Be aware that when someone says they are offended, they are in pain, and even if the event which causes them to say they are offended isn't actually (in your opinion) a big deal, clearly it has triggered something, perhaps from a past, legitimately painful experience. Acknowledge that trying to reason with a being that is in pain is kind of like trying to reason with a tree or a storm, and let it drop till you can talk about it with them when they've calmed down and figure out what really happen. Above all and in short, BE RESPECTFUL.

I realize what I'm suggesting is of course ridiculous and impossible to achieve, but I like to dream impossible things.

[TriOmegaZero]

Respect is something that needs to be earned. However, it is not something that should be denied without cause.

[DeathQuaker]

TriOmegaZero wrote:

Respect is something that needs to be earned. However, it is not something that should be denied without cause.

I treat respect kind of like "innocent until proven guilty"; I presume people deserve respect until they prove to me they do not.

If you don't offer respect first, however, you're unlikely to receive it. If you offer respect, you may not receive it in kind, but you're a hell of a lot more likely to than otherwise.

I've learned this lesson multiple and myriad times in my life, from personal relationships to customer service to serving as a conflict mediator. You have to start with respect, or you have almost zero chance of ending with it.

[TriOmegaZero]

Isn't that what I said?

[DeathQuaker]

TriOmegaZero wrote:

Isn't that what I said?

I was adding on/elaborating.

[TriOmegaZero]

By all means then! :)

[Darklord Morius]

Hama wrote:

Also, why do people actively try to perceive everything said to them in the most offensive way? Why do they seek to get offended? I don't understand.

Almost everything nowadays is offensive. And I'm getting pretty sick and tired of political correctness enforcers, who go and get offended for other people. What the hell?

That depends, are you saying that more people are sensitive on internet, or in general?

Language its not only words, actually, words are the least part of language. Language is in the tone the something is said, the expressions in the speaker face, his mannerisms, and demeanor. In most times, communication in internet is through written language alone, and this language is flawed.

That`s why you must be extra careful to what you write, because you never know how the reader will interpret you text.

If you say in general, that`s because people nowadays are fearful and sensitive about the big and painfully boring politically correct police baton. People are afraid to be beaten by it, so they are teking seriously any "misdeed".

[Matthew Morris]

DeathQuaker wrote:

From the other point of view, how come so many people are self-entitled jerks who think they should be able to just say anything and get away with it, regardless of how it affects other people?

I think you've hit on the fine line of 'right to be offended' vs 'right to offend' DQ.

I'm blunt, annoying and sexist. When I've had a woman in my life (wives, my partner)* I've tried to make sure we could have a good life w/o her working. When I don't I get bummed, because I beleive that I should be the breadwinner and she shoud be the housekeeper.

Does that offend people? I work in an office of likely 80% women, what do you think? Now I also believe I don't have the right to enforce my viewpoint on others. But people who know me, can choose to associate with me, despite, or because of how much they agree with me as the whole person. Likewise I can do the same.

I've said elsewhere that people have the right to say whatever they want, and others have the right to react accordingly.** You also don't have a right to someone else's bullhorn. Heck, when people are open and upfront, it makes it easier for them to suffer the 'consequences of their actions'. If I cut loose in a profanity filled tirade here, for example, TPTB know to cut off my account, for example. They own the boards.

So people are going to be offended. Tell the person when you are. Don't demand someone 'do something' about it, lest the next person 'done something about' is you.

*

Spoiler:

Amusingly the couple that lives with me, one of the girls feels the exact same way (she should work, while her GF is the housewife). I am amused at how her and I are alike.

**

Spoiler:

Yes, I believe these are G_d given rights. The only thing a government can do is take them away

[Orthos]

Matthew Morris wrote:

I've said elsewhere that people have the right to say whatever they want, and others have the right to react accordingly.

So people are going to be offended. Tell the person when you are. Don't demand someone 'do something' about it, lest the next person 'done something about' is you.

This.

[Bruunwald]

Hama wrote:

Also, why do people actively try to perceive everything said to them in the most offensive way? Why do they seek to get offended? I don't understand.

Almost everything nowadays is offensive. And I'm getting pretty sick and tired of political correctness enforcers, who go and get offended for other people. What the hell?

In pretending that this phenomenon is special in any way to the PC crowd, you are exercising the same phony tendency toward being offended that is so offending you.

People in general love to get angry. Especially in crowds. Anger gives people a sense of purpose. It helps them feel important. There is nothing new about this. Mobs have always existed, and there have always been people who react immediately with anger, or immediately try to assign blame for one thing or another, precisely because it gives them focus and unites them with likeminded people. Just like you are taking up the position of your personal "us" (people against Political Correctness) versus your notion of "them" (those political correctness "enforcers" you are so sick and tired about). Did you not feel focus and purpose of being in making your post?

Then you have answered your own question.

[thejeff]

Orthos wrote:

Matthew Morris wrote:

I've said elsewhere that people have the right to say whatever they want, and others have the right to react accordingly.

So people are going to be offended. Tell the person when you are. Don't demand someone 'do something' about it, lest the next person 'done something about' is you.

This.

How far does this apply?

Does it apply to bullying? To workplace harassment, sexual or otherwise? To blatant sexism or racism from public figures?

Should all of that only be dealt with on a person, one on one level?
If your boss keeps denigrating women or making inappropriate sexual comments to you, you should only tell him about it? Never report it to HR or his boss? Or worse, file charges?

[thejeff]

Bruunwald wrote:

Hama wrote:

Also, why do people actively try to perceive everything said to them in the most offensive way? Why do they seek to get offended? I don't understand.

Almost everything nowadays is offensive. And I'm getting pretty sick and tired of political correctness enforcers, who go and get offended for other people. What the hell?

In pretending that this phenomenon is special in any way to the PC crowd, you are exercising the same phony tendency toward being offended that is so offending you.

People in general love to get angry. Especially in crowds. Anger gives people a sense of purpose. It helps them feel important. There is nothing new about this. Mobs have always existed, and there have always been people who react immediately with anger, or immediately try to assign blame for one thing or another, precisely because it gives them focus and unites them with likeminded people. Just like you are taking up the position of your personal "us" (people against Political Correctness) versus your notion of "them" (those political correctness "enforcers" you are so sick and tired about). Did you not feel focus and purpose of being in making your post?

Then you have answered your own question.

And of course, there are things worth getting angry about. The anti-PC movement in the nineties started as a backlash to the growing idea that it wasn't okay to be racist or sexist.

Political Correctness may go a little to far sometimes and it's good to have some pushback to keep it from getting out of hand, but the basic concept is a good thing.

[Matthew Morris]

thejeff wrote:

Orthos wrote:

Matthew Morris wrote:

I've said elsewhere that people have the right to say whatever they want, and others have the right to react accordingly.

So people are going to be offended. Tell the person when you are. Don't demand someone 'do something' about it, lest the next person 'done something about' is you.

This.

How far does this apply?

Does it apply to bullying? To workplace harassment, sexual or otherwise? To blatant sexism or racism from public figures?

Should all of that only be dealt with on a person, one on one level?
If your boss keeps denigrating women or making inappropriate sexual comments to you, you should only tell him about it? Never report it to HR or his boss? Or worse, file charges?

Hmm, let's see.

Matthew Morris wrote:

I've said elsewhere that people have the right to say whatever they want, and others have the right to react accordingly.** You also don't have a right to someone else's bullhorn. Heck, when people are open and upfront, it makes it easier for them to suffer the 'consequences of their actions'. If I cut loose in a profanity filled tirade here, for example, TPTB know to cut off my account, for example. They own the boards.

Oh wait, I did answer that. If your boss is being a jerk, and your company has (wait for it...) chosen to act on complaints about him being a jerk (oh look, I'm advocating free speech again!) then that 'right of association' I mentioned comes into play again. IF they (again) choose not to, you're free to choose to assoicate with others. YOu're not 'demanding' something be done. You're making others aware of the actions and then they can choose if they want to keep associating with them.

I'll take "Reading the entire post to find that I've already answered that" for $500, Alex.

[DeathQuaker]

Opinions are fine.

Opinions used as psychological weapons are not.

Beliefs are fine.

Beliefs used to bring physical or emotional harm are not.

That's my opinion.

[Lamontius]

A Few Minutes with Andy Rooney: Pathfinder Edition

[The black raven]

DeathQuaker wrote:

Opinions are fine.

Opinions used as psychological weapons are not.

Beliefs are fine.

Beliefs used to bring physical or emotional harm are not.

That's my opinion.

This is starting to sound remarkably similar to an alignment thread ;-)

[Matthew Morris]

DQ,

Who defines it as a weapon, that's the question. Offend and Offense have the same root after all.

I'm big, lumbersome and slow. Calling me an 'ogre' might be offensive, well except that I do it myself all the time.* My partner, Donna, was raised in the south. Some people might get offended at her 'honey', 'sir' and 'ma'am's.** How do you define 'using as a weapon'?

Are there some people who go out of their way to offend? Yes. Commedians and Fred PHelps both do. But if you're offended you can walk away.

I can use words as weapons. I'm pretty good at it. My job requires me to calm angry people down on the phone. So of course I know how to rile them up. But the choice in the end is yours to act or react.***

*

Spoiler:

Seriously I do. A little kid at the store once looked up at me and said "How did you get so fat?" Her mom was shocked but laughed when I replied "By eating rude children."

**

Spoiler:

Where she worked, they acutally said 'sir' and 'ma'am' were racist. To Donna's credit, she said, "Then you're going to be dinging me a lot. Where I grew up, they're respectful."

***

Spoiler:

This is one of the problems I have with 'stopping bullying' There's *always* going to be something to ostracize the other on, whether we want to admit it or not. And I was bullied a lot in school until I realized that being an ogre, you didn't get bullied to your face.

[Dennis Harry]

Hama wrote:

Also, why do people actively try to perceive everything said to them in the most offensive way? Why do they seek to get offended? I don't understand.

Almost everything nowadays is offensive. And I'm getting pretty sick and tired of political correctness enforcers, who go and get offended for other people. What the hell?

All of this political correctness and getting offended about every little thing is a smokescreen to distract the masses from REAL issues, like war, poverty, corruption etc. Someone being offended about something is always headline news in the corporate media while real crisis are rarely if ever reported on and when they are the report is full of disinformation.

These manufactured dramas give massive amounts of people something to be angry about and distracts them from issues that ACTUALLY have an effect on their lives.

If we have several mainstream media outlets why are their news reports more often than not carbon copies of one another? Occasionally some talking head from the left or right will spin the story to blame one side or the other but that's just all part of the smokescreen.

That's my .10 cents :-)

[thejeff]

Matthew Morris wrote:

thejeff wrote:

Orthos wrote:

Matthew Morris wrote:

I've said elsewhere that people have the right to say whatever they want, and others have the right to react accordingly.

So people are going to be offended. Tell the person when you are. Don't demand someone 'do something' about it, lest the next person 'done something about' is you.

This.

How far does this apply?

Does it apply to bullying? To workplace harassment, sexual or otherwise? To blatant sexism or racism from public figures?

Should all of that only be dealt with on a person, one on one level?
If your boss keeps denigrating women or making inappropriate sexual comments to you, you should only tell him about it? Never report it to HR or his boss? Or worse, file charges?

Hmm, let's see.

Matthew Morris wrote:

I've said elsewhere that people have the right to say whatever they want, and others have the right to react accordingly.** You also don't have a right to someone else's bullhorn. Heck, when people are open and upfront, it makes it easier for them to suffer the 'consequences of their actions'. If I cut loose in a profanity filled tirade here, for example, TPTB know to cut off my account, for example. They own the boards.

Oh wait, I did answer that. If your boss is being a jerk, and your company has (wait for it...) chosen to act on complaints about him being a jerk (oh look, I'm advocating free speech again!) then that 'right of association' I mentioned comes into play again. IF they (again) choose not to, you're free to choose to assoicate with others. YOu're not 'demanding' something be done. You're making others aware of the actions and then they can choose if they want to keep associating with them.

I'll take "Reading the entire post to find that I've already answered that" for $500, Alex.

So you can ask your company to do something about it, but if they choose not to you should have no recourse except to quit your job?

Businesses should have no legal obligation to avoid discriminating?

[TriOmegaZero]

Matthew Morris wrote:

DQ,

Who defines it as a weapon, that's the question.

Is it a weapon to fire someone for saying something racist?

[Matthew Morris]

TriOmegaZero wrote:

Matthew Morris wrote:

DQ,

Who defines it as a weapon, that's the question.

Is it a weapon to fire someone for saying something racist?

Nope, it's the consequences of the person's actions. (I'm a believer of at will, though so it's my own biases) The employer chooses that the negative results of associating with that person are greater than the positive. (Think Bobby Knight for example. He got away with a lot, because he was winning. It only was when the negatives from his actions were greater than the positives that he got fired.

[thejeff]

Matthew Morris wrote:

TriOmegaZero wrote:

Matthew Morris wrote:

DQ,

Who defines it as a weapon, that's the question.

Is it a weapon to fire someone for saying something racist?

Nope, it's the consequences of the person's actions. (I'm a believer of at will, though so it's my own biases) The employer chooses that the negative results of associating with that person are greater than the positive. (Think Bobby Knight for example. He got away with a lot, because he was winning. It only was when the negatives from his actions were greater than the positives that he got fired.

How about things like organizing boycotts or similar actions against a company employing an outspoken racist or for tolerating internal racism?

Are the boycotters "demanding" or just using their "Free speech" or "association"?

[MendedWall12]

The offensive offense of this thread is that it offends me. When I'm offended I become defensive, and try to defend being offended by returning the offensive offenses with more offensive defenses.

[Earl of Lemongrab]

MendedWall12 wrote:

The offensive offense of this thread is that it offends me. When I'm offended I become defensive, and try to defend being offended by returning the offensive offenses with more offensive defenses.

EEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUGHHHH!!!

[Doodlebug Anklebiter]

I'm offended that no one had favorited my Living in Oblivion link in the Peter Dinklage thread.

That shiznit's funny!

[Klaus van der Kroft]

Doodlebug Anklebiter wrote:

I'm offended that no one had favorited my Living in Oblivion link in the Peter Dinklage thread.

That shiznit's funny!

I live in constant fear that one of your links will lead me into a Rickroll eventually.

[Celestial Healer]

Klaus van der Kroft wrote:

Doodlebug Anklebiter wrote:

I'm offended that no one had favorited my Living in Oblivion link in the Peter Dinklage thread.

That shiznit's funny!

I live in constant fear that one of your links will lead me into a Rickroll eventually.

That was Heathy's schtick.

You should be glad I got over my "catroll" phase. I used to try to trick people into clicking on links that would take them to Youtube videos of musical numbers from Cats. I definitely beat that trick to death over the course of about a year.

Edit: Here is an example from a political thread in 2009.

[Hama]

I am not saying that being polite and considerate is a bad thing. It's not. It is a very good thing. I share this planet with 7 billion other people, and a lot of them grew up in cultures completely alien to me.

Political correctness in on itself is a very good thing. People should know what not to say in what situation, but getting offended at every slight (mostly perceived ones) is what gets me.

One of my best friends is gay, and we often hang out and play video games and have meaningless conversations and watch movies. We are such good friends that i can call him f*g as a term of endearment. Because he knows i mean it jokingly. So we go out with some other friends and i call him that in front of them and this "emancipated" chick starts chewing me out over it until he promptly tells her to shut up. WTF. Who asked her to interfere? It was none of her business how i call him. If he got offended, he would have said something. I hate it when people presume too much.

[Doodlebug Anklebiter]

Klaus van der Kroft wrote:

Doodlebug Anklebiter wrote:

I'm offended that no one had favorited my Living in Oblivion link in the Peter Dinklage thread.

That shiznit's funny!

I live in constant fear that one of your links will lead me into a Rickroll eventually.

I don't think I have ever Rickrolled anybody, but I could be wrong.

I used to Grateful Deadroll Comrade Meatrace, but I guess he's wicked into computers (I think he's a member of Anonymous) and he could detect it a mile away, so I stopped.

[Doodlebug Anklebiter]

Celestial Healer wrote:

That was Heathy's schtick.

You should be glad I got over my "catroll" phase. I used to try to trick people into clicking on links that would take them to Youtube videos of musical numbers from Cats. I definitely beat that trick to death over the course of about a year.

Edit: Here is an example from a political thread in 2009.

Man, you are evil...

[Scott Betts]

Hama wrote:

So we go out with some other friends and i call him that in front of them and this "emancipated" chick starts chewing me out over it until he promptly tells her to shut up. WTF. Who asked her to interfere? It was none of her business how i call him. If he got offended, he would have said something. I hate it when people presume too much.

"If he got offended, he would have said something," is not a great way to go about living your life. People often don't speak up, even when they are offended by something. This holds especially true for slurs (be they racial, sexual, or otherwise) and traditionally repressed classes.

Honestly, I'd much rather she interfere than not.

[Odraude]

Hama wrote:

I am not saying that being polite and considerate is a bad thing. It's not. It is a very good thing. I share this planet with 7 billion other people, and a lot of them grew up in cultures completely alien to me.

Political correctness in on itself is a very good thing. People should know what not to say in what situation, but getting offended at every slight (mostly perceived ones) is what gets me.

One of my best friends is gay, and we often hang out and play video games and have meaningless conversations and watch movies. We are such good friends that i can call him f*g as a term of endearment. Because he knows i mean it jokingly. So we go out with some other friends and i call him that in front of them and this "emancipated" chick starts chewing me out over it until he promptly tells her to shut up. WTF. Who asked her to interfere? It was none of her business how i call him. If he got offended, he would have said something. I hate it when people presume too much.

I can answer this one.

There is a large difference between how I speak to my friends and how I speak to people I just met. Me and my group of multicultural friends make off-color racial jokes to each other all the time and sometimes use certain slurs amongst each other. Why? Because we are familiar enough with each other and none of us actually mean any hatred or offense when we say them. But, I'd never say that stuff to people I never met, nor do I (usually) do that stuff aloud in public on the off chance someone overhears. I know most people outside of our circle wouldn't get it and I'd rather not start something at a bar.

There is something to be said about not letting every spoken word get to you, of course. I don't usually let slurs bother me and I'm fairly easy-going about most things, especially compared to my more temper-driven younger years. I'm not overly sensitive and I can usually match insults with the best of them. But, there's moments where you do have to stand up and take offense at someone being a chode. There's no magical rule on when one should because what's crossing the line for some isn't for others. At least for me, there is a big difference between my sister calling me a sp*c* and my boss calling me one. Familiarity plays a big part of it for me. A lot of times, people that do get overly offended by something either got picked on a lot about it, or, I suspect in the case of that girl you mentioned, has friends that deal with that on a daily basis.

*Paizo, you really probably should add this word to your filter...

[Odraude]

Also, in case people think this is only in American culture, I recall being on the EU forums on the League of Legends website and the shitstorm that ensued when they labelled Kosovo and Macedonia as their own countries. It was... wow.

[Sissyl]

What is a chod and what is a spic?

[Odraude]

Sissyl wrote:

What is a chod and what is a spic?

A chode is an insult. Like calling someone a douche.

A sp*c is a racial slur for Puerto Ricans.

Google is also your best friend ;)