🌞 Alexander Daychilde 🌞

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Joined 3 years ago
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Cake day: June 13th, 2023

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  • Please, can we move away from the “R” word.

    I went on a semi-rant about IQ in another top level post, but now it’s time to go on a rant about the R word.

    I’ve worked with adults with developmental and cognitive disabilities. I was a supported living coach for a while, and also volunteered some at an adult day training school where my wife taught.

    The school in particular taught daily living skills, but also art. The students were encouraged to paint, sing, write. They had a theatre program - which is where I mostly volunteered, running sound for some shows and helping backstage at others.

    Before I started working with them, I was a bit intimidated and scared by them. I personally have a high IQ[1], so the concept of people living with a low IQ kinda scared me a little. What do they live for? How do they live? How do they survive with, like, limited thoughts or whatever? I had no clue.

    Then I got to meet the community at the day school and I quickly realized… they’re human, like you and me. Of course they are. But I didn’t know. I learned that they have needs and wants, like all humans; friendships and gossip and enjoying some days and not enjoying other days. You know, seriously, like the rest of us.

    One of the classes my wife taught was theatre, and she taught her class Shakespeare (among other things). When I say that her students understood Shakespeare, I mean they could explain what happened in the plays they covered. What I began to realize was that the main problem these folks faced was that they learned more slowly. Not that they couldn’t learn.

    Also, as an aside: While it was mostly amazing getting to hang out and work with these folks that tended to be much happier than other groups of people I’ve dealt with, that is also a negative stereotype, expressed specifically in the stereotype that many people with Down’s syndrome are always happy. Well, like many steretypes, there is some truth there, but everybody has shitty days, and not only that, but everyone has their own personality. Just because you see happy people with Down’s in media… it ain’t all like that. But overall, there is some truth there.

    But the main point of my post, after hopefully helping to humanize them to you and anyone reading, is to end with this: They know the “R” word. They hear it. They hear it used against and about them. And even when it’s not, they know the word and that they are its origin. When that word is used, you’re not just calling something “stupid”, you are referencing a whole group of people that absolutely do not deserve it.

    As a final note, to anyone who wants to argue about how language changes and how words get retired and if we retire this word another will come along: First of all, I don’t believe you in this case. In the past 10-15 years, the word has fallen off in use, and the words that replaced it weren’t offensive in the same way. But I’ve had to start speaking out about it again because it’s starting to come back in the past 2-3 years or so, and I’d rather see it permanently quashed. Also, even if another word did come along that was offensive, THAT DOESN’T EXCUSE USING THIS WORD RIGHT NOW WHICH IS OFFENSIVE RIGHT NOW.

    I’m not telling anyone what to do. You and everyone have the right to use the language you wish to. I and others have the right to judge people for the language they use, though. So I hope you and others that use the word will consider removing it from your vocabulary.

    I did. Took me a while, but it was worth it.

    I’m no saint. I lose my temper and rant against those I feel are supporting fascism, for example, far more than I should. So I’m not trying to say I’m better than anyone. I’m just humbly requesting that people who use that word reconsider doing so, as it makes the world a slightly better place. <3


    1. Which is worth extremely little, q.v. my other rant in this thread ↩︎




  • IQ is, for the most part, a stupid measure. Or at least, it measures one specific thing, which is basically how quickly you can learn. That is to say, in theory, if you put someone with a 120 IQ and someone with an 80 IQ into a class, the first one should theoretically outperform the second if they put equal effort in.

    I will say this frankly: I have a very high IQ - I was tested first when I was 6 and have been tested a couple of times since. I do have a learning disability - ADHD - and mine is severe, at that. So while I do generally pick up on things faster than some others on average, I certainly don’t pick up on everything quickly. There are subjects I absolutely do not get. And furthermore, thanks to circumstances and the stupid ADHD, here I am at 50, neve having had steady jobs (I did work 5 years one place), in shitty health (six heart attacks, below-knee amputation, congestive heart failure, on dialysis because my kidneys failed), with my wife and I surviving because while we both had ADHD and struggled, she’s been more consistent about keeping work, and definitely contributes more to the household budget.

    So a high IQ basically means extremely little. You don’t have to have IQ to find success in life, or even to be highly degreed and an intellectual. It just means that you probably have to work a bit more at it. That one specific aspect of life. And there are many many aspects of life.



  • Well, considering that Trump is a small part of the problem, which includes:

    • Oligarchs heavily funding politics, corrupting the entire system and most (but not all) politicians
    • Decades now of propaganda supporting extremist right-wing propaganda and pushing centre-right propaganda
    • Control of SCOTUS
    • Republican party is essentially fascist
    • Large support base thanks to the propaganda

    When Trump goes, all of those problems remain. And the people who “woke up” to the problem of Trump will go to sleep again, and the number of people caring to resist fascist will drop again.

    So we’re basically fucked.

    The peaceful solution:

    • Continue to talk online and convince people of the problems, which should help encourage:
    • Protests, which by themsevles accomplish little - except to show how many of us are willing to stand up, and how many realize the problems exist, and also the online talk helps encourage:
    • People need to run for office who are progressives - little offices, so they can build up to larger offices. We need more AOC and other similar types.
    • We need to increase the protests and demand change. We need to shut down the nation and force change. Which means we need a plan / demands, and people to run for office.

    The less peaceful solution:

    • Well, I won’t go into details. I don’t like it because it means even more people die, and as someone who believes this life is all we have and is therefore precious, I’d prefer not to see this happen.
    • I will suggest that guillotines are not a bad place to start, though.

    (Then again, how many are dying from fascist policies already? Healthcare, poverty, violence… thanks to Republican making things worse)