Originally Posted by
Ellen
If memory serves me right, back in the olden days when a child was slow to learn, they were tested and a diagnosis of "retarded" was rendered by all the professionals and teachers. Then we became "politically correct" and had to invent new words to replace retarded.
It's terribly sad that some of you took this joke personally....It's obvious it wasn't meant to be. I, too, am offended by the use of that word in a derogatory manner but this was not used that way.
I'd like to recommend the book "Michael Vey" by Richard Paul Evans. He wrote it for his son who has tourettes and was being bullied at school....your children will love it. The sequeal comes out in August. I can't wait.
Sorry, I have to disagree. At least since the late 60's, the use of the term "retarded" has been frowned-upon by most educated people as being both derogatory and inaccurate. I know, I was there working with the educators and therapists for my son.
And there's nothing "politically correct" about not using derogatory terms. Some people still use the "n" word to describe people of color -- that doesn't make it right, and it doesn't make not using it "politically correct."
Of course people take this so-called "joke" personally. The meaning is clear in the so-called "joke." The attempt at humor comes from trying to equate the word "retired" with the word "retarded." In the writer's lexicon (and the writer was indeed not a child, just a stupid adult pretending to be a child) "retarded" means someone to be laughed at and mocked, and this screed took it and used it in that context. You don't have to have a personal connection to find this offensive, unfeeling, and just plain mean-spirited.
And, IMO, anyone who thinks this is funny doesn't know or care much about other people's feelings, especially those who have gone through the hell of raising an autistic or learning-disabled child.