[Tagging] Yay, new howto map for diabilities created in wiki

[Paul Allen]

On Tue, 15 Jan 2019 at 20:45, Graeme Fitzpatrick <graemefitz1 at gmail.com>
wrote:

> It was mentioned earlier that both handicapped & disabled are no longer
> "nice" words, & are currently changing to "special needs".
>
> So how about "Mapping the special needs of people with disabilities"?
>

But that still mentions "disabilities."

So if you want to avoid the terms that are no longer "nice" then "Mapping
for people with special
needs."

However, whilst that is unambiguous in Leftpondia, over here in Rightpondia
it is often
associated with education rather than used as a more general term.  But you
can probably
get away with it.

Not that it matters much.  "Special needs" is also destined for the scrap
heap of euphemisms
that are now used as insults.  It's too easy to use it insultingly.  We
won't have a stable term until
it's longer and harder to say.  So be prepared to rename the page at some
future time.

Think I'm joking?  There are a number of medical conditions with similar
symptoms.  Not long
after the end of WWII an umbrella term was coined for them.  The parents of
sufferers were
literally *overjoyed* that there was now a name for the condition because
it was no longer
perceived as being ignored by the medical profession.  In 1946 the Scottish
Council for
the Care of Spastics was formed; in 1951 the Spastics Society was formed in
England.
Those attitudes changed when "spastic," "spaz" and "spazbo" became insults
children
hurled at one another.  Although "spastic" is not seen as being
particularly bad in the US, it
is considered very offensive in the UK.  And so now, in the UK, we use the
term "cerebral
palsy sufferer" instead of "spastic."  It's hard to casually hurl "cerebral
palsy sufferer" as
an insult.

And so it is with "special needs."  "Handicapped" was once a term
indicating god had balanced
an unusually good soul with physical difficulties so that it would not have
an unfair advantage.
But that became used disparagingly, so "disabled" was used.  But those with
special needs
felt that was too dismissive and that they were* differently* abled.  But
that didn't last and now
they have special needs.  But already that can be used insultingly by
referring to somebody
as "special" in a certain tone of voice.

None of the above is intended to disparage those who face challenges in
their lives.  Their
problems are real and they deserve our help in making OSM cater to their
needs.  It's a rant
against humanity in general for turning what should be sympathetic terms
into insults, only
ceasing to do so when we come up with terms too unwieldy to be used
insultingly.

-- 
Paul
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