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Some people have already touched on this, but I think a lot of the problem people have with these PC-inspired changes is when they are a result of an acquired meaning or connotation, and not the word itself. Retard is one of those, as are many of the various racial terms that have evolved. When one word becomes too "loaded" over time, it is discarded and replaced, with the exact same thing bound to happen again down the line. Obviously "white" is no more inherently racist than "black", but tensions and feelings of inequality outside of the words themselves have contributed to their current level of acceptance. However people decide to use these words, it should be remembered that while we do have the right to free speech, nothing gives us the right to not be offended.
"Fuck 'em if they can't take a joke."
~peace
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