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<blockquote data-quote="Hussar" data-source="post: 8529613" data-attributes="member: 22779">Just to add to [USER=7034738]@DarkMantle[/USER]'s point above, the &quot;you&quot; here is doing an awful lot of heavy lifting.&nbsp; That these terms are problematic are pretty much obvious by now.&nbsp; It's not some tiny voice crying in the darkness.&nbsp; These things have been talked about for decades.&nbsp; The only difference is that now, unlike for the past several decades, these issues are actually gaining traction. If you think that terms like &quot;savage&quot; or &quot;primitive&quot; or various other words haven't been an issue all the way along, you haven't been paying much attention. Language changes.&nbsp; Words gain and lose connotations and gain and lose common usage.&nbsp; There was a time when I would refer to a bundle of sticks using a particular word that now, if I were to use it exactly the same way, in very clearly defined circumstances, would still probably not be the best word to use simply because of the negative connotations.&nbsp; Same with using the word &quot;gay&quot; for happy or brightly colored.&nbsp; Sure, in context, it might be exactly the right meaning word - a gaily colored float in a parade - but, again, because language changes, I'm pretty sure that if I'm writing for public consumption - a newspaper or RPG book - my editor is going to be striking that word out and subsituting &quot;colorfully&quot; or &quot;brightly&quot; and any of a dozen other words.Censorship?&nbsp; Not really.&nbsp; It's perfectly acceptable practice and has always been done.&nbsp; That's WHY we have editorial staff after all.&nbsp; Choosing the best word is not simply a case of choosing the most accurate definition.So, in the end, if you don't have a problem with a word, it probably means that you haven't been paying attention.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Hussar, post: 8529613, member: 22779"] Just to add to [USER=7034738]@DarkMantle[/USER]'s point above, the "you" here is doing an awful lot of heavy lifting. That these terms are problematic are pretty much obvious by now. It's not some tiny voice crying in the darkness. These things have been talked about for decades. The only difference is that now, unlike for the past several decades, these issues are actually gaining traction. If you think that terms like "savage" or "primitive" or various other words haven't been an issue all the way along, you haven't been paying much attention. Language changes. Words gain and lose connotations and gain and lose common usage. There was a time when I would refer to a bundle of sticks using a particular word that now, if I were to use it exactly the same way, in very clearly defined circumstances, would still probably not be the best word to use simply because of the negative connotations. Same with using the word "gay" for happy or brightly colored. Sure, in context, it might be exactly the right meaning word - a gaily colored float in a parade - but, again, because language changes, I'm pretty sure that if I'm writing for public consumption - a newspaper or RPG book - my editor is going to be striking that word out and subsituting "colorfully" or "brightly" and any of a dozen other words. Censorship? Not really. It's perfectly acceptable practice and has always been done. That's WHY we have editorial staff after all. Choosing the best word is not simply a case of choosing the most accurate definition. So, in the end, if you don't have a problem with a word, it probably means that you haven't been paying attention. [/QUOTE]

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