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PaperclipPerfector  12d ago (text post)   34053 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of February 17, 2025

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In countries that recognize a right to Free Speech, you are under no obligation to recognize any Church's titles as legitimate

Under no legal obligation. But it would still be the polite thing to do if you ran into a nun at the grocery store. There is a very great difference between laws and social norms. I believe we should have a social norm of using trans people's preferred pronouns; I do not think it should be a crime not to. I am in favor of a world where journalists typically use a trans person's preferred pronouns if they're writing a piece about them, as opposed to a world where they typically do the reverse - I am not saying I want journalists to be legally mandated to write the story either way.

I mean I don't believe that gender exists, so I'm not sure that's true

I don't know what sort of 'gender' you don't believe exists, but I promise, I very probably don't believe in it either.

A nun you ran into at the grocery store would be perfectly fine being addressed with 'how do you do ma'am'. Sister is a title replacing 'miss'.

But it would still be the polite thing to do if you ran into a nun at the grocery store.

My grandmother is and always has been a card carrying member of our communist party. She is also very involved in her local community and great friends with the local priest, pastor and rabbi. Yet she has made a point to never use their titles in conversation (opiate of the masses you understand).

Given this has never stopped her from carrying business in good company, I'm not sure I buy the need for such a norm. And frankly it's my belief that politeness is something that is to be negotiated between individuals rather than imposed by some rational rule.

I'm fine with journalists using whatever language they desire, and for people to tell them they are right or wrong to do so either way.

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