Jul 22, 2013

"SUCKS" and "DUH"

The words "sucks" and "duh" have been accepted as being more or less politically correct now. But why? On the surface they are pretty innocuous, but so are words like "gay" and "retard" by basic definition. What's interesting to me is where I think they came from. 

Saying something sucks is basically like saying something is gay. The origins of saying "you suck" came from what I can best guess boys or men insulting other men.  Saying "you suck" is a shortened version of saying " hey you, heterosexual male, you are gay and suck other men's penises" . Somehow it escaped the same non politically correct connotations as saying something or someone is "gay". But to me, if you break it down, it's kind of the same thing. 

Similarly, the sayings "duh" and "derr" are widely accepted.  Again, in my opinion these terms are most likely derived from making fun of mentality disabled people. Growing up if kids wanted to make fun of someone for saying something stupid, kids would say "duhhh" and shake their hand at their chest as to mimic someone with a mental or motor function divisibility. As we got older, it eventually became just saying "duh" or "derr" which by all means, is still just as offensive. So, why has it remained OK to say?  

I'm no expert but I think society either missed the connection, or has latched onto "gay" and "retard" so hard that they didn't bother to notice. 
Please share your thoughts in the comments.

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