insurgency has been listed 7 times with 0 comments
rehnquist has been listed 1 time with 0 comments
abm has been listed 2 times with 1 comment
wilson has been listed 3 times with 0 comments
plame has been listed 1 time with 0 comments
scooter has been listed 10 times with 0 comments
libby has been listed 2 times with 0 comments
rove has been listed 13 times with 0 comments
misfeasance has been listed 8 times with 2 comments
compensation has been listed 5 times with 1 comment
retirement has been listed 5 times with 0 comments
immigration has been listed 5 times with 0 comments
epidemic has been listed 10 times with 1 comment
anthrax has been listed 9 times with 1 comment
weapons has been listed 2 times with 0 comments
biological has been listed 5 times with 1 comment
wmd has been listed 8 times with 7 comments
nuclear has been listed 22 times with 1 comment
preemptive has been listed 12 times with 0 comments
cheney has been listed 1 time with 0 comments
rumsfeld has been listed 1 time with 0 comments
awe has been listed 23 times with 1 comment
shock has been listed 15 times with 4 comments
afghanistan has been listed 3 times with 0 comments
iraq has been listed 5 times with 0 comments
war has been listed 31 times with 7 comments
terrorism has been listed 5 times with 0 comments
axis has been listed 18 times with 1 comment
evildoer has been listed 6 times with 0 comments
evil has been listed 45 times with 5 comments
prep has been listed 3 times with 1 comment
connecticut has been listed 5 times with 0 comments
isolationist has been listed 2 times with 0 comments
dolt has been listed 36 times with 1 comment
moron has been listed 17 times with 3 comments
tool has been listed 23 times with 2 comments
coward has been listed 8 times with 0 comments
dim has been listed 13 times with 1 comment
party animal has been listed 2 times with 0 comments
simpleton has been listed 23 times with 1 comment
misled has been listed 14 times with 26 comments
uninformed has been listed 3 times with 0 comments
scary has been listed 6 times with 0 comments
zealot has been listed 29 times with 1 comment
cheat has been listed 10 times with 4 comments
corrupt has been listed 19 times with 1 comment
underestimated has been listed 2 times with 0 comments
inactive has been listed 5 times with 0 comments
ineffective has been listed 1 time with 0 comments
liar has been listed 10 times with 0 comments
war criminal has been listed 2 times with 1 comment
criminal has been listed 11 times with 4 comments
indolent has been listed 49 times with 1 comment
reckless has been listed 16 times with 3 comments
stubborn has been listed 17 times with 0 comments
deceitful has been listed 7 times with 0 comments
ineloquent has been listed 1 time with 0 comments
indelicate has been listed 3 times with 0 comments
warmonger has been listed 11 times with 0 comments
cocaine has been listed 12 times with 0 comments
addict has been listed 6 times with 1 comment
nightmare has been listed 18 times with 2 comments
occupier has been listed 1 time with 0 comments
denial has been listed 6 times with 0 comments
secretive has been listed 11 times with 0 comments
corporate has been listed 3 times with 0 comments
oilman has been listed 1 time with 0 comments
puppet has been listed 12 times with 0 comments
insular has been listed 25 times with 2 comments
wrong has been listed 18 times with 13 comments
bellicose has been listed 111 times with 0 comments
hawkish has been listed 6 times with 0 comments
truculent has been listed 110 times with 6 comments
belligerent has been listed 72 times with 3 comments
antagonistic has been listed 14 times with 0 comments
deaf has been listed 6 times with 0 comments
incompetent has been listed 7 times with 0 comments
unqualified has been listed 1 time with 0 comments
figurehead has been listed 5 times with 2 comments
perpetuate has been listed 7 times with 0 comments
vigilante has been listed 28 times with 2 comments
quixotic has been listed 331 times with 21 comments
blind has been listed 10 times with 1 comment
demagogue has been listed 41 times with 0 comments
divider has been listed 1 time with 0 comments
afraid has been listed 10 times with 1 comment
inexperienced has been listed 2 times with 0 comments
immature has been listed 4 times with 1 comment
bully has been listed 16 times with 4 comments
angry has been listed 17 times with 1 comment
petulant has been listed 94 times with 2 comments
grudge has been listed 9 times with 0 comments
vindictive has been listed 38 times with 0 comments
vengeful has been listed 9 times with 0 comments
ignorant has been listed 16 times with 1 comment
naive has been listed 26 times with 1 comment
cowboy has been listed 12 times with 0 comments
How is "terrorist" not on here?
People were always making that perceived inversion as a subversive political comment on the blinkered pov of his sympathisers.
Also those good bush/bad bush tshirts are worth mentioning. Two types of good bush apparantly.
uselessness,
Thank you for the encouraging words..
I like how you've incorporated buzzwords and phrases from Bush rhetoric. This is a great list!
It's important not to let others get you feeling jumpy about your own list. When I first joined Wordie I caught some flak for including global warming on my She Blinded Me With Pseudoscience list. I was accused of being a "right wing nut job" (which I'm not, but even if I was, is that a crime?). I ultimately caved to the pressure and removed the offending word.
Your lists are your own. Here's another list that raised some eyebrows not too long ago. It's a disgusting list. I don't want to ever look at it again. But I do support gmb's right to create/maintain it. On a site like this, there's no need for people-pleasing... or for us to try to silence others. You and I needn't worry about expressing opinions, whether we are in the majority or otherwise.
First, I corrected and shortened the titles of the lists (and kept them separate.
Next, I placed a warning message at the top that simple political bickering in the comments would be deleted with discussion.
Third, I returned the censored words except for one: murderer. Yes, "murderer" has probably been uttered by someone. But the nature of the usage of the word is similar to the other expletives because its utterance is intended to be inflammatory. It also does not contain any truth as far as I can tell in that one cannot convict a sitting president for murder by ordering troops to combat. I will check with a lawyer on this one, but I believe it is true. So, 1. No truth at all, and 2. Inflammatory or slanderous. If a word has a small bit of truth, or is true only in a slight context, I would consider keep for that reason. Words can go on the list by default. If someone objects, there should be some discussion, but based on accepted criteria and then either removed or retained.
Last, I added a lot of words to both lists, which take them in some new directions. I hope this helps to mitigate the sense of hate in the Against list.
Any thoughts..?
bernaun
I was just making an observation, you can do as you please with your lists. I think people, by nature, have great potential for mean-spiritedness -- it's not limited to the right or left. Where there is no unanimous agreement, that kind of speech will always arise in the opposition.
I think AbraxasZugzwang has some good points... but you don't need to feel like the victim of your creation either. You're not forced to add any and all possible words just because they "belong" on the list. You can mediate and censor to your heart's content. Do what you feel is right; it's still a good list.
Here're my thoughts on the issue. I like that you combined both lists. It seemed the purpose of the list was to gather any and all terms used frequently in reference to Bush. Combining the lists evens the playing field, but removing words based on an individual (potential) taking umbrage at their presence doesn't make sense to me. I understand that this isn't scientific, but that's more reason to include all available terms, as far as I can see. Why attempt to play mediator? I think all you need is a disclaimer that the words don't necessarily represent your thoughts or feelings.
Now, a word like "asshole" would have no place in the list. That's mere name-calling and could branch off indefinitely. But "murderer," for instance, is a word often used is relation to the President, whether people like it or not.
* first, thank you for your thoughtful comment. I have considered it at some length.
* ok, so I didn't want to make this a political debate as much as sort of a survey of the words chosen in a political debate. I had thought of this list (actually, both lists including the GOP list) as sort of saying something without saying something. In fact, I personally don't agree with some in the list.
* However, I think you are right, some of the words are indeed quite mean-spirited, if not simply name-calling. I think my tentative desire is to remain true in the collection and collect the words, no matter how harsh, but this is not a scientific activity. Therefore, it does not have any obligation to truth or purity (even if I could measure it, right?). So, in the spirit of making the list something someone could also show their child as an educational exercise, I decided to excise the more vitriolic entries.
* For good measure, I will make the jettisoned words available upon request.
* In addition, I will suggest a criterion for evaluating whether a word is appropriate or not: If the word does not address a specific characteristic of Bush or the administration, or its use is plainly intended to offend or berate or to smear... put more simply, if it would not be appropriate for a kind to learn the word, it will be removed. I hope you will send feedback on this criterion.
* Finally, to address the one part of your comment that I thought an attack on the Dems (ok, not really, maybe a mild attack on the Dems..). I don't think sour notes are unique to the Democrats as a group - I have heard much worse about Hillary Clinton uttered. However, following on your mention, I will also change the names of the lists both to represent more abstract groups.
* What do you think of these changes (and the edited list..?)
Thank you again!
bernaun
I'm not a fan of Bush or his policies (at all) but darn if most of these words aren't awfully mean-spirited. I say that, not directed at you, but as an observation of the "Dems" in general... seems to me that a little tact and a little less vitriol might help the liberals out. It just sounds like they're angry all the time, and most of it transcends politics to petty attacks on Bush himself, and how he's "stupid," or "looks like a monkey." Terribly misdirected rancor, if you ask me.
I'll criticize the administration plenty, but I try to stick to legitimate arguments over name-calling and outright rudeness.
Here're some off the top of my head. Not limited to Dems, though: criminal, coward, war criminal, liar, ineffective, inactive, underestimated, profiteer, corrupt, cheat, zealot, murderer, scary, uninformed, misled, sucker, tool, illiterate, simpleton, likeable, principled, convinced.