[Ads-l] sexist "crazy"

[Laurence Horn]

> On Mar 20, 2016, at 10:30 AM, Marc Sacks <msacksg at GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> 
> There was an interestingly ambiguous quote in the linked article: "too few
> orgasms lead to hysteria."  I never realized hysteria was the goal of
> orgasms, but you learn something new every day, I guess.
> 
> Marc Sacks

For me, that's the *only* reading I get with the plural "lead"; what I assume is the intended reading requires singular agreement: "too few orgasms leads to hysteria".  Ambiguity would pop up when the distinction is neutralized:  "too few orgasms {could lead/might lead/led} to hysteria".  

LH
> 
> On Sun, Mar 20, 2016 at 8:54 AM, Dan Goncharoff <thegonch at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
>> -----------------------
>> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>> Poster:       Dan Goncharoff <thegonch at GMAIL.COM>
>> Subject:      Re: sexist "crazy"
>> 
>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> 
>> I think of two things. First, there is the meaning of "hysterical", a word
>> with a firm gender bias.
>> 
>> Second, there is this:
>> 
>> 
>> https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.huffingtonpost.com_2014_12_01_dont-2Dcall-2Dwomen-2Dcrazy-5Fn-5F6201580.html&d=AwIBaQ&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=wFp3X4Mu39hB2bf13gtz0ZpW1TsSxPIWYiZRsMFFaLQ&m=xcS-gAXiVY97b7JEOyf49Co3J4YZidzvVMQA-WFgYvg&s=z8WqECmfJlZgStPvUqiFu-K4TVw2j3jXj6_55eQB1sI&e= 
>> 
>> DanG
>> 
>> On Sun, Mar 20, 2016 at 8:05 AM, Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>> 
>>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
>>> -----------------------
>>> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>>> Poster:       Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
>>> Subject:      sexist "crazy"
>>> 
>>> 
>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>> 
>>> Donald Trump has called Megyn Kelly "crazy."
>>> 
>>> Donald Trump has resumed his gratuitous obsessive-compulsive blasting of
>>> Megyn Kelly. And according to CNN media correspondent Brian Stelter:
>>> 
>>> "Lately he's been calling her 'crazy,' which some people would think is a
>>> sexist reference. There is a meaning of 'crazy' when applied to women
>> that
>>> is different than when applied to men. We all kind of know that in
>> society.
>>> When he says 'crazy Megyn Kelly,' it certainly has a specific
>> connotation."
>>> 
>>> Q.: Huh? *I* don't know it, "kind of" or otherwise. Crazy means crazy.
>>> First we were assured that "moist" is one of the most offensive words in
>>> English.  Now this.
>>> 
>>> Elucidation, please.
>>> 
>>> JL
>>> 
>>> JL
>>> 
>>> --
>>> "If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the
>> truth."
>>> 
>>> ------------------------------------------------------------
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>>> 
>> 
>> ------------------------------------------------------------
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>> 
> 
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