the new taboo

[James Mullan]

At 10:52 5/27/03 -0700, Ed Keer wrote:
[snip]
>Evidently, from a discussion over at the StraightDope
> >
> >
> >http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=185861&hig
> hlight=cunt, the word has started to be used in
> > England in reference to a male.  The UK posters suggest that it is no
> > worse than calling a guy a wanker, at least in some circles.
[snip]
I'd have to disagree with these "UK posters" - in my experience of living
in the UK over a 30-year period, there is a very great difference.

IMHO, a "wanker" is (generally) a male, who does or says something stupid,
thoughtless, insensitive or incompetent, but the behaviour giving rise to
his being so described is generally based on stupidity, not malice.
OTOH, a "c*nt" is a male whose actions are based on some kind of malice or
sociopathology, without regard to consequences to others, but possibly done
in awareness of consequences. Someone so described is not a nice person, in
the mind of the descriptor.

Test responses, if you don't believe me. Call a person a "wanker" to his
face. He will be offended, but not necessarily to the point of violence
against the person so describing him. Call a man a "c*nt" to his face, be
ready to defend yourself. You will almost certainly have to. Nowadays, a
"bunch of fives" is probable; in earlier days, a slap across the face with
a glove, &/or a request to name a second and choose weapons would have been
within the range of reasonable responses.

IMO, it is one of the most egregious and insulting terms in the language -
to such a degree that even I, normally robust in my vernacular and blunt,
occasionally profane in my descriptions, have not used this term in over 40
years, despite having encountered many "wankers" and nasty sonsofbitches in
that time. "American cousins" should use this term with very great
discretion, and rarity, when dealing with Brit males, lest they be
presented with direct, personal evidence of the difference between usages
of our common language.
HTH
Jimmy