Thanks for clearing that up

It seems perfectly obvious to me.

Thanks.

It's derived from the "p" word.

It's commonly used to insult men when someone feels they aren't "manly" enough, whatever that might mean. It's part of a male culture that devalues sensitivity, artistic endeavors and other "unmanly" things.

In my experience, people who use such descriptors for other men are generally also misogynists. I object to it when I hear it, now that I'm an old geezer. When I was a high school kid, though, I did not understand that I could object. I was a band geek, not an athlete, and that led to being called such things from time to time. I ignored it. Others weren't able to ignore slurs like that, and were harmed by them.

Today, I speak up about it. I've absolutely nothing to lose by doing so.

The implication is always to some sort of "unmanliness" on the part of the man being called either of those words. Whatever "manliness" means, in the first place.

Some men appear to have a very, very narrow definition of what is manly. I worry about men like those. They have a tendency toward violence, in my experience.

...female or male, we're basically stuck with crude (e.g. pussy, cock), coldly clinical (e.g. vulva, penis), awkwardly indirect (e.g. nether regions) or childish (e.g. wee-wee).

With those kinds of choices, I'm afraid crude works better sometimes. Just less often than some might use it.

...heel, elbow, wrist, etc coldly clinical, or merely what those parts are called? We need to get over our queasiness with proper terminology. Too man of our puritan hangups are still with us.

as was Victoria, Princess Royal of the UK and later Empress of Germany, or "Puss" as was Scarlett O'Hara in "Gone with the Wind." My great-aunt Julia, who was born in 1880, liked to be called "Aunt Puss," though her naughty nephews would giggle about it when she was out of earshot. It's a shame that such a really nice word has become so corrupted, not that I'm saying there's anything wrong with the female external genitalia.

The reference is to a cat, not an anatomical feature, I believe.

Last edited Thu Oct 20, 2016, 04:28 PM - Edit history (1)

...for using the proper anatomical terminology of vulva, rather than vagina. Perineum would also do. Vagina seems to have become a generic term for any of the structures "down there."

Seeing as the vagina is a hollow muscular tube accessed, if you will, by passing the vulva/perineum, it would be tough to touch it unless its owner were going commando. And, impossible to "grab" it unless performing gynecological surgery.

This is in no way any defense of scumbag Trump. I just have a thing about anatomical accuracy. When I was in nursing school in my early twenties, several of my classmates and I, some of whom were still virgins, were shocked when one of our fellow students, a mom of 3 in her mid-forties, unintentionally let it be known that she had no idea that she had both a urethra and a vagina. We were having a class on urinary catheterization, and when she saw the small circumference of the catheters, she blurted out, "How is that little thing going to stay in place? My husband is much bigger than that and fills me right up.

The stunned silence was deafening.

More's the pity. There are perfectly good names for all of our anatomical features. It's good to know them, so you can speak about them when something goes wrong with them.

Humans are strangely incurious about themselves, it seems.

...a parent to translate various of their family euphemisms because I have no idea what the hell they are talking about.

Many moms can't bring them selves to say penis, and will ask me to "check my son's little peter," or "little thing."

With both of my pregnancies, we knew, from genetic testing, that we were having boys. When discussing names, my husband said, "How about Peter?" Nope. No way.

wikipedia: Before the male catkins of these species come into full flower they are covered in fine, greyish fur, leading to a fancied likeness to tiny cats, also known as “pussies”. The catkins appear long before the leaves, and are one of the earliest signs of spring. At other times of year trees of most of these species are usually known by their ordinary names.

But I understand its effect on others and I can't deny that it can be an effective taunt to a he-man-wannabe like Trump. Not my call, though.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]A 90% chance of rain means the same as a 10% chance:
It might rain and it might not.[/center][/font][hr]

Inherently offensive to most people. I agree using it as an insult is bad and I agree it's not a word that is used in every context. But under ordinary circumstances I suspect most people wouldn't call themselves nasty and yet today they are.

Most people I know think racial slurs are offensive. Most people think Blazing Saddles is hilarious. Most people think Huck Finn is great literature. Both include racial slurs that are vital to the story.

Wanda Sykes used it in one of her routines and it was hilarious.

It doesn't have to be a negative because Deplorable used it.

Remember your little joke thread?

Mineral Man Quoted below....

----

I grabbed a pussy once, and paid dearly for it.

A pussy kitty. I was in a campground in California on the beach. Sitting at a table eating breakfast, I heard a quiet mewing coming from a nearby tree. I looked around and finally spotted the little 6-8 week old feral kitten perched on a branch. My wife suggested that I go get it and we'd take it home to rescue it from its poor chances at a decent life

"OK...I'll try." So, I climbed up into the tree, reached out and grabbed the pussycat. It responded by sinking 16 needle-sharp claws deeply into my hand. Despite the pain, I backed down out of the tree, kitty in hand. We put the kitten into the back of our pickup and camper and headed home. My hand finally quit bleeding after a while.

Sixteen years later, the pussy I had grabbed finally passed away peacefully. It turned out to be a very nice little guy. My hand healed, although not without considerable swelling and a course of antibiotics.

That's my grabbing pussy story. Thanks for reading, and sorry for the trick I played on you.

------

Let's see. You really needed to post that in GD? Sure, you used the word several times to mean a cat because you just had to get that out right after the whole Trump story came out. Did you think it was funny? Did you think it was cute? Was it supposed to lead to some kind of meaningful discussion?

Many years ago when the p word came under fire, I did a DU search. The word used to mean a cat had been posted exactly ONCE over a long period of time. It negated all of those people screaming that it was a perfectly acceptable word to use to mean a cat. Of course it is. BUT PEOPLE DON'T GENERALLY USE IT TO REFER TO A CAT. At least people on DU did not at that time.

Fast forward to Trump's use of the word and many people used it to mean cat (AND the way Donald Trump used it) including you.

So spare us the lecture now, thank you.

Sorry, I have to disagree with you.

https://www.thenation.com/article/on-november-8-pussy-grabs-back/

one starts with a "C", it is derived from the Latin, it's used roughly every other word in the UK. and frequently by my daughter.

context is everything.

It is a perfectly acceptable term used between consenting adults in sexual situations. So no, you do not get your wish with me or others.

interfere in your private life.

I have put a few people on ignore this week because I got sick of them using it in several posts a day.

the ooze draining from an infected wound.

Can't help it, I've been putting up Halloween decorations all day and zombies were involved.

If you're talking about her:




(and only because that one is grandfathered in)