PC Strikes Again..

   Will the ridiculousness ever end?

   I really doubt it.

   Today it is "differently abled."

   When your car or home alarm is "off" is it differently abled? I've always considered them "disabled" in this state.

   I've always thought that "disabilities" were the reason you don't go under the knife at the hands of a blind surgeon or put your musical career in the hands of a deaf music critic?

   So whatever happened to "disabled" and "handicapped?" Did they become offensive? It seems to me that they are pretty accurate in describing situations such as blindness or deafness. Consider:

   (From Merriam-Webster)

      handicapped = having a physical or mental disability

      disabled = incapacitated by illness or injury; also : physically or mentally impaired in a way that substantially limits activity especially in relation to employment or education

      incapacitate = to deprive of capacity or natural power

   So what gives? I still maintain that if you're being honest, calling someone disabled is stating the facts. It doesn't mean they're a bad person or incapable of doing something that an "able-bodied" person can. In fact, I would argue that a blind music critic or a deaf surgeon might be superiorly-abled, in their particular fields, to those of us that can both see and hear. But in situations where a certain sense or functionality is required, and you lack that ability, you are clearly disadvantaged, or hampered, or handicapped, or even disabled.

   Let's stop mincing words.