The F word
The Internet and anonymity are synchronous. When people hide behind an avatar, with no foreseeable repercussions, they begin to let their inner selves out. 4chan is a perfect example of this, with it’s blatant racism, sexism and prejudice, it is a breeding ground for trolls and scummy people. For the newfags, it’s a crazy world to enter.
Yeah, newfag. For those of you who don’t know, fag isn’t a term for bigots any more. I mean, it still is used that way, but the word has lost all ownership and almost has a desensitized value. The word is smacked on to the end of another word to standardize its group members as substandard. So newfag’s by definition are ‘inexperienced newcomers’, chanfags are those who spend too much time on 4chan. The possibilities are endless.
When is it appropriate? Honestly, it shouldn’t ever be appropriate. Using the terminology outside of tightly developed online communities could result in a lot of disgust, and using it in a real life situation towards anyone who doesn’t explicitly know what you’re referring to might get you deservingly hospitalized. It does however, come into pay when people are acting anonymously, because with anonymity comes the freedom to express yourself in a way that even you might typically be disgusted with.
The real point is, that the word Fag, is now the word fag. It holds a whole new intent, lack of power, lack of punch and general lack of wit. This ties into the real problem. Generally speaking, the users of these terms are old enough to know better and probably do. The imitators (under 15’s) who are new to all of this and want to be like the other really cool anonymous people, are going to pick it up and think this type of thing is acceptable. It may only be a small part of the problem, but it’s a problem that is desensitizing and demoralizing our youth. I’m looking forward to the next 10 years. Today’s youth are going to be tomorrows ignorant workforce.
Here’s something for you anonfags to consider:
Eminem said it best “‘Faggot’ to me doesn’t necessarily mean gay people. ’Faggot’ to me just means… taking away your manhood. You’re a sissy. You’re a coward.”
Disclosure: I frequent 4chan on a weekly basis. Most of the funny things on the Internet originate from 4chan. Anonymity sometimes equates to hilarity.
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