Brain damage

[Frank Adams]

In article <1345 at teddy.UUCP> rdp at teddy.UUCP (Richard D. Pierce) writes:
>While this reply was inspired by this particular posting, it is not a
>flame at the poster, but rather to the network in general.

If you didn't intend to flame at the poster, you should have avoided doing
so.

>Over a number of years, members of my family have been involved in the
>care and education of retarded and brain-damaged people. Recently, I
>myself married and gained a 14-year old son with epilepsy. The cavalier
>use of the term "brain-damaged" is both innappropriate and, in some cases,
>downright offensive. The use of the term seems to be limited to net.lang.c,
>which may or may not be testimony to the level of courtesy of the people
>inclined to communicate in this forum. 

I only used the term because it was used in the article I was replying to.
It is not one I would normally use.  On the other hand, I don't think the
word is particularly inappropriate in this context.  We are talking about
systems which are supposed to perform computational functions, as the
brain does; it is a reasonable extrapolation of this idea to describe them
as "brain-damaged" when they are deficient.  One describes a city as
"crippled" when normal activities are interrupted by an act of nature;
I don't think this usage is any more insulting than that one.

>The attitude exemplified above seems to give this person the impression that
>matters of incontrovertable physical law are being questioned 
>("architectures ... ARE brain-damaged:, as opposed to "architectures ...
>I find deficient").

I wished to make a stronger statement than that.  Yes, it is my opinion;
but I hold that opinion quite strongly.

>The opinoins expressed on this net are just that. Frankly,
>letters like the above I find to be the output of human architectures
>which are socially-damaged.

Frankly, I find sentences like the one above extremely offensive.

>Flames in reply are not solicited, welcome, or accepted.

You feel free to flame, but don't want to be flamed at?

Frank Adams                           ihpn4!philabs!pwa-b!mmintl!franka
Multimate International    52 Oakland Ave North    E. Hartford, CT 06108