Iowa white washes the books for the word "retarded"

[Armatus]

So Iowa (my state) is joining the ranks of the seven noble states which have enacted similar bills,

Heddens noted that President Obama signed a bill in 2010 requiring federal agencies to stop using "retarded." At least seven other states have made the change, and others are considering it, national experts say. For now, a few references would remain in Iowa code because it would need to conform to the formal medical diagnosis, which still is "mental retardation." However, officials expect the medical terminology to change soon, too.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/...ted/52845494/1

The ‘R’ word is officially yanked from Iowa law

The term “retarded” will be replaced with “intellectual disability” in Iowa’s law, under a bill that Gov. Terry Branstad signed today.

The bill, Senate File 2247, was pushed by state Rep. Lisa Heddens, an Ames Democrat whose son has Down syndrome. She and advocates for the disabled say the term “retarded” is offensive and is more accurately defined as an intellectual disability.

http://blogs.desmoinesregister.com/d...from-iowa-law/

Senate File 2247 AN ACT RELATING TO TERMINOLOGY CHANGES IN IOWA CODE REFERENCES TO MENTAL RETARDATION. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

Section 1. Section 4.1, Code 2011, is amended by adding the following new subsection: NEW SUBSECTION . 09A. “Intellectual disability” means a disability of children and adults who as a result of inadequately developed intelligence have a significant
Senate File 2247, p. 2 impairment in ability to learn or to adapt to the demands of society, and, if a diagnosis is required, “intellectual disability” means a diagnosis of mental retardation as defined in the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, fourth edition, text revised, published by the American psychiatric association

http://coolice.legis.state.ia.us/Coo...4&hbill=SF2247

But hey what can we expect, the English language is not static, but dynamic and evolving with the times and it's obviously the government's job to ensure it keeps up with the popular vernacular right? Especially when it comes to appeasing the sensitivities of special interest groups and bleeding hearts.

There is no doubt that this was a fantastic usage of my tax dollars, an appropriate issue to take time out to resolve; as we all know government is not just responsible for making everyone play fair, but to feel good about themselves as well.

And look at it this way it may just save jobs too, as someone will have to rewrite the books with proper terminology as words change connotation with niche societal usage.

I will leave with this,

[MathiasOfAthens]

Retarded is offensive.

[Erwin Rommel]

Hah!

Our Penal Code still uses Imbecile............but imbeciles are a mitigating factor.

[magpie]

Well the new term can join other,s in the brave new world of PC.

I guess many of the older generation will just have to relearn english?

[Gatsby]

As I understand it to retard something is to impede or set back. Thus "mental-retardation" is the condition of having a severely limited intellectual capacity. I don't see the offensive connotations in the term, it's seems more clinical and professional than "intellectual disability".

It's all about context, if I call someone a ing retard then it's offensive. But if I'm a doctor and I diagnose someone with mental-retardation then I'm just describing their condition. If I want to insult someone then the term disabled is just as potent.

If they want to protect mentally-retarded people they should educate the public on their conditions instead of tip-toeing around the issue and thinking that changing some law on a bit of terminology is going to make a difference.

Treating the general public like a bunch of disableds isn't going to help the retarded.

[Eikki]

Well the new term can join other,s in the brave new world of PC.

I guess many of the older generation will just have to relearn english?

Apparently the older generation also needs to learn the difference between a comma and an apostrophe.

[kentuckybandit]

Apparently the older generation also needs to learn the difference between a comma and an apostrophe.

Nice attempt at a personal jab there. Pointing out people's keyboarding mistakes always helps prove your point.

Really just a clerical issue in my opinion. Obviously when wording in laws are changed, it requires legislative action. We can't have faceless clerks changing the wording of laws without people debating/knowing.

[Armatus]

Obviously when wording in laws are changed, it requires legislative action. We can't have faceless clerks changing the wording of laws without people debating/knowing.

Wording in law? I'm quite sure this is a bit different. By this change we are saying adolescences and Bullies define our language.

[MathiasOfAthens]

Its not PC magpie. Its simple govt definition not a law forcing people to stop saying Retard.

[saglam2000]

Retarded is much easier to say than intellectually disabled. And it's not like the new term is not offensive either, it's just more specific.

[Oswald von Wolkenstein]

It's good to see our state legislatures handling matters that are really important. Sounds kind of retarded to me. (If that word was blocked out in Iowa, is says r e t a r d e d.)

[The Unknown General]

I'm offensive and I find this retarded.

[garbage dispenser]

The people who decided to take away the word retarded, as themselves retarded

[a tw player]

The people who came up with this are retarded.

[garbage dispenser]

Retarded people should be nutered, we need a new eugenics program!

[MathiasOfAthens]

You guys just called the legislators retarded because they changed the name of this term? Your statements were retarded.

Especially yours Garbage? You want to neuter "retards"? How about people with ADD and ADHD because technically they are "retards" as well?

[Phier]

Thats retarded.

This sort of thing reminds me evolution of race words in the US.

Just about every racial descriptive word now considered offensive in the US at one time was considered the new 'non-offensive' one.

For example "colored".

[motiv-8]

For example "colored".

Not a bad point, but a bad example. This was because of the specific historical context applied to the word "colored" as in... "No coloreds allowed." The word was inherently utilized to designate an "inferior" people and segregate them.

Although now because of further changing demographics in America you have people getting pissy about the word "African-American"... As in Americans who are immigrants from Africa complain about the word being used to describe all blacks because they're the only real Africans. It gets really.. retarded.. really fast.

[Phier]

Not a bad point, but a bad example. This was because of the specific historical context applied to the word "colored" as in... "No coloreds allowed." The word was inherently utilized to designate an "inferior" people and segregate them.

Only you can make yourself feel inferior

So its not a bad example, its the perfect example. Its the unofficial connotation which has "Retarded" as a offensive word. I don't recall what word "retarded" replaced but in 19th century and early 20th century medical journals "Idiot" was often used instead.

I think the current trick is to make the word too unwieldy to use insultingly such as African American, or Intellectual Disability. Though perhaps in 40 years it will be "American with heritage from the Continent of Africa" and "Wonderful Child who learns differently but is still wonderful".

[Armatus]

I just think some of you folks are angry that a word is being changed and you guys view this as political correctness.

It's not so much the PC, but the fact that this trivial non-sense costs us (the tax payers) money to "fix", in fact it does more than fix something that anit broke, it's further compounding the double language of legalese that I think most would agree would be better off simplified for common understanding.

Statehouse would replace the words with "intellectual disability" almost everywhere in state law. The bill is 70 pages long, because the wording shows up so often in laws and regulations.

So should we create an official Department of Euphemisms? So that the government can ensure that no one will be offended as connotation of words change with cultural usage over time? Which in this case really can't even be considered a cultural one since the word is only largely used in a derogatory way by kids. Maybe a better method would be to fine the parents of the kids using the word this way so that they can pay to have the 70 pages of law books revised.

Additionally we are in fact redefining the English language because the word retarded will officially take on new meaning after this (at least for government/medical use in Iowa and the other 7 Noble states which did the same thing).

The proposal is being pushed by state Rep. Lisa Heddens, an Ames Democrat who has a personal perspective on the issue. Her son, Paul, 17, has Down syndrome. He has challenges, she said, but he is just as much of a person as anyone else. "The idea of the term 'retarded,' to me, comes off as 'less than,'" she said. "That's not how I see my son."

Maybe she should teach her son the actual meaning of the word and explain that there are bad kids out there who will say anything to hurt his feelings, not just the word "retarded".

We have to ask above and beyond ensuring clear meaning and legibility in law and medicine is this something government should be bothering about? The appealing to the feelings and sensibility of people who wish to legally change words with deemed non-offensive terms?

That's not what I want my state tax dollars to go towards, maybe they should have a public fund raiser and see much support this gets.

...and "Wonderful Child who learns differently but is still wonderful".