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Comment by vortico | Hacker News Reader

If you or someone else took offense to my word choice because of having personal connections with genocides, and that the horrible concept is brought to their mind after reading my post, I would have happily changed it during the editable time to prevent others from having similar negative thoughts. However, I do not give a bit of concern to people who get offended for others and have no actual personal connection with the word and thus have no real negative thoughts. They are as privileged as I am for being able to say the word and not be bothered by the connotations.

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By the same token, there exist many people who seek reasons to be offended. They will find offense no matter what you say. They will clamor in groups to be more outraged than the last. I try to disengage from those types of people.

I'm reluctant to use the term, but it applies. It's 'virtue signaling' and I presume it gives people an ego boost or a rush of endorphins. I doubt they really care, or have any true investment, they just want you to know they are morally superior and their peers to see them standing up for a cause, no matter how absurd.

My conclusion is, if you seek umbrage, you will find it.

> people who get offended for others and have no actual personal connection with the word and thus have no real negative thoughts.

That could better be described as a capacity for empathy, particularly in the context of genocide. "No real negative thoughts" is your assumption.

A capacity for empathy, and a greater capacity for putting words in people's mouths. The assumed offense is what needs to be proven, not the lack of it.

I personally didn't take 'offence'. That would be objection in the domain of social manners, which was considered important in the Victorian era schools, but has somewhat dropped in esteem since.

My objection is in the domain of ethics, as I think taking genocide lightly is an ethical problem for all of us (that is, for humanity, which I take to include you).

> I am ... able to say the word and not be bothered by the connotations.

Quite.

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