LD Blog

Steve Tilley is a columnist for Canoe.ca (Toronto, ON, CA). In a recent column he used the words “learning disability” and “retardedly” in ways that I wish he hadn’t.

Today I took one of those online personality quizzes to find out which Sesame Street character I am, and came to a startling conclusion: Those online personality quiz things suck. Seriously, they’re retardedly transparent. Gee, I wonder which character I’ll end up as if I say I enjoy dribbling cookie crumbs everywhere and speaking like I have a learning disability? Or that my hobbies are collecting bottle caps and bitching at my zeppelin-headed live-in lover?

I agree with Mr. Tilley about the value of online personality quizzes. I have to disagree with his use of “learning disability” and “retardedly” as perjorative terms. I don’t mean to pose as the language police, but I hope I can remind writers that what might be colorful language may also be insulting to some who do not deserve insult. If his use of these terms bothers you, you can write to Mr. Tilley at steve@compusmart.ab.ca.