Weird is good. Own it.
this post was submitted on 10 Aug 2024
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Weird can be good...sometimes, depending on the context.
This is how all words become squanch.
For real. Keep using weird.
I'm tired seeing politicians talk about everything but their actual policies. Hope they actually say stuff of substance like oh I don't know their policies?
Agreed.
I'd argue that weird isn't being used as an insult, but to state that the bullies are in fact not representing the norm. They are outside the norm but pretend to be normal, they insist on being normal - which makes it weird. It's not an insult to us, but it is an insult to them. Which makes it funny.
Fascists believe in inequality based on identity, while we kinda thought we had this already sorted that we all believe in equality now. Like all people created equal. But their need to define an identity as superior and then attacking anybody outside the norm is being used against them. And it IS weird to do that, most people simply don't care if you're a little weird. We still have to learn to be more tolerant to more weirdness and not react with biases or irrational emotions. Respect weirdness.
So weird isn't being used as an insult but as a way to rob them of their power - their attempt to define a new normal. And their arguments and attacks against anyone else are becoming increasingly bizarre, less founded in reality, absurd claims. Comical. Weird.
There is the metaphor about slowly cooking a frog without him noticing, shifting the overton window. Weird sort of resets that. It is more an attack on what they DO than what they are.
Nice, that makes sense. I'll keep using weird.
Very well said
"weird" is an effective way to shut down right-wing nutjobs because they care too much about conformity, and are likely to change their behaviour if they believe they are going against the will of the herd. it undermines their whole 'silent majority' schtick.
all this to say, i'm autistic, i'm weird, and i don't think that this new strategic use of the word in politics should mean you shouldn't use it in other ways too.
Yeah, that makes sense. It's not so much that they are labeled weird, but that they are shocked thinking they were not...
Quirky, unique, eccentric, remarkable, mystifying, fantastic, unconventional, offbeat.
if you're referring to yourself I'd prefer 'quirky' because it has less of a self-aggrandizing quality to it. More neutral per se
Eccentric, mystifying, unconventional, and offbeat all have varying levels of 'polite judgment' or condescension inherent to them so should be used carefully when referring to others.
Unique, remarkable, and fantastic are the more complimentary versions.
I think "quirky" as a self-descriptor got pretty heavily stigmatized during the 2010s, though. Like if someone self-identifies as "quirky", the first thing that comes to my mind is the *holds up spork* copypasta. I actually personally really like offbeat, as long as you use a modifier like "a bit".
I don't see why it can't be an insult for them and a compliment for me. Just like gay was for years. I'm weird and I'm proud.
Absolutely. They can't use it back.
This concern feels unnecessary.
Yup. A lot of feelings are unnecessary yet are there anyway for us to deal with them.
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Quirky
I'm still quite happy using weird in a positive light. I feel context is always important for a word. Plenty of words have double meanings depending on context.
Are you literally going out of your way to deliberately remove any positive connotation from a word in order to try and artificially manufacture a slur?
Pretty weird.
- Eccentric
- βA wide variety of interestsβ
Eccentric is a good alternative.
Go Victorian with it. Perfectly Peculiar.
Great discussion about this topic here: https://sopuli.xyz/post/15705393
β¦ if someone is called weird and they agree with you, they are the good weird, but if you call them weird and they get defensive/aggressive they are the bad weird β¦
Hehe, I'll have a read on that thread.
Quirky is definitely the best fit, if you are worried about an ambiguous context using a descriptor.
Still, don't discard weird as a word altogether like a slur so quickly. "Keep Portland Weird", "Weird Al Yankovic", still describes stuff that are a little unusual but cool to be around, and the fact that this word comes up in the context of US politics shouldn't remove one of the word's many meanings.
A guy at a bar who always shows up with round sunglasses and a tie dye shirt, ordering a glass of milk is the cool kind of weird. A guy who spends all their time talking about themselves are the annoying antisocial kind of weird. Someone who sits next to a washroom staring at the ass of every person going in and out of it is the creep kind of weird.
I was just thinking about "quirky" because my sister-in-law recently used it to describe her daughter. Her contrasting word (for her son) was "straightforward."
Personally, I fit the former even though I've learned to "pass for normal." NOT my words. That was a direct quote and it was meant as a compliment. Weird is definitely meant as an insult in the US Midwest.
'Quaint' is a delightful word for the positively weird
It usually implies it's weird in an old-fasioned way though.
Quirky
Sorry for hijacking the post, but I don't think people get why this usage of weird bothers some people. It's not that we (several kinds of weird we) are not used to be called weird or similar. We grew up and found people who were like us and understood our quirkiness. Weird was the weapon of the bigot and we took that away from them. Until our friends, or community at large, started acting like the people that hurt us in the past. We could deal with the bullies and ignorant using it against us, but this new situation was unexpected.
I don't like comparing struggles, but I'll use examples to, maybe, make things clear. Using queer instead of weird would have bothered them the same, although I don't believe it would have worked the same way, but more people at our side would see the issue. And the next one might be much more personal, but reading "good weird, bad weird" sounds like "good negro, bad negro" to me. You don't get to judge or qualify me.
Also, even in a discussion that completely accepts and is understanding of people using weird as a weapon to the point of trying to find another word to be used in a positive way, there are comments that invalidate the feelings of those who are affected. If you believe words have power, why can't you see the collateral damage?
Honestly, I'm trying to endure it until election season ends there in the USA, but I'm starting to feel the need to talk about all the wonderful things I like using the word weird just to counteract the negativity.
Apply the color spectrum into the mix.
The color red is currently used by both "extreme" political groups in the U.S., the "extreme" leftists and the extreme conservatives. It's red for leftists because of communism and it's red for conservatives because of the republican party. The color has now also been co-opted by the far right and has made a comeback in the same spirit of the rise of fascism, so it's even more charged.
Does this factor into how you dress on a daily basis? Maybe, maybe not depending on the context.
Am I dressing up as a character with a lot of red? Unless they're political, it's probably not a statement. Is the outfit predominantly red with patches indicating a political spectrum? Then well, it's probably with that statement in mind. Are you in an area where the color red is affiliated with local gangs? Then you might avoid the color red entirely to prevent any accidents.
With that in mind, I still feel like weird is quite contextual. Sometimes things are weird because they are unusual. Sometimes unusual is mystical, sometimes unusual is haunting.
That's the thing about language, English somewhat moreso than others because of its nature. Words mean things based on the words surrounding them, and the meaning of a word on its own is ethereal and faceted until it has been placed in permanence within its sentence. This does not apply to all words of course, as there are obvious examples of words that are originated intentionally to be harmful, then ones that have been turned into colloquially harmful (equally harmful of course). The current case of weird is definitely the latter due to its etymology, and looking at what I've seen in social spaces... is the fear that weird will become a slur because it's being used against a person in politics, and trickle down into social insult? Because weird has always been a good and bad connotation of word. You have 2 kinds of weird uncles, you have 2 kinds of weird situations, you have 2 kinds of so many weird things because weird is weird. Sometimes it's slimy. Sometimes it's something beautiful, but unearthly. It is inherently a word far removed from the realm of concrete definition because, true to it's etymology, it comes from wyrd which meant fate. This seems important as fate itself is not set in permanence until the events occur. Something is weird because you aren't sure what to expect from it until it settles.
To me, this isn't inherently a bad thing. It is inherently a contextual thing though. If someone comes up to me and describes themselves as weird, that isn't very weird. It's forthcoming about someones personality, that they may be unusual. If we then pass by someone screaming at their phone over a donut they dropped because they hated their wife (idk) and I described him as "extremely weird", I don't think anyone except the angry man would feel insulted, nor should they, because my comment was towards the person and the circumstances.
Similarly weirdo can be a term of endearment or more derogatory, it's all just based on context. It's good to broaden our vocabulary though, so definitely don't let me stop you from shifting from using other words to describe the bizarre and vagary!
Also, this isn't to say that weird couldn't become a word we shouldn't say. If one day "the weirds" start getting targeted and people being genuinely afflicted in their livelihood then, well, yeah we're going to rethink the wording. I just am not sure that a few news outlets calling a sham politician and the last few days gestating that in the socialscape of the internet is really something we should be worrying about yet. Until then, weird will still be used by children to insult other children, it will be self ascribed by weird children and lauded by other children, and it will be used to describe unusual events both before and after they happen.
Weird is a great word for many circumstances. Do not let one circumstance define it, this one especially, not until it is so damning that it really should be brought to pasture.
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Eccentric, unusual, unique, interesting, intriguing. IDK check any thesaurus.
Just call yourself a silly goose.
There is good weird and bad weird, no harm in calling someone good weird. If you really want alternatives: Quirky, Unusual, eccebtric, interesting. However and such word can also be an insult in the right context
"Delightful".
I use "funky" a lot to mean weird in a good way
A little peculiar.
A tad perplexing.
No need for a new word. Weird means "out of the norm" , which one can wear as a badge of honor at the same time as using it to point out that MAGA does not align with everyday Americans.
eccentric is the aristocratic weird. its my go to
Difference enthusiast is fun.
As someone who has identified specifically as 'weird' or a 'weirdo', I'm happy to keep using the term. I don't think anyone's going to confuse my queer-esque anti-heirarchical neurodivergency for whatever the fuck is wrong with those fascist assholes.
Idiosyncratic works as well. Maybe better in some instances. But it also has a bit of an upright or pejorative quality that weird refreshingly lacks.
Odd?
Good-weird
Zany
Oddball?
Outlandish, bizarre, unusual, strange, unique, uncanny, queer (this one has extra connotations but has been reclaimed)
If something is positively weird I typically just call it "interesting" though it won't work in all instances.
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