Unnecessary Conflict
Introduction
So many problems plague our world that one would be hard-pressed to name them all. With so many problems, the fostering of any conflict that is not strictly necessary has the effect of detracting from the resolution of real issues. We need to resist anybody who attempts to create a conflict that does nothing to benefit society.
July 11, 2007
NAACP Buries the Word "Nigger"
If you look at this issue from a purely factual perspective, using or hearing the word "nigger", or any other so-called offensive word, for that matter, does not do tangible physical harm to a person, or at least most people. I cannot say for certain that some people are not so emotionally damaged that hearing a word causes actual physical harm, but these people would have to be an exception.
If you accept that lack of tangible physical harm, then you are able to realize that any emotional harm caused by a word is harm that can be resolved internally instead of externally. That is to say, there is nothing intrinstic in the biology of a human (as far as I understand) that would cause a person to be harmed by hearing a word. Thus, with conscious effort, any person should be able to focus his energies internally and force himself to feel nothing in response to words. If a person can succeed at this, then there is no need to create external conflict by trying to change the behaviour of other people.
In the general case, attempts to change the behaviour of another person tends to create conflict. Many times this conflict is necessary, because the behavioural change has a beneficial effect on the individual and/or society. But in the case of using a word like "nigger", there is no real benefit.