The use of the word "rape"

This is a serious issue that should be addressed. It has been a common phrase in gaming for a long time ("you got raped"). This video explains some of the issues with using it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aSZ82B_i1w

Please take 1 minute to watch it, consider it, and ask yourself:

Should people who use this phrase be banned from games they do it in?

I am not sure about banning the word but educating people of its effects and having gamers voluntarily refrain from its usage is better route IMO.

Enough with this bullshit!

How about adding something instead of being childish?

Okay, what about words like "******" and such? It's people talking anonymously online... of course some are going to be assholes. Why give this much attention to one word? This is just... ridiculous. And no, I can't be assed to watch that video. It's probably your video you're trying to advertise seeing as you're a new user with 6 posts.

Do you honestly believe you're going to make a difference with what people to say to each other online? just the thought that you're trying to encourage it is down right sad.

I certainly would support the banning of people who use such disgusting and derogatory words online. It's a public place like any other and should be treated as such.

The same would apply for any offensive word. Words have an affect on people and it would be in good taste to at least consider what is said.

I think offending one less person matters. You may not see the end results but it there is an effect.

@Pedro You do realize right, that a good 90% of the time, the words arent used in direct offense ,oppose to just screwing around with friends. I constantly use the word "******" online with friends, does that mean I'am insulting them? HELL NO! Do you honestly think anyone could give two shits about what other people say ONLINE?... most people that play online multiplayer are already toned to what to expect out of other players/friends mouths. The only real people that may get offended at FIRST, are people that are foreign to online play and only play single player.

Iam so sick of all these controversial topics popping up everywhere, especially gamespot. Few weeks ago it was over "SAME SEX MARRIAGE" in a goddamn ds game, then after that it was the lack of women and now this shit.

Who knows if you are offending your friend. If its your friends then you would know what would offend them or not. Strangers are particularly different. Its seems like there is an overall pattern of not caring about others in most of your responses. You are free to go about your life that way but don't act surprise when there are repercussions for the don't give a damn about anyone attitude.

As I have said before these issues that you are "tired" off are no different from any other issues that gamers complain about. One may get the feeling you are offended by these topics. :o

I will preface by saying the video does have a point. I remember working in a cybercafe when Halo 2 dropped and hearing xbox live chatter for the first time when family birthday parties were being hosted round the game center. My first thought was these little MF....

and yeah the quality of our thoughts like Carlin said, can be influenced by the quality of our language.

But for people who are experts in humor and know how to use stuff thats reprehensible to elicit shock humor or absurdity humor, in 'certain' forums of casual speech room shouldn't be as policed. Some situations are different. People should relent when they can realize they're hurting someone. Apologize and grow from there.

Hence why XBOX live is cutting down on wylin out youngsters. context is everything. that's why servers establish their rules. different forums of communication have certain limits on certain platforms and roles and responsibilities. You can't measure how dangerous your words can be in certain context. The ultimate example of that is sound-bytes in election season. Look at THAT level of stress. Having your integrity questioned, prodded and picked at every level and moment to the point you can't be blunt often because what might come out won't sound nice. You could mean the LEAST of harm using safe language and end up drawing serious ire. Mitt Romney's 'Binders of Women' still cracks me up when I think about it.

But yeah established context is everything.

I'am not offended, I'am just so sick and tired of the amount of insecurity that exists in the gaming industry....are we all just a bunch of weak souls that bitch about everything? seriously....because thats exactly how its coming across. You obviously dont play online all that much, otherwise you'd know, that literally no one gives a shit about what other people say... and a good percentage of the time, people dont even play in game chat, they play in party chat were they are talking to their friends! Please stop trying to defend this stupid argument, look around you.

I try to avoid using it myself unless I'm talking about the actual thing. It's too awful an act for me to use freely.

So your solution is to avoid the issue like everything else. Its obvious as stated before that non of these things are of any concern to you and you don't intend on giving a damn. So how about taking it to the next step and not replying to ALL threads relating to things you don't care about. :)

Being reasonable on the Internet is too much to ask for from most people, unfortunately.

People wish to use those words, it's their right. Doesn't MAKE it right, and I'm all for education, but these people doing so know full well their implications. They don't use them due to ignorance, It's precisely why they use them is because they're not ignorant. I don't believe those doing so should be banned, I think people need to grow thicker skins. It's why ignore functions exist.

Why do you refer to it as an "issue" when Its clearly not....literally no one cares, its not a big deal and you should stop acting like its one.

reasonable?....what? its called being stupid and having fun with friends...

Agreed. It seems that no matter what happens, there's something that's "offensive" and has the ability to "harm" others.

You're going to hear it. You're going to say it. You're going to be around it. This is the internet. Is the world we live in. It's sad, but true. So, grow some thicker skin and deal with it. You aren't going to get through life easily by getting offended at everything you hear, and then promptly going online to whine about it. It ain't gonna work.

@Pedro Good job sticking to what you believe in. I don't disagree with it being a serious matter that should be at least noted, not swept under the rug like many are trying to do here. I become extremely uncomfortable whenever the word "f****t," "n****r," or "I got raped," "You got raped," gets thrown around even when it's my friends saying it -- I usually go quiet as they laugh. It's really uncalled for, especially among people you don't know.

I'm not sure why people are arguing against you here. Those are extremely offensive terms. If you wouldn't say it to someone's face, then don't say it on a traceable account on the internet. Saying, "I described it as a rape...without baby powder" on a school facebook group after a hard test is extremely offensive, especially when in a class of 250 there is a likely possibility that someone was sexually assaulted in the past.

People who say deal with it, It's the internet, Freedom of Speech, Everyone says it, need to have some empathy. Making generalizations like"literally nobody cares," is ignorant. People who do care might not speak up all time or might leave the community for good, but there are definitely people who care.

@ShadowsDemon And while you're going to hear it used, you're not going to hear me say things like that to others, and you don't have to say it either.

Holy sh*t dude you're missing the whole f*cking point! there is no offence in saying those words to people online, people have fun with it! There is quite literally nothing wrong with it.

I don't understand why people find it so hard to comprehend that online is a public place like any other. If you want to talk like that with your friends fine then go into private party chat so other people don't have to hear that garbage. People go to a lot of other public places with their friends such as malls, restaurants, movies, etc. and they certainly don't talk like that there. You know why? Because they are public places where people don't and shouldn't have to tolerate that trash. No one says, "Oh well those people should grow a thicker skin." That's nonsense. Online gaming is no different.

well, the video has been taken down so i can't watch it.

anyway, i guess i just don't feel such an attachment to the word that i really would feel the need to argue over it. telling somebody "you got raped" after i beat them in a game wouldn't exactly be the high point of my day.

beyond that, i'd totally understand if somebody got really upset if i made that remark after they actually got raped in real life. i could pick from a bunch of other lines that wouldn't be genuinely offensive if i wanted to trash talk. still, i don't really do that sort of thing to begin with. again, i don't understand the need to celebrate that way. like most games nowadays are built on rewarding you for doing the slightest little thing so anything extra seems even more unnecessary. even then, if the act of winning in a game isn't rewarding enough, i'd probably question why i'm playing it to begin with.

You're right. Not ignorance, but naivete. Kids grow up these days surrounding by words like 'rape' and '***' and then it just comes out reflexively. It doesn't excuse the improper use of the word but it isn't a malevolent intention, like these kids actually think they are raping someone. To them it's just another word for owned.

If someone can be offended when someone says something like that in person what makes someone saying it on the internet any different? It's an ignorant statement to say literally nothing is wrong and nobody takes offense when someone is being verbally assaulted with racial and derogatory slurs. Obviously, some people take offense to it, many may not speak up.

Maybe some people are in on the "joke," not everybody is. If by chance you tell a rape victim that you're going to rape them while playing TitanFall, they're not going to enjoy it, they're not going to have fun with it, they're going to be upset. You may never be in that situation, but to say the internet is a place where you can ignore all decency is what's wrong.

it's just a word

You need to grow up.

I don't think you've played much online, its an entirely different world. People are free to say whatever they want, but the difference is....nothing is taken offensively like it would be in the real world, its all one big fun joke. And on lookers such as yourself don't understand this and you try to protest because you think what is happening is wrong, when in reality everyone is just having fun.

There is no offence to be taken. The best way example I can think of would be, if YOU saw someone crying, you would immediately jump to the conclusion that said person is sad and upset or even hurt, but it may just turn out they're crying out of laughter, and from a distance you wouldn't be able to notice the difference. Do you see how pointless it is to protest against something that isn't bad?

When your forbid something you do nothing but challenge people to do it twice as much. It's human nature.

Having known people who were raped and knowing that not everyone is okay with the use of online language, makes this an issue worth talking about. It may be a grand ole' time for you and the inclusive club of the internet who are in on the joke, but it's not a pointless issue. I'm not sure why you're so upset that Pedro and I are advocating that people need to think about others before they shout something out.

While I don't play much online, it's in part due to a terrible online community that I encountered when I first experienced it.

As for your analogy -- which doesn't really make sense by the way, facial cues and context may indicate that the person is crying from laughter; however, if there is doubt I would ask if something is wrong and see if I could help. Noticing someone is crying, be it from laughter or sadness, is completely different from making someone cry, be it from laughter or sadness.

But kill, murder, ect are okay words to throw around

Lets just refrain from speaking in general because we might upset someone for any number of reasons.

I'll be the first to say that the word shouldn't be used excessively, but it seems ridiculous to treat one word with such care when so many others with just as much gravity or more aren't under the same scrutiny. And I don't think people should completely censor themselves and homogenize themselves out of fear of offending people.

No, I think death threats are equally offensive and shouldn't be used in a "joking" manner on the internet.

There is a way to have healthy competition without sounding like a social deviant. Some say that the words which are the focus of this thread have little meaning, but they are validating the adage, "ignorance is bliss." Those words retain their original meaning, but are used playfully. Such naivety is a callous use of those words similar to casually killing opponents in video games. Over the many years of playing online, something you all may have noticed is that the use of those words tend to occur in certain social circles, yet those are not isolated to a state in which players of other social circles forgo encountering them. As a result, we who prefer an absence of foul language are subjected to a dearth of intellectual competitive chat.

In case it is not clear: such talk is a peeve of many because we feel we would be better without it, but to paraphrase what has been said in this thread and proven throughout history, the more something is prohibited, the more people feel the need to do it. In response to that (@Black_Knight_00), that is why more positive exchanges are collectively something many consider to be the ideal form of competition.

Like every other word, it all depends on the context in which it is used

So is "n****r", but you wouldn't use that anymore.

If anything, society comes down harshly on (white) people who use the n-word, since it typically indicates a kind of backwards/racist mentality.

Same with "f****t". Using that possibly indicates some kind of underlying homophobia, in a time when it is no longer acceptable to be homophobic

As for the word "rape" in a gaming insult context...does it suggest that the user is an unknowing supporter of "rape culture"? I mean, the word can be used comically in some contexts, but to use it as an insult...

I don't know about that last point, but it's certainly a clear sign that the user is a 12 year old, or has the mentality of a 12 year old.

@Minishdriveby: Same can be said with talking sh*t online, people are able to judge when some one is being serious about their insults, and when they're not. Again most people talk to each in other in Party chat, which allows them talk to their friends that they're comfortable with ONLY. Alternatively if you are part of the small percent who plays in game chat, you are free to mute players. I know people who are gay, but does that mean they will take offence when they're playing online and someone calls out "******!" hell no dude.

That is not actually how the English language works. "I" still means oneself in just about every context imaginable other than if a person has that pronoun as their name.

Like I said before, it's hard to judge how a stranger will react to a racial/sexual/violent slur before you say something, and once you say it the damage is done. Your solution is to deny, ignore and exclude, but I don't really think that's a good solution. It doesn't really improve the community or invite new players of different mindsets.

the thought police strikes again

Saying something =/= thoughts

I don't know where you guys are getting this. The case you are talking about only works with immature individuals such as children. They think it's a game and don't understand the situation. Murder being illegal doesn't make people want to kill each other more. That's an extreme example but it holds down the line. You're not supposed to jaywalk. People may still do it, but they don't go, ''hey I'm going to run across the street and risk my life because I'm not supposed to do it.'

In certain respects, it is a legitimate. For example, during the Prohibition last century, illegal alcohol production increased greatly because it was illegal in the United States. There are documentaries about this event and it is common knowledge at this point. Next, graffiti being considered vandalism has not stopped people from painting on walls. On the contrary, there are murals across cities now which are accepted as urban art with a positive effect on the communities where they are located.

Throughout history, there are people who would go so far as to risk their lives for freedom. North American colonists felt righteously indignant about taxation without representation and as a result, the American Revolutionary War occurred. That was because they were not allowed something that they felt they deserved. To say only immature children think that way is very misinformed. There are many other situations in which it such a perspective as ours is valid.

Do you think people who say "LEL I R@PED U" online are mature?

I knew you were going to bring up Prohibition as it was the only example I could think of that fit your argument. The problem is that everything you brought up involves people being denied what they believe is their right. We look back now and know that Prohibition would never have lasted. The Revolutionary War set for the foundation of the country and the rights people have as a citizen of that country. Graffiti can be seen as free speech only it is trespassing, destruction of property, etc. It can still be argued as free speech.

It is illegal to verbally harass someone to that point of battery. Now saying rape on the internet isn't illegal but the situation changes when you start hurting or negatively affecting someone else. Alcohol doesn't directly harm anyone but yourself. It is a person's right. Walking up to someone and calling them a *** or saying your are going to rape them is prohibited in this country.

My point in using the obvious Prohibition was because of the sense of entitlement people believe they have with online communication is claimed to be similar to that and the other examples I mentioned. Furthermore, what is occurring throughout the internet and in-person forums is a movement in which anything and everything should be permissible. A counter-movement is less tolerance for inappropriate comments. Two very popular socializing which are examples of that are the Xbox One and PS4. They have less accepting community guidelines which, if violated, will require Microsoft and Sony to ban users more than previously. Also, GameSpot, another popular social outlet, has a three strikes policy.

Other places have increased their disciplinary policies because people have a sense of entitlement with anonymity and continuing to act that way will only lead to more issues which is why more positive behaviors should be encouraged instead of letting unlikable events occur (read: drastic measures).

I know plenty of people in real life who jokingly say "i'm going to kill you" and "I'm going to die".. No one takes it seriously and they really shouldn't.

It's a different scenario on the internet, especially if it's a million off hand tweets or comments to a stranger. Again in a multiplayer shooter the context might indicate you're talking about the player's character and not the actual player, but if that's carried into a lobby and you don't know the player you're talking to I think it can be a fairly serious issue.

In real life I wouldn't say "I'm going to kill you" or "you should go kill yourself" to a complete stranger.