See post above.
This is exactly what I meant when I was referring to some arguments being "oblivious" to the connotations, and reasons for such, attached to the word.
Thank you for providing a clear example.
The problem with your spin here is that I, and others, used the word according to its actual scientific meaning and a handful of people, including you, then attempted to foist their own negative emotional connotations onto it. We can't help it if you and some others can't get past that.
A good example is when Amanda Knox used the word "corpo" when she referred to Meredith Kercher's body. It was then translated by pro-guilt believers as "corpse" which they thought was completely cold and disrespectful and had a ****fit over it. It was an example of her sociopathy! Trouble was, it also means "body" in Italian. But instead of considering that fact, they chose to go with the translation that had a more negative connotation in English because it supported their agenda.
By the way, your whole "parasite" spiel is way past its due date for efficacy.
![]()
From the CDC.
A parasite is an organism that lives on or in a host organism and gets its food from or at the expense of its host.
How exactly is a fetus NOT a parasite?
A fetus derives its nutrients and oxygen from its host. This is the textbook scientific definition.
That some individuals have a knee jerk emotional reaction is their issue not mine.
I guess if you kill them soon enough, it hardly matters, right? After all, they are all "non-viable", by Dem account, at that point.![]()
..... deliberately and dishonestly .....
Q.E.D.Christopher Hitchens talked about how you can't do anything about how some people are determined to be offended.
Ah. I see you skipped the: “There are three main classes of parasites that can cause disease in humans: protozoa, helminths, and ectoparasites.” part.
Pregnancy is not a parasitic infection. That’s just medically inaccurate. Go ahead and look through the medical literature and find me a source that classifies a pregnancy as a parasitic infection. I’ll wait here.
Ah. I see you skipped the: “There are three main classes of parasites that can cause disease in humans: protozoa, helminths, and ectoparasites.” part.
Pregnancy is not a parasitic infection. That’s just medically inaccurate.
Go ahead and look through the medical literature and find me a source that classifies a pregnancy as a parasitic infection. I’ll wait here.
This is exactly what I meant when I was referring to some arguments being "oblivious" to the connotations, and reasons for such, attached to the word.
Thank you for providing a clear example.
There is no need for scientists to do anything. Unlike the general public, they know the correct scientific meaning of a word and can use it in a non emotional way.Do I take it that you advocate Science jettison terms that have been hijacked and infused with additional connotations? That the original definition has been superseded by a more recent common usage, and a new word be adopted or invented?
There is no need for scientists to do anything. Unlike the general public, they know the correct scientific meaning of a word and can use it in a non emotional way.
OTOH, as the pages in this thread have shown, say the word "parasite" to a non-scientific person and you will have to make post after post explaining that you don't mean that it is analogous to "cancer" or "disease" or "illness" nor that it is "undesirable" or "unwanted" etc.
Ah. I see you skipped the: “There are three main classes of parasites that can cause disease in humans: protozoa, helminths, and ectoparasites.” part.
Pregnancy is not a parasitic infection. That’s just medically inaccurate. Go ahead and look through the medical literature and find me a source that classifies a pregnancy as a parasitic infection. I’ll wait here.
All these semantics are nicely hiding the fact that the GOP has rapidly shifted from a 'small government' party to a party that wants massive state influence in how you can behave.
Especially if you're a woman.
Yes but not for the reason you give."Rapidly shifted" is wrong.
You are getting confused between a parasite, and parasitic infection.
A parasite is an organism
A parasitic infection is an infection, caused by a parasite
https://www.healthline.com/health/parasitic-infections
What is a parasitic infection?
Parasites are organisms that live off other organisms, or hosts, to survive. Some parasites don’t noticeably affect their hosts. Others grow, reproduce, or invade organ systems that make their hosts sick, resulting in a parasitic infection.
University of Reading - UK
https://www.reading.ac.uk/news-archive/press-releases/pr9938.html
Cambridge University - UK
NOTE: This is a link to a 511K PDF https://www.cambridge.org/core/serv...65169000085a.pdf/the-foetus-as-a-parasite.pdf
Christopher Hitchens talked about how you can't do anything about how some people are determined to be offended.
I DON'T CARE A WHIT that Warp and pro-life zealots are offended by the accurate use of a word. They can get up on their hobby horses and whine about it all they like.
Fetuses are parasites. PERIOD.
They almost always have a negative impact on the health of their hosts. Women experience weight gain, extra stress on their hearts, kidneys and livers. Also the hosts endure discomfort, pain and nausea and this does not include childbirth. And I am only mentioning a few of the issues associated with pregnancy.
That women at all are willing to go through all of this amazes me. I do realize that this is only part of the experience. I've heard women say they liked being pregnant, but I also know that every pregnancy is different and it can be hell too.
It was absolute hell for her.
I would bet that even if a scientist's wife miscarries at 5 months, he is not going to proclaim to everyone, "we lost the parasite". Unless he has other emotional and/or social issues, that is. Neither would a female scientist likely speak of her own miscarriage in such terms.
It is baffling that some refuse to understand this. This is independent of any other reasons why they may not wish to characterize the unborn as human...but instead as "parasites".