Stupid and Ignorant but can’t be Blamed….or can they?

hEY y’all get this

The other day I was at an event of sorts.  You know lots of people.  Many who know each other talking loudly in circles.  I was mostly quiet with my small band of mostly quiet companions.

I found myself overhearing a neighboring conversation and though I tried to take note of what their conversation originated with so that I could tell you guys, it has since evaporated from my mind.

but anyway. you’re like what is the point here?

I’m saying all of this because as these people were talking about the various volunteering styles of people who must be in their organization or whatever one of them said and I quote….(you have to imagine a very garrulous good ole boy(lady) kind of yucking it up)…

“..(chuckle chuckle)….That guy over there..he is BIPOLAr!..(chuckle chuckle) …he is like one minute he is SAD and the next he is   Happy…hahahaha”

and then a cackling lady says and I quote…

“Hahahaha I like that! At least its predictable! You know he’s going back and forth! hahaha”

all laughing like ninnies

I am not necessarily relating this to you all because I was ALL like SO OFFENDED.

But mostly because I just have a big problem with stupid

and I am impatient with ignorance

and that is stupid and ignorant

But let’s be fair for a moment.

The word Bipolar has a pejorative meaning in culture.  And it means swinging back and forth from one thing to another and or happy one minute and sad the next.

(To any nonBipolars reading this…If someone is happy one minute and then sad the next minute there is a very different problem than Bipolar going on. Just so ya know)

Back to being fair…so yeah whether we like it or not there is a pejorative meaning and they were using it.

And i guess we should be happy that it doesn’t NECESSARILY mean something bad.

However, a third pejorative definition of the term Bipolar equals Batshit Crazy.  And that my friends can be offensive.

Especially because usually the person being called Bipolar in this way is not cool enough in any sense to actually be Bipolar.

Just saying.

Back to being fair one more time….

Let’s face it.  It isn’t like anyone out there ACTUALLY thinks it is that politically incorrect to use the term Bipolar.  It is not like anyone using it is ACTUALLY  afraid of offending someone with Bipolar or someone with a Bipolar loved one.

In fact they are not thinking about us at all.

They don’t expect us to be sitting next to them on a field.

I guess they think we are all locked up somewhere…or like crawling around in allies behind clubs being crazy

I guess they think that crazy BIPOLAR people would not be out and about with normal decent citizens.

Even groups of people who would call you out or take offense at the use of various terminology or the use of the terms for people’s illnesses in flippant derogatory ways may not even notice a Bipolar joke fly past.

So I mean…what do you guys think? Should we give them a pass because society hasn’t yet taught anyone to care about us?  Or do we hold them accountable for being ignorant morons?

Or both. Whatever.  I’m just saying things.

For those of you that think I should have said something I will say no I couldn’t do that.  For a wide variety of reasons.  Maybe I will prepare and rehearse a slicing, educating, well thought out statement for use in these situations (You could too.  Maybe that is another post!)  But this event was not the time.

But I do relish my imagined look on their faces if I had leaned my completely normal looking self into their circle and said…(imagine goofy condescending sarcastic cheerleader voice here)…

“Guess what! I am legit diagnosed Bipolar and I have been happy for a whole fifteen minutes!”