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Word 'Lunatic' Banned From Federal Law

Move backed by mental health groups and most lawmakers

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by Dain Fitzgerald

Staff Writer t

Image: CBS

Congress just passed a law removing a word some say is demeaning from the lettering of the law. And that word is, if you'll pardon, "Lunatic."

CBS reports that the word's removal passed the House by an overwhelming vote of 398 to 1. The only holdout: Rep. Louie Gohmert, a Texas Republican, who said that not only should the word remain on the books, but it should be used to "describe the people who want to continue with business as usual in Washington."

Gohmert's contrarian point of view notwithstanding, the legislation was supported by a handful of mental health organizations who said the word is offensive, counterproductive, and "only serves to perpetuate stigmatization."

"Lunatic" doesn't appear often in federal code, but CBS notes the legislation cites a bank regulation that refers to the power of a bank to serve as "committee of estates of lunatics" on guardianship issues.

"Federal law should reflect the 21st century understanding of mental illness and disease," said Senator Kent Conrad, a Democrat from North Dakota who co-sponsored the bill. "The continued use of this pejorative term has no place in the U.S. code."

Via CBS.
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Comments (view in Forum)

  • Heavy-Fed
    !
    I've been an activist all of my life... started out fighting against drugs and for the Fed's... now I'm fighting against the Fed's and for the drugs. This kind of legislation takes time to hammer out and pass... and they ARE lunatics for wasting their time on this when there are so many much more important things for them to be working on. Google, Heavy Fed.
    I've been fighting Political corruption and insanity in my hometown now for four years. In that time I have sued and defeated the Port of Houston... I've been given 5 city citations and been sued twice by the City of La Porte. I defeated all 5 citations in a row and both lawsuits while serving as my own attorney... and in those four years I have asked for and received the resignations of the Mayor, the City Manager and two City Councilmen.

    Right now I am asking for the resignation of the Chief of Police... and when I get through cleaning up my local political landscape... I am moving on to the state political arena.
  • Heavy-Fed
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    @PoliticalSpice Too bad we ALL did not nip Bush one AND two in the bud... as well as see through Obama's smoke screen BOTH times!!! Clinton was cool... but his wife is a war monger... I greatly fear a President HILLARY for this country!!

  • View all 10 replies >

  • MRMacrum
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    What lunatic thought this law up? Oh, a Democrat from North Dakota. Figures it had to be a Democrat from North Dakota.

    Regardless, what are they doing down there in DC? Apparently not much of any worth.
  • MRMacrum
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    Not sure this is a good sign or not, but thanks anyway to Neo for that vote up. Seems we both can take some things humorously. One of the more than a few tendencies of the Left I dislike immensely is their incessant effort to cleanse our language of terms they find onerous. Our language is a wonderful and very colorful one, including the obnoxious words that reside within. And because I know I have in my checkered past exhibited lunacy in my Life, I will continue to call myself and anyone else a lunatic if I see fit. Of course not here on Politix. Everyone here has their saddle buckled down tight. A bunch of reasonable and thoughtful folks the Politix crowd is, er... are,......whatever.
  • jamie91
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    Actually it is being banned in federal laws, that is the laws themselves need to be reworded to be more understanding of the mentally ill.
  • PoliticalSpice
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    @jamie91
    I don't see why we don't discriminate against the mentally ill. We give them jobs on the supreme court, in congress, kust seven years ago we jad socio-paths and imbecilles in the executive branch. The mentally ill are treated very well in all three branches of government...
  • jamie91
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    @PoliticalSpice the term imbecile, crazy and lunatic are un useful terms in a legal sense as each mentally uill or handi capped person should be looked at as individuals with their own unique illnesses/ disabilities not as a blanket negative term.
  • PoliticalSpice
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    @Heavy-Fed
    Well I read law, and people have been using words like that to describe me for years. I actually have a positive association to the words cause they have modt often been hurled at me by people on the losing end of the case or vote...

  • View all 12 replies >

  • Neo_NtheMatrix
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    We need a nation that is politically incorrect once again. A nation where you can tell a person who is lazy that they are lazy without being called racist. A nation where you can tell a person that maybe they shouldn't be so loose without being called sexist. A place where you can tell a lazy liberal to cut their five o'clock shadow, take a nice shower, gput on some decent clothes and get a job, and not be worried about being called a right wing extremist.

    It's time we get back to being a nation that can tell the slackers that they are slacking and not have to worry about the repercussions because some sensitive person got their feelings hurt.
  • PoliticalSpice
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    This law won't stop you from saying any of the things in your example, just remember not to call those people lunatics and it's all good!
  • Dan_Tien
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    Do you mean that you worry about repercussions from your words now? First of all, this article didn't say that it was illegal to call someone a lunatic, only that the word should not be used in government documents. I never knew the word "lazy" was racist. Maybe we should forget about making the US a place where you can feel free to tell people off and concentrate on making it a place where you mind your own business.
  • Neo_NtheMatrix
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    @Dan_Tien - I got a friend who was fired for telling a woman she was lazy. The woman was always late, only got some of her assignments done on time, and was generally disruptive to the workplace. One day during a discussion where the woman was complaining about how her talents weren't appreciated enough my friend told her she was lazy. The woman had my friend up in HR so fast it would make your head spin. To this day my friend can't come back to a company she worked at for five years because she was let go for discrimination. However, the lazy woman is still there messing things up for other co-workers. I'm tired of political correctness. I say if federal legislation calls for the use of the word lunatic, then the word lunatic should be used.

  • View all 9 replies >

  • DARSB
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    Technically speaking, it's not a word we use in healthcare anymore, so if the law is to keep up with the changes in language, sure, I guess someone has to float a bill to do so.

    But wouldn't eliminating "lunatic" also change Rep Gohmert's job description? ;)
  • PoliticalSpice
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    Yea, I get that, but these idiots on capital hill have failed to legislate anything signifigant in years, and this is what they finally decide they can agree on?
  • PoliticalSpice
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    @Dan_Tien
    Caught me! I believe you are correct in that, there was a supreme court case using a phrase like "three generations of imbicles is enough" upholding sterilization laws. The case is no longer good law. A mistake to reverse it. Had it been upheld W never would have been born...indeed congress would be a pretty empty place on both sides of the aisle.
  • Dan_Tien
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    @PoliticalSpice That's funny. Now the Supreme Court is loaded with imbeciles. It still must be okay to say imbecile, because there is an Imbecile Test for iPhone. I guess there really is an app for everything! I wonder if we could get it installed on voting machines?

  • View all 9 replies >

  • jessejaymes
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    While most regulars on this site know I generally am irate at the right wing this has gone overboard in the world of the left wing speech nazi's. I will use the word lunatic any time I damn well please. And you left wing idiots who think legislating speech is possible can KMA.
  • Thegrif
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    You go son! Lmao... you are gettin fired up now.
    It's crazy right?
    I believe DC is absolutely full of LUNATICS, oops
  • jessejaymes
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    I can't chat right now. I'm busy composing letters to every single congressperson except one. "Dear Lunatic, are you out of your freaking mind?"
  • Thegrif
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    @jessejaymes you write the letters I will sign my name to it as well.
    We really should get a letter goin to all those in DC saying "GET OFF YOUR ASS AND FIX AMERICA".
  • o
    NO-BAMA
    !
    It's nice to know that the lawmakers are taking the "fiscal cliff"seriously, and believe that banning words will makeeverything else just go away.
    Pretty soon will have to make up a new language just so we can communicate. Especially if the "politically correct" keep getting their way.
  • Neo_NtheMatrix
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    It really makes me fuming mad. The politically correct crowd have scrubbed the word Christmas out of use as well. Now one must say Happy Holidays or something sanitized like that. What's wrong with the age old tradition of just saying Merry Christmas? Can't, because you might offends somebody. The left is turning this country into a bunch of soft sensitive crybabies.
  • Post Removed by Moderators
  • o
    NO-BAMA
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    @Neo_NtheMatrix I guess they didn't like my post. I said "Merry Christmas" a few times in it. More hypocritical behavior from this site.
    Pathetic.
  • Denizen_Kate
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    @Neo_NtheMatrix - Oh come on, Neo! You can say Merry Christmas as often as you like. When did you stop enjoying offending people? It's your 1st amendment right to say Merry Christmas. Just don't spray-paint it on the local court house wall, or else they'll call you a lunatic.:)

  • View all 11 replies >

  • Thegrif
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    Sure, go ahead, remove the word. We got plenty of other words to describe Lunatics. I guess soon, if all these bleeding hearts get their way, we wont be able to call them nuts, looney, koo-koo, not wrapped to tight, elevator don't go to the top floor or my personal favorite- crazy bastards.
    Seriously, I understand mental illness is absolutely a serious thing. But they probably should be workin on a few bigger and more pressing issues up there in DC, other than what is the proper wording to describe crazy Aunt Fanny.
  • jessejaymes
    !
    They're six bricks short of a load, a good dozen cards shy of a deck. Not rowing with both oars. couldn't find their ass with both hands. I'm starting a super pac called 2014 Congressional elections RELECT NOBODY. You in?
  • kathyparsell
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    Absolutely, like helping the mentally ill instead of just "containing" them under layers of drugs. Crazy doesn't mean you aren't intelligent. And I think lunatic is a lovely adjective! Best used to describe over-zelous politicians!
  • Denizen_Kate
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    @jessejaymes - missing some dots off their dice . . . their cheese done slid off their cracker . . . not firing on all thrusters (yes, I'm a SciFi geek).

  • View all 6 replies >

  • jessejaymes
    !
    The more I think about this the angrier I get. Those LUNATICS sit in D.C. sucking up tax dollars, writing hot checks at the senate bank, spending my money, can't agree on ANYTHING of substance but they can take the time out of their short session before bolting town AGAIN to come together in bipartisan fashion and pass a ban on something THAT MATTERS NOT AT ALL. A pox on both parties. I think Thomas Jefferson was right. Every government should be overthrown every so often.
  • mimi57
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    You're going to raise your blood pressure... just replace it with loony, how's that?...Don't go starting a Revolution, we have enough problems now.(:
  • jessejaymes
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    These jackasses will campaign in 2012 on their "spirit of bipartisanship" on this vote. I am writing a letter to every member of the House of Representatives telling them that I think they are LUNATICS,.
  • jessejaymes
    !
    This is just the straw that broke the camel's back for me. I'm not a good organizer but I'm one hell of a trooper. Someone with organizational skills needs to start a pac (2014 RE-LECT NOBODY). I am retired, I am very computer literate and have time. Start it and we can make this our battle cry. THROW OUT THE LUNATICS IN WASHINGTON D.C.
  • kathyparsell
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    I am 100% with you! And I may be mistaken, but I have an idea that most on Politix agree... It's a lot safer than a tax revolt! Start the call.

  • View all 12 replies >

  • Denizen_Kate
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    Seriously? All the important issues before congress today, and this is the one they can all agree upon? Folks, the lunatics are now subletting the asylum.:(
  • harold_lloyd
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    There's no need for that term in medical science because there are more precise words that convey meaning more accurately.
    Besides, that word should be reserved for use in describing intransigent Congresspersons.
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