After the third Presidential debate on Monday evening, Ann Coulter turned to twitter to share her views on President Obama with the world, and ended up offending a lot of people. Coulter tweeted that she “approve[d] of Romney’s decision to be kind and gentle to the retard,” and it wasn’t long until she faced backlash from twitter and the wider media, The Huffington Post reports.
I highly approve of Romney’s decision to be kind and gentle to the retard.
— Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) October 23, 2012
The negative reactions, though, aren’t about her critique of the president, but about her word choice. “You want to slam the president, go ahead,” Ellen Seidman, the mother of a child with special needs, told CNN. “But you can’t think of any other word to use? Come on.”
The ‘r-word’ is a frequent topic of discussion, as many people view it as demeaning and offensive. Check out the “Spread the Word to End the Word” campaign for more info, and read about how some students get involved in ‘spreading the word’ at their colleges.
John Franklin Stephens, a Special Olympics athlete, penned an open letter to Coulter on Tuesday, expressing his thoughts on her usage of the ‘r-word’. His eloquent reply asked her to consider the meaning behind her words. “Well, Ms. Coulter, you, and society, need to learn that being compared to people like me should be considered a badge of honor,” Stephens wrote. “No one overcomes more than we do and still loves life so much.”
It doesn’t appear that Coulter has gotten the message yet, though. On Tuesday, she composed another tweet that included the word “retarded.” Interestingly enough, the tweet called out the Obama campaign for using a cancer reference in referring to “Stage 3 Romneysia.”
Obama: “Stage 3 Romneysia” – because cancer references are HILARIOUS.If he’s “the smartest guy in the room” it must be one retarded room.
— Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) October 23, 2012
Coulter has not yet responded to the widespread criticism of her comment, despite backlash from both sides of the political spectrum. Michelle Malkin, a conservative journalist, called Coutler’s remark a “shallow, stupid thing to say,” according to a report by The Hollywood Reporter.
So collegiettes, what do you think of Coulter’s comments? Let us know in the comments!
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Photo Source:
http://www.cnn.com/2012/10/23/living/ann-coulter-obama-tweet/index.html