A new word for us!

I think we should have a new word for people without hair due to alopecia. It's unfair that there is such a negative tone inherent in the word "bald" it seems to refer to a defficiency. We are not defficient, but different. There is no reason why we should have negative feelings toward ourselves or our condition. Hair is just hair and our look is our own. Wouldn't it be nice if instead of 'bald spots' we had 'love spots'? or we were 'hair-free' instead of bald? Just a thought.. Let us begin this language revolution!

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Permalink Reply by Matt on April 13, 2008 at 9:34pm
I can't speak for anyone else, but I really don't think this thread has any real political undertones. Looking around, I don't see any soapboxes in the "Just for fun" forum. :)

The English language is very much alive, and as a result, you really can't think of a dictionary as some sort of master reference book. You may disagree if you're a prescriptivist, though.

The meaning of a word is determined by how the majority of speakers use it. That's really all you can say for certain. Unless you're a prescriptivist, but even if you are, you have to admit words change and evolve. I'm always a little irked when a prescriptivist points to a dictionary for the canonical usage of a word, all the while ignoring the fact that even dictionaries evolve and adapt to reflect common usage over time.

Anyways, this thread is really just a light-hearted attempt to define a better abstraction to describe the state of "not having any hair at all due to a body that's incapable of producing it" (note that this may suggest the topic is biased towards those with AU). In my general geographic locale, and likely Eric's too, "bald" simply doesn't encompass that full meaning.

The only thing I have against the word personally, is that it's inaccurate. That's all. I'm a computer programmer. It's my job to establish better abstractions for one or more discrete entities. For me, that tendency applies not only to programming languages, but natural languages like English. Think of it more as a hobby than a character flaw (please).

Ok, to be honest, I also think the word is just a bit stale. It leaves a bland flavour on the palette.

So it's mildly inaccurate, and lacks spice.
Permalink Reply by Carol on April 14, 2008 at 8:57am
For some reason this all reminds me of this documentary I watched on TV once. There was this new word for "hello" in the 60's or 70's (unfortunately I forgot what the exact word was) and I believe this was started in Canada. I don't think that the word itself made it very far but it was recognized across the nation among that certain hip age group. Anyhow, I tried to do some research on this and came across a dictionary for people in the States to understand Canadians better. Notice how I wrote "people in the States". We don't call them Americans because we're part of North America as well and we are just as American as they are thus the USA is referred to as "the States". Please correct me if I'm wrong but is this a potato/potata thing or are we just going with spuds??? Everyone loves potatos but we all have different terms for them. I think alopecians are like potatos in this instance simply because we all have someone that loves us and we all seem to have different terms of endearment that suit our own needs. I agree with many of you on different levels simply because (like most of you I'm sure) I've dealt with different levels of acceptance along the years and it just simply depends on where you sit on that scale. A lot of us seem to be in full acceptance of our condition and yet there is still this argument about this
b-word. Hell - take the word out of existence for all I care, how old could that word actually be? Regardless it will always exist and I think that's what Yokasta is getting at on the other hand I think Eric is trying to give the word a facelift and neither is wrong so just be happy you can accept your own situation and stop arguing!!!!! GRRRR LOL
Permalink Reply by JimB on April 16, 2008 at 6:23pm
BALD ...... if you were to do an Internet search of BALD you will find it matched in all kind of ways.

BALD Eagle, BALD cap, BALD cat, BALD ship, and even in the field of hair it is missed used.

BALD means "without", "nothing" ..... It applies to many things but some you can not understand, such as BALD Eagle ..... Have you ever seen a BALD Eagle!

I the world of hair fashion if a man, or woman, cuts their hair one inch of shorter, they are said to be BALD. Are they!

Picking another word would be hard to do, but I do understand what is being said here. But, it all comes down to one thing UNDERSTANDING.

If people do not have an UNDERSTANDING then no matter what you call it it will never be UNDERSTOOD.

Slowly it becomes a circle where no one wins and no one loses.

Then, you have "slang" ......

Reality is Reality ...... You live and you die by it and it is always MISUNDERSTOOD.

No matter what you end up calling it, something, there will be those who will change it to mean something thet is UNDERSTOOD.
Permalink Reply by JeffreySF on April 29, 2008 at 4:04pm
Call me Smoothy!!!
Call me Hairless Wonder!!!
I went by Patches for awhile

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