Who the fuck is KAREN?

[Elderly Sumo Prophecy]

It should be a name that can only apply to posh fuckos, like "Deidre" or something.


Nobody called "Deidre" has ever known a working class person in real life.

Unfortunately Americans have trouble with the name Diedre. They pronounce it as "Diedra".  What about Beryl? I think they can say that right.

[evilcommiedictator]

I'll make the point again that Americans have no imagination, they can't even create their own word, but they'll just use a generic name with no context whatsoever

[Better Midlands]

It should be "Becky" instead. Sir Mix-A-Lot tried to point us in the right direction 28 years ago.

Becky is a young Karen

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Becky_(slang)

[Replies From View]

Unfortunately Americans have trouble with the name Diedre. They pronounce it as "Diedra".  What about Beryl? I think they can say that right.

I suppose this enterprise is about accommodating Americans' needs, otherwise I'd say they should just learn to talk properly.

Elsewhere in life you don't find adults using only baby talk so that babies don't feel left out.  But with Americans we make endless exceptions.

[BlodwynPig]

it was interesting to see the lady host on GMTV this morning alluding to the infantilisation of modern society (paraphrase) "we are rearing a society full of adults who cannot think for themselves, whose level of functionality is akin to toddlers in a sand pit". Astonishing bit of radicalism.

[PlanktonSideburns]

Some people would argue that terms like 'moron' (and idiot, imbecile etc) are just as offensive as 'retard' when been used as an insult. I used to read a football forum where someone always reacted to 'cretin' like it was the N word, I assume because they had a family member with cretinism. Personally, I think he was being a bit of a div.

Good point. Every single insult in my vocabulary seems to be offensive to someone, or sexually weighted. Need to think of better insults

[touchingcloth]

For some reason the name Karen seems to have be lighted upon to represent any shouty white middle class usually middle American female.

Found this explanation in an article in Time magazine

Karens a slang term for middle-aged white women (which seems to have stemmed from the popular Can I speak to a manager? meme,) who have become infamous online for their shameless displays of entitlement, privilege, and racism and their tendency to call the police when they dont get what they want.

And a useful wikipedia entry here...

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_(pejorative)

This isn't something I recognise. I recognise the behaviour, but having had customer service and customer-facing jobs, it overwhelmingly comes from men rather than women. Keiths would be a better term, but then people wouldn't get to have their fun with the misogyny.

[Jockice]

Some people would argue that terms like 'moron' (and idiot, imbecile etc) are just as offensive as 'retard' when been used as an insult. I used to read a football forum where someone always reacted to 'cretin' like it was the N word, I assume because they had a family member with cretinism. Personally, I think he was being a bit of a div.

Oh god, don't get me started on acceptable disability terminology. The one that really annoys me is 'vulnerable', which according to some fellow crips is like the N word and the P word put together. I mean, I've done my fair share of studying this sort of stuff yet I still fail to see just why it's considered so offensive.

[greenman]

It's in internet meme - I'd be highly surprised if it's not in the playground!

Has any child been named Karen in the last 18 years though?

[Pink Gregory]

it was interesting to see the lady host on GMTV this morning alluding to the infantilisation of modern society (paraphrase) "we are rearing a society full of adults who cannot think for themselves, whose level of functionality is akin to toddlers in a sand pit". Astonishing bit of radicalism.

Sounds like typical youth-bashing to me, but I'm seeing this out of context and I'm assuming that 'rearing a society full of adults...' refers to people becoming adults.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

Personally, I think he was being a bit of a div.

Hey, my Great Aunt was diagnosed with Queg.

Oh right you said div, carry on.

[Harry Badger]

'vulnerable'

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

This isn't something I recognise. I recognise the behaviour, but having had customer service and customer-facing jobs, it overwhelmingly comes from men rather than women

My job is complaints focused and if we are just doing a first hand anecdotal evidence-off, then my experience is I completely recognise the Karen description and personally encounter it weekly (it's mortgage related, so you can imagine the sorts).

I don't think some sort of unisex label fits the bill. It is distinctly different from how men tend to approach a dispute, I must say. Not for better/worse, just different.

[The Mollusk]

Unfortunately Americans have trouble with the name Diedre. They pronounce it as "Diedra".

In Japan they pronounce it "Ghidorah". Here's a controversial artist's rendition from 1964.

[madhair60]

It's an insanely stupid meme with a whiff of misogyny about it, the sort of tactic the right would (correctly) get shouted down for using

[bgmnts]

Nah its just a new word to describe a particular type of person.

Amazingly how quick the cycle is from new word to cancellation is now though. The NY times already cancelling the word Simp, and I have instant noodles in my cupboard older than that word.

[Dr Trouser]

it was interesting to see the lady host on GMTV this morning alluding to the infantilisation of modern society (paraphrase) "we are rearing a society full of adults who cannot think for themselves, whose level of functionality is akin to toddlers in a sand pit". Astonishing bit of radicalism.

I might have mentioned before that I was an interviewer at the graduate recruitment centres for a very well know aerospace company for many years. Generally in the past 6 years the calibre of engineering students has dropped down so much (even from Russell Group) that we were left with a load of spoon fed enthusiastic engineers unable to think their way out of a simple problem.

I'd recommend not flying for the next 10 years just in case they've made their way to Chief Engineer by now and are in charge of the crayons.

[madhair60]

Nah its just a new word to describe a particular type of person.

Yes, one that happens to be an innocuous name generally associated with women, which is currently used to mock them for what are thankfully so far valid reasons. But that will definitely change unfortunately.

[bgmnts]

Yes, one that happens to be an innocuous name generally associated with women, which is currently used to mock them for what are thankfully so far valid reasons. But that will definitely change unfortunately.

Probably, and then it will be reclaimed after that. Usually how it works.

I wonder what will happen to gammon.

[Johnny Yesno]

It's an insanely stupid meme with a whiff of misogyny about it, the sort of tactic the right would (correctly) get shouted down for using

Nah, previously there's been Kevs, Trevs and Garys. If anything, these had a whiff of classism, and that's what's going on here. Except these are middle class women, so fuck 'em.

We should definitely go with Keith as the male equivalent. Sorry the nice Keiths. If you even exist. Yeah.

[crankshaft]

You spell it DEIRDRE.

[His Name Is Death]

Earlier...

[bgmnts]

I used to love watching those operas as a kid in a working class household growing up.
Used to cost just 50p down the local church hall and we'd get a first class experience, as good as any wealthy child seeing it in a big city.


Fucking moron.

[brat-sampson]

She doesn't think people who don't go to the opera and the ballet and read good books and are the sort of people who should have power what?

[JesusAndYourBush]

Who is she?  Her twitter has been deleted and she's not notable enough to have a page on wiki.

[Jockice]

Nah, previously there's been Kevs, Trevs and Garys. If anything, these had a whiff of classism, and that's what's going on here. Except these are middle class women, so fuck 'em.

We should definitely go with Keith as the male equivalent. Sorry the nice Keiths. If you even exist. Yeah.

I have a cousin called Keith. He's a nice bloke.

[Wet Blanket]

Nah, previously there's been Kevs, Trevs and Garys. If anything, these had a whiff of classism, and that's what's going on here. Except these are middle class women, so fuck 'em.

We should definitely go with Keith as the male equivalent. Sorry the nice Keiths. If you even exist. Yeah.

I think the Karen thing doesn't work for me because in Britain at least it's not a particularly middle-class name. It should be Nigella or Philippa or something, one of the 'a' names. 

[Johnny Yesno]

I have a cousin called Keith. He's a nice bloke.

No you don't and no he isn't.

I'm not having my pretty excellent rule of thumb ruined by people selfishly having nice cousins called Keith.

[The Mollusk]

I think the Karen thing doesn't work for me because in Britain at least it's not a particularly middle-class name. It should be Nigella or Philippa or something, one of the 'a' names. 

Korona

[Johnny Yesno]

I think the Karen thing doesn't work for me because in Britain at least it's not a particularly middle-class name. It should be Nigella or Philippa or something, one of the 'a' names.

Those are a bit too posh, though, and the middle class girls with those names will still mostly be too young to be asking to see a manager or phoning the police to have a black man beaten up. Karen is their mother.