You Wonder Why We Aren't Mainstream, Volume 1: Joe Rogan's Slur Usage

UFC commentator Joe Rogan recently got into a verbal tiff with former Sherdog (and apparently former Fighters Only) writer Tomas Rios. The situation took an ugly turn when Rogan responded using slur words to insult Rios. In this day and age of social media (like I wrote about with the Juarez and MFC situation), we must take care heed of what we put out there. If we're to be "mainstream" like we want to be or at least CLAIM to want, then things like this should not be taking place. The whole event is juvenile. You won't see this in basketball or football. To think, this whole mess started because an uninformed "writer" decided to chastise a commentator's call of a move.

"Joe Rogan calling a Brazilian kick the "question mark kick" during Griffin/Lentz is pantheon level cluelessness."

A "writer" dissing a commentator's statement, not too out of place. Even though this "writer" has a HISTORY of ridiculously negative comments about fighters, organizations, and commentators. In fact, I've never seen a tweet of his that wasn't negative. Rogan responds, backed up by "The Voice" Michael Schiavello, that his term was correct and provided the historical context. So it ended there right? Nope.

Rios no longer writes for Fighters Only magazine. I got him fired. First time I've ever done this to a so called mma journalist, but I've had more than enough of these f*cking zeros clogging up the sport with their incompetent bullsh*t. You wanted my attention, f*ggot?

*insert frown*

I'm not going to comment on the derisory idea of trying to get someone fired because they disagreed with your commentary (even though they were incorrect), I'm focusing clearly on the slur usage. Personal disclaimer: I have used slur words in the past and currently am working on completely eliminating those words from my vocabulary as I mature. As such, I am not writing in judgment of Joe Rogan, this is more of a big picture type thing. I decided to write this after seeing the propitious response from many in the MMA community. 

The usage of the word "f*ggot" is NOT indicative of being a sexual orientationist (or homophobe as some call it), I don't think one can accuse him of being one. The term "f*ggot" is a slur towards gay people that has recently spun its way into the young American male lexicon. While it did mean other things before this trend, people's usage of the term is not related to those alternative definitions. Bloody Elbow reported on Rogan's use of the term and Rogan "apologized" for his use. His actual words ended up compounding and worsening the situation in my eyes. 

You got it. I apologize for my use of the word "f*ggot." I enjoy that word immensely, and although I do not intend for its use to be interpreted as a negative term for homosexuals, but rather as I've always used it to imply that a person is weak and pathetic, which I believe Rios to be. I understand that in this ultra-sensitive, politically correct world we live in one must be careful of the words they choose, for in choosing the wrong one you can give your adversary a new angle of distraction, as I see Rios is concentrating on that now instead of owning up to the fact that he has no f*cking idea what the proper terminology of the kick he criticized me of describing was.

What's really important is not a hot button insult word, or a disagreement on terms used to describe techniques, but rather completely incompetent reporters masquerading as martial arts experts. Rios is a negative a**hole that consistently insults fighters and produces fight breakdowns that resemble what I would expect from an angry failure with no friends who has spent too much time alone with a thesaurus trying to convince people that he's clever.

I have sat back and watched this shit-head spout out his horrible, disrespectful nonsense for a long time, and was truly happy when he was fired by sherdog, and absolutely perplexed when I found out that Fighters Only Magazine is actually giving him actual real money for the bulls*it he's trying to pass off as journalism. Fighters Only is one of the very best magazines in the sport, and as per my correspondence with them I'm delighted that I'm not the only one that thinks he's an a**hat and a terrible journalist. When I saw that he had opened his dumb trap about me I welcomed the opportunity to shut him up.

As for my use of the offensive word "f*ggot" please accept my apologies and replace it with "c*ck-sucker."

Thank you, and good day.

Now, the etymology of the word "f*ggot" being used towards non-gay men started because the user was equating the target to a homosexual. In layman's terms, he was saying that the target is inferior and "less than a man".because he is "gay" and, in the user's eyes, gay men are less than men. Note, that calling a non-gay man a "f*ggot" is almost always done in a non-friendly manner which is the manner in which the original "f*ggot" was used towards gays. You're are using a slur in a slur fashion. Rogan basically admits this when he says "I've always used it to imply that a person is weak and pathetic."

A "f*ggot" = a gay person

Rios = a "f*ggot"

Rios = weak and pathetic

Therefore, according to the substitution property, a gay person is "weak and pathetic". Yes, when you use the term "f*ggot", you are not intending to slur gay people, but you are slurring gay people. This is not like the use of the word "n*gga" (note the lack of -er), which is mainly used in a friendly manner and not intended to slur or insult. He then says to replace his usage of the slur with another pejorative term for gay people "c*cksucker". This word was also used as a slur and then transferred to non-gay men to equate them to homosexuals and call them less of a man.

Rogan goes on to blame the "ultra-sensitive and PC world" for any uproar this might cause and basically states that the biggest harm in using terms like these is your adversary has an out to focus on. It's not like anyone can be insulted by the usage of the words. 

People like to blame the "Ultra PC world" when they can't say whatever they want to say. You can say whatever you want to say in America, just be prepared to face the consequences of your actions. It has nothing to do with being "ultra-sensitive", but it is a move towards a more sensitive society where people are aware of those that are unlike the powerbrokers in this country. It's a hard concept for many straight White Christian males to wrap their heads around, but it's part of being a civilized society. I'm not always the most completely sensitive when it comes to the gay population, but as a minority, I can understand their continued frustration that a slur like "f*ggot" continues to be a part of the American vernacular. 

Now I don't care about Rios or even that Rogan called him what he called him. The reason I write this is two-fold. Like I said earlier, the reaction in the commentary on BloodyElbow was disconcerting and the most important reason, things like this can (and will) result in bad publicity for the sport of MMA and can (and will) be used by our detractors to keep us where we are. The sport is much more popular than it was during Dana White's "c*nt" rant and this slur is directly targeted at the (well-known for its organization and rallying power) gay community.

Joe Rogan is one of THE faces of UFC and thus MMA and must take special care to represent well in public interactions. This is not over-sensitivity to what Rogan said, this is just an example of why we aren't mainstream. Could you see John Madden going off on some "writer" making fun that he blew a call nevertheless using slurs? OK, stop laughing at the mental image of Madden on a rant. But seriously, Madden wouldn't even give it a thought. I realize that the MMA community is incestuous and small, but there's got to be a little bit of disconnect between the professionals and the, uh, non-professionals.