Isn't the entire preferred pronoun issue a bit idiotic? First, if it is a preferred pronoun that implies that it is the one they personally like but other choices are available. If a person chooses something other than that preferred pronoun they are attacked, bullied, threatened, cancelled, etc. That would imply that it was not a choice. It was a demand. It is a Demanded/Mandated/Dictated Pronoun. Get it right. If someone cannot use another pronoun than the ones you designate without being attacked then there really is no CHOICE about it. You are using PREFERRED as a qualifier/adjective to try to make it seem like you are giving people a choice. You are not. You are making demands. You are being a dictator. You are being an authoritarian. You are indicating that you believe you have a right to force other people to speak as you demand.
Okay. That was just part of the problem.
Here is a narrative I did today. I'll post the image form and I'll retype it as text after that.
VICTIM: "They misgendered me."
PERSON: "Really? How?"
VICTIM: "My preferred pronouns are they/them."
PERSON: "Then are they not also misgendering them?"
VICTIM: "Huh?"
PERSON: "They keep using words like me and my which are pronouns."
VICTIM: "No they keep saying she or her."
PERSON: "No I just heard them say 'They misgendered me.'"
VICTIM: "That was me."
PERSON: "Right, see they did it again."
VICTIM: "What?"
PERSON: "Me is a pronoun and it is not they or them."
VICTIM: "That is stupid."
PERSON: "I agree. Look at all the time and effort wasted over pronouns."
Me, My, I, You, Your, Mine, etc. These are all pronouns.
If someone is demanding you use their pronouns try it out. Replace you, your, yours with their preferred pronouns.
It doesn't work out quite that well. They will likely get angry and say you know exactly what they mean.
They don't want you using she, her, he, and him.
Yet the problem with that is you only use those when you are not talking to them directly.
They are attempting to dictate how you talk to other people. Yet you are trying to be clear with other people without having them try to do mental acrobatics to understand pronouns that they likely have no context for and just confuse the situation.
The pronouns you do use when directly talking to them are likely you, your, and possibly you're.
Once you replace those possibilities with their preferred pronouns the sentences get VERY confusing.
It is stupid.
It is a waste of time.
It is making speech very corrupted, non-functional, and confusing.
It is the opposite of learning to communicate better.
It is about power. It is about trying to control other people.
Being offended by it is a CHOICE. You can just as easily choose not to be offended by it and a lot of wasted time and effort is suddenly available again to do other things.
