Holy shit... Ann Coulter is one bitter, old spinster...

[DetlefK]

Link to tweet

We singles live empty lives of quiet desperation and will die alone. Now Rubio is demanding that we also fund happy families with children who fill their days with joy.



------------

If you want to quit being single, that attitude is not helpful.

[Kirk Lover]

1. While she is awful, I've long felt discriminated against because I'm single. n/t

[hlthe2b]

4. Me too. & "BITTER OLD SPINSTER" Can the OP be more inappropriate/derisive towards women? REALLY?

[infidel621]

18. Probably. How was this so inappropriate?

[hlthe2b]

41. If you don't know how demeaning it is to refer to an unmarried woman as a "bitter old spinster" you

DON'T belong on a progressive web site. That attitude reflects how Trump would refer to women and others who really belong in Roy Moore's congregation...

[Aristus]

71. He/She doesn't belong here, that's for sure.

'Infidel' is a tag that Christian Nationalists tend to use. They're dumb enough to think it means 'non-Muslim'. It literally means 'without faith'.

So it's either a Christian Nationalist, or a stupid atheist.

[infidel621]

79. I use it precicely because

it literally means 'without faith'. Are you seriously giving me shit about faith?

So what reason are you giving for my not belonging here?

[RandomAccess]

67. Stereotypes

Stay far, far away from them.

Spinster is a negative stereotype for single women, usually older than "marrying age." It's NOT a term you want to use about anyone, unless you're fine with letting your inner misogynist out.

[infidel621]

80. Thank you for the explanation

without the holier than thou attitude. I work on genealogy sometimes as a hobby and I see this term all the time in census records or other forms. I've seen it used for women as young as 20 and never really thought much of it.

[RandomAccess]

85. Well, I'm sorry you found my explanation offensive

And just because you encounter it in genealogy doesn't mean it's appropriate TODAY.

Do you also find these sources "holier than thou"? They're from the first page of Google results when googling "spinster."


spin·ster
ˈspinstər/Submit
nounderogatory
an unmarried woman, typically an older woman beyond the usual age for marriage.


Spinster - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spinster
It adds: "In modern everyday English, however, spinster cannot be used to mean simply 'unmarried woman'; as such, it is a derogatory term, referring or alluding to a stereotype of an older woman who is unmarried, childless, prissy, and repressed."


Spinster | Define Spinster at Dictionary.com
www.dictionary.com/browse/spinster
Spinster definition, Disparaging and Offensive. a woman still unmarried beyond the usual age of marrying. See more.


Spinster | Definition of Spinster by Merriam-Webster
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spinster
Definition of spinster. 1 : a woman whose occupation is to spin. 2 a archaic : an unmarried woman of gentle family. b : an unmarried woman and especially one past the common age for marrying. 3 : a woman who seems unlikely to marry.

[infidel621]

88. I wasn't being sarcastic

It was a genuine thank you for explaining without the attitude of some other posters. Damn people on DU are bitter. Seems that jumping to conclusions are the standard around here.

This: " an unmarried woman of gentle family" was my understanding of the definition. I did not bother to check to see what someone on Wikipedia decided it means.

[hlthe2b]

95. You say you see the term in geneology and thus assumed it was fine. You surely also see the 'N' word

or at least the more "polite" form of it as you scour genealogical records and African Americans are mentioned--or any number of ethnic slurs of previous years. So do you assume you can use those as well?!

Unless you have been in total isolation the past 40 years, you DO know better.

[infidel621]

102. Seriously?

I asked a fucking question. How was it so inappropriate? Simple. Suddenly conclusions are being formed and judgements being made. I don't belong here, I'm one of those horrid atheists. When did I suggest it was appropriate?

So *I* didn't have the same definition of spinster as you do and I asked a question... this is the result?

[hlthe2b]

104. You insult half the population here with a disgusting slur and then complain that you are questioned

fon using it--saying we all must be "bitter" (and thus repeat half of the slur)? Pot meet kettle.

[infidel621]

107. I didn't use it... I asked why you said it was so inappropriate...

I made the 'bitter' comment due to the way people seem to often over-react on posts here on DU and this as an example. YOU decided to associate the term bitter with the original slur I didn't even say. Try rereading things without jumping to conclusions that there is some malicious purpose behind my post and attempting to justify your outrage.

[RandomAccess]

115. I'm VERY sorry I misunderstood your tone and meaning

If you like I'll remove my post.

[brush]

153. You're activating BS detectors all over this board. Are you telling us you really didn't know that..

the word "spinster" is offensive?

[Tipperary]

90. Very very odd to find it used for women as young as 20. I find that doubtful.

It was not used for women that age.

[hlthe2b]

97. Indeed it was not. I'm not buying his explanation while deriding those of us who he has offended.

[infidel621]

103. I don't give a shit what you buy

You determine how it was used in 19th century Scotland? You were offended by a simple question? Jesus Christ

[hlthe2b]

105. We all know you don't give a shit..

or you would not defend using sexist slurs towards women.

[infidel621]

108. When did I defend it? I never even used it.

I asked a question and you are throwing unfounded accusations.

[pangaia]

154. I just read that.. sub thread with you being attacked.

Jesus on a stick, what are some folks smokin'?

Things sure have changed.

Kudos for hanging in there.

[RandomAccess]

120. He wasn't defending it.

I think -- I HOPE -- you've mixed up this poster with the OP, who hasn't bothered to past any further in his own thread. THIS poster really only asked a question about the term. I hopped on him, and learned that I misunderstood his post in response. I think you've been a little hard on him, if you read the entire subthread. I've apologized for my part.

[hlthe2b]

125. that term has been a slur (like the "c" word) for women since my Late Mother was a young woman

>60 years. So, while the poster was not the originator of the OP, they did question why "bitter old spinster" should not be used. I suppose there are those who would question the use of any number of slurs, but unless English is a second language or they spent the past 40 years overseas (in which case I would apologize), I find it hard to fathom anyone REALLY not knowing better.

[RandomAccess]

128. I am very well aware of the offensive history of the word

I'm older than you, and I'm female, and have been a staunch feminist since the 1970s. Actually, since I was a child except there wasn't a word for it and no political theory to support it.

I still don't think THIS poster deserved the harassment and browbeating you delivered, so we'll just have to disagree on that.

[hlthe2b]

133. I doubt you are older than I & I am DONE apologizing when I am derided or otherwise verbally abused

Our society EXPECTS women to apologize for men's bad behavior. I am DONE with that.

[RandomAccess]

148. LOL -- well bully for you!

Overreact much?

And just how the hell old ARE you?

[hlthe2b]

150. I'm not trying to be harsh with you, RandomAccess, but to explain.

why I believe that I don't owe that person an apology, but rather that they owe one to the women here.

You may believe they were "innocently" questioning why "bitter old spinster" was a problem, but I don't. So, yes, I'm old enough to be cynical about that. It just doesn't add up any more than those men here who routinely refer to women using the "b" word or worse, the "c" word. They know it is offensive. They don't care. I'm not apologizing for calling them on that.

[RandomAccess]

163. Okay

I think you're mistaken on this one, but I've been wrong about such things before. (Have you ever been wrong about such things?) I didn't find his posts that offensive, frankly, to make me doubt his sincerity.

[whathehell]

182. I agree that it's sexist and unacceptable, but it's really not on the level as the "c word"

Seriously, I'm with you on this, .but I think it's important to acknowledge that there are "degrees" of offensive.. The C word is an obscenity, and it's really much worse than "spinster"

[cwydro]

111. Welcome to DU.

[Tipperary]

110. I think it is pretty obvious what that posters agenda is. No need to worry.

I do find it interesting that this thread has showed me some things I did not know about other posters I generally respected. Oh well. Live and learn. Spinster though? My, I do not think I have seen that since reading Jane Austen. Perhaps the op and this other poster are fans of Austen.

[RandomAccess]

117. We're talking about old census records --

and there was a time when a young woman of 20 was approaching spinsterhood.

[Tipperary]

121. We will have to disagree on this one. It is good to know you are another who embrace that term.

[RandomAccess]

122. OFFS

I "embrace" that term? You wanna see my first post to this thread and tell me that again???? Here, a little help:
https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=9988085

[Mariana]

155. Link to a census record that uses that word, please.

I've read an awful lot of old census records. I've never seen it.

[RandomAccess]

161. I don't do census records

Do you regularly pore thru Scottish census records?? You'll have to ask the poster who encountered it -- He said they were from Scotland. I took him at his word.

[Tipperary]

38. I know. Spinster? Wow, flashback to the days when women were defined by their marital status.

Or lack thereof.

[liberalhistorian]

76. It's incredibly inappropriate and

offensive. I didn't even think people used it anymore, haven't heard it in ages.

[UT_democrat]

129. OMG

Is this real?

[Squinch]

140. You were looking for the site where creepy old sexist terms are accepted? They're out there.

But you'll have to move on if that's what you're after.

[UT_democrat]

156. I was?

News to me. Thanks for setting me straight though.

[Squinch]

159. You seem to be ridiculing the objection to the creepy old sexist term, which would suggest

that you think the creepy old sexist term should be tolerated. Or did your post ("OMG is this real? " ) mean something else?

[DesertRat]

158. I agree. Ugh.

[moriah]

189. I could be far more inappropriate and derisive towards Ann Coulter.

I'm single and childless, too.

But I don't live a life of "quiet desperation" or think it's wrong for my taxes to help poor families that have children. I am not so jealous of that joy that I resent others having it, or would take it out on children.

And if anyone has that type of negative attitude about their single status, it's not healthy for them. Nor does it lead to attracting joy in other areas of their lives.

Actually, I *will* be far more inappropriate and derisive towards Ann. I'm grateful that it's unlikely she will warp any children -- she deserves that lack of joy. She's so self-centered she couldn't give a child the love they deserve.

[hlthe2b]

190. No one here has anything but total disdain for Coulter, but there are plenty of descriptors

that apply to her and her ugly viewpoints, that don't disparage other women at the same time.

[moriah]

191. As both a feminist and a lover of the artistry of the English language...

... I rarely think any word should absolutely *never* be uttered by a human mouth. Even the variation on the "n-word" has a use in the context between African-Americans of "brother/sisterhood and unity forged through enduring what non-blacks will never understand". Doesn't necessarily mean it should be coming out of *my* mouth, but it has a valid linguistic place.

However, there are some behaviors that have merited me calling the person who did them the worst word to call a female. The reason a gendered term was the only way to express my disgust at what they were doing was that they were abusing the privilege of motherhood, and emotionally abusing their fully born and intellectually very aware child in a way that was so .... well, that wordish. Kid's now finally in therapy after breaking down, and I'm praying that she makes it to adulthood wIthout further scarring from that ... well.

Throwing words like that one around for no reason diminishes the impact they should have.

In this poster's case.... the only objectionable word is "spinster", which while it has a negative connotation, the entirety of the negative connotation fits Coulter herself perfectly. In every way that matters she is the opposite of attractive (her soul is a void, makes the rest meaningless), she's 56 so well beyond the age for a first marriage, and even the connotation of "nobody wanting to marry her" is probably also true.. not for any physical reasons or her age, but who could not lose their own soul with someone so negative? The other connotation, that a "spinster" is unhappy about the situation/miserable/empty because they haven't had to undergo the agony of childbirth and lead lives of quiet desperation doomed to die alone.... ffs, she SAID that part.

I wouldn't call myself a spinster. I probably wouldn't call anyone other than Ann Coulter one, and only in response to a Tweet that totally exemplified every aspect of the connotation of the word.

And yeah, it probably isn't that cool. It's mean to her, though I'm certain the poster only meant to be mean *to* her and not trigger socially-created insecurities in other single women.

But in her case, I can't deny I find the word choice very apt.

[MGKrebs]

5. I've felt discriminated against because I don't have kids.

Why should there be a child tax credit?

[Kirk Lover]

22. Well I understand they are expensive and I really don't even oppose a tax credit,

but it just annoys me that I can never get a break on anything because I'm the dreaded........"single".

[MGKrebs]

29. I do a lot of expensive things that don't get a tax credit!

The days of needing to encourage population growth are long gone.

Now get off my lawn!

[jberryhill]

30. Those kids will be paying your social security

The notion that one pays into social security and gets it back is a myth. It has always been a pay-as-you-go system.

[Kirk Lover]

33. I'm not saying that. If you read again you see I don't oppose a tax credit.

I understand we live in a society blah blah blah. I care about children even though I don't have one...I guess that's why I'm a Democrat. All I 'm saying is single folks don't get breaks on anything....THAT IS ALL.

[jberryhill]

56. -single folks don't get breaks on anything-

From a tax perspective, sure. But from a purely economic standpoint, if you want to trade my kids' tuition for a $1200 tax deduction, PM me your details, and I'd be happy to make that trade.

As pointed out above, raising kids - while voluntary like all other employment - is an unpaid job which, presumably, ultimately pays out benefits to society at large. That's the theory anyway, and I usually use the Social Security example, since it is the one I think about when the elementary school across the street is having a noisy activity or whatever.

As an economic proposition, the cost of children doesn't come anywhere near the tax benefit. You could take what other people spend on children, donate it to charity, and deduct the entire amount, if you are looking for a tax deduction of some kind.

Marry a 65 year old blind person, and you get two right at the top of the form!

Why does anyone get a tax break for being blind? I don't know, but I'm not sticking a pair of knitting needles in my eyes to find out.

As was also pointed out, there's a whole raft of laws that apply ONLY to parents. It's not simply out of kindness that parents feed, clothe, shelter, school, get medical care, etc., for children. They'll go to jail if they don't do those things, and then you, and everyone else, pays full boat for the care of those other people - who are also members of this society.

One workable alternative, I guess, is to get rid of parenting, and have everyone pay the full cost of raising the next generation of members of society.

There's also a benefit at the back-end, since a lot of children end up taking care of their elderly parents, which, again, would otherwise be a collective cost.

[Kirk Lover]

165. I'm not speaking about raising kids and parenting and costs. I thought my posts made it clear that

I wasn't referring to that. I'm talking about everything else... like the 4 line phone plan is cheaper than mine and there is nobody to defray the cost of living.....it's too bad you are too interested in being understood rather than understanding.

[brewens]

44. I'd love to see politicians grilled on just why they feel single people and those

without kids should be punished with higher taxes? They probably will know better than to admit why it is. It's because without that expense, we can afford to pay more. We should have higher disposable incomes and it's okay for the government to take a share of that. That's out there for everyone to see. They keep getting away with claiming the rich can't afford to pay more though.

[treestar]

54. It is the right wingers who say

"don't have kids if you can't afford them" too, so if I can't afford them, and don't have them, one would think we should get some reward for that under the tax code. But consistency is never a thing for the right wing.

[The Mouth]

113. Disagree

" But consistency is never a thing for the right wing."

They are utterly consistent, any time they can screw the poor, the middle class, women or minorities, they do

[Sophia4]

57. Someone else's children will pay into Social Security and the stock market/

savings account when you retire. That's when you get your bonus.

[Kirk Lover]

166. You all (well not all) are missing the real point and are fixating on the child care shit

when that's not what I was speaking to. I'm done.

[Sophia4]

192. Marriage saves a lot of money.

We who are married pay rent once for two people.
It makes economic sense to cook for two -- for one, not as much.
When we are sick, our spouses look out for us. Same generally.

Life is better if two are living together.

But then, marriage is difficult because it is hard to find a person with whom you are compatible.

Staying single or getting married is a choice. Society traditionally encourages marriage and having children.

The tax credits for children are a minor way to encourage marriage and children because children cost a lot, a lot, a lot more than the tax credit reimburses. A bigger house is just the beginning of the cost of a child. Transportation, medical costs, education, toys, sports, it goes on and on.

Staying single or getting married is a choice, but when you retire you will live off the work of the younger generations even if you think you are living off your savings, so that is why there should be no complaint about a small tax credit for those who have children and get married.

[MaryMagdaline]

42. Kids pay for our old age *need to subsidize them

Now and then they subsidize us later

[hlthe2b]

55. I agree... but that isn't the issue for most of us on this subthread. I don't begrudge child credits

-it is that some want to post the nastiest, most misogynistic comments toward single women--especially those older than Trump and his lot believe to be "worthy". I don't understand how some on this thread, seeing that, don't share my disgust for THAT?

[jberryhill]

58. Coulter is the one making the nasty characterization, really

I know plenty of single people who don't seem to be living lives of quiet desperation.

[hlthe2b]

60. Did you read the OP? Really? Damn some here just DON'T get it. Misogyny and bigotry lives

I detest Coulter but those words are aimed at ALL women. Demean women for being single? Really? Demean them for being older? Really. THAT is what YOU want to defend?

[jberryhill]

63. THAT is what YOU want to defend

Jesus. Yes, I'll spend the rest of my life's energy DEFENDING the stupid use of the word "spinster" in the OP. I have a new life purpose. Thank you.

Do you always have this much caffeine?

Coulter's comment on single people being desperate is absurd. If she wants to portray herself as the "spinster" stereotype, that's up to her, but she needn't drag down all other single people as if she is their spokesperson.

[Tipperary]

64. As the other poster said, you just do not get it. That is a damn shame.

I will assume you are male.

[hlthe2b]

65. YES, I want to defend women against derisive misogynistic comments from "supposed" progressive

posters on DU. That YOU don't as well, tells us all we need to know about YOU.

[stonecutter357]

186. nice pearl clutch .

[hlthe2b]

188. Ahh, good more misogyny. Not surprised at you. But now you've shown your ..... to everyone

[Tipperary]

62. I do. I wonder what the op calls single men? I find this really sad to see that here.

Op obviously has no intention of deleting it, which speaks volumes.

[MaryMagdaline]

72. Unfortunately I sometimes give a pass when it

Is Coulter. Under the theory that since she is not human, she can't be a woman. And I sort of thought the "spinster" thing was an attempt to bait Coulter who actually does not read DU.

You are right, the spinster thing is ugly. It was the term that most readily jumped out at a woman who could not own property in her own name as well as other insults to her freedom.

[The Mouth]

114. I don't think it has anything to do with her age

and as a 56 year old man, I don't find her visage unattractive.

However she has the kind of ugliness that comes from the inside out. Ugliness of spirit; no matter how attractive the physical body might be.

I rather pity her, not because of her marital status, but because she's so filled with hate and anger; must be a really shitty way to go through life no matter how pretty or rich you are.

[MGKrebs]

59. Yeah but that is different than a child tax credit on your income tax.

Baby boomers are starting to kick the bucket so we won't need so many kids to sustain the system (as long as Congress doesn't continue to raid that money).

[liberalhistorian]

75. I'm married, but that didn't happen until I was in my mid-forties

and I know just what you mean about discrimination against singles. And it gets a lot worse once you reach your mid-thirties. You'd think that would start to change now since the adult singles population is actually now greater than the percentage of married adults, but unfortunately that's not the case.

I wish people would understand that there's nothing wrong at all with being single, and it doesn't mean there's something "wrong" with you.

[PJMcK]

2. Fuck off, Ann (n/t)

[Hortensis]

84. Fuck off, Ann and Kochs? Child tax credit leaves less for them

to transfer to their pockets. Ann makes it clear that only stealing as much as possible from our treasury can make make up for her empty life.

[snooper2]

3. Oh Ann, come on, you are only 56 you have plenty of time to find a mate

At 56 you could still have 30 or 40 years of happiness! You don't have to lie about your age anymore, there are plenty of men who would be happy with a rich 56 year old. Did I mention she is 56?





Ann Coulter Dodging Questions About Her Age: Strangely Thrilling

http://gawker.com/5810390/ann-coulter-dodging-questions-about-her-age-strangely-thrilling

[delisen]

16. Why do so many rich want to play victim?

[steve2470]

6. that's just a completely pathetic tweet...even if she's being sarcastic

Kind note to OP: next time please don't use the phrase "bitter old spinster"....better yet, I would delete that phrase.

Hey Ann, repent your sins and become a Democrat. You might find someone. The Republicans are just using you, in so many ways.

[Kimchijeon]

7. Bitter and nasty, mean & heartless

[Roland99]

8. Ayn Coulter

[treestar]

35. good one!

[procon]

9. She may actually have a valid point.

In 2014, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 124.6 million Americans 16 years and older were single, or 50.2 percent of the population. Single people get far less benefits than than those with children, so where's the equalty in treating half the population as 2nd class citizens?

[pnwmom]

109. You could flip it around the other way. Parents go to the trouble and expense of raising

children, who then pay Social Security and Medicare taxes that pay for old people in general -- including millions of single old people. If no one was going to raise children, if everyone was living their lives as selfishly as Ann Coulter, for example, no one would be around to help support old people.

Ann's problem isn't that she's single. If she's leading an empty and desperate life, it's because she has no friends or relatives she loves, and who love her. And that's because she happens to be a very selfish, self-centered person.

[procon]

118. people make a choice to become parents or not.

In an era when more women choose not to have children, its mendacious to tar them as friendless, lovelorn, or selfish. WTF!!! They do not lead empty and desperate lives just because they do not want children. Don't judge.

You allude to children paying Social Security and Medicare taxes that benefit old people, as if that was a one sided burden. However, you omitted to mention that those old people also fund schools and hundreds of other social programs for kids and families as part of our shared social compact. That's a good and needful thing, yeah?

There is no law that forces children to support or care for their elderly parents, so having more of them is no guarantee of an old age secure in the bosom of our dear offspring. Better that everyone share the same equitable tax break as given to parents so we can all retain some measure of dignity throughout our lives, or just blow "every darn penny on booze or women or movies," like Grassley said.

[pnwmom]

147. Ann tarred single people that way -- I didn't. I think it's the opposite, based on the single people

I know. But she said SHE, as a single person, was leading an empty and desperate life, and I'll take her word on that.

And I didn't say the burden was one-sided. I said you could flip your point around. I agree that single people, married people, and children are all part of a common social contract.

I have no idea what this special tax break you're referring to that parents get, except for deductions that only account for a fraction of what children cost to raise. Parents in the US don't have children because they're money-makers. They have them DESPITE the cost.

And you're absolutely right, there is no guarantee that children will grow up to take care of their parents. But children do grow up to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes that benefit every elderly person, whether they had their own children or were single all their lives.

[DFW]

10. You know what? I think she unintentionally let down her guard for once.

I'll bet she does indeed have plenty of lonely nights of "quiet desperation." Every one of them well-deserved, mind you. I sure as hell wouldn't want to have the likes of her in bed next to me.

But it has to be a lonely existence to go to bed night after night alone--IF you wish there someone there with you. Some people are perfectly cool being alone. I am not one of them. Maybe she isn't either. In that case, whatever holdover vestige of humanity she may retain probably does indeed make her realize that hers is a desire that her odious nature will prevent her from ever fulfilling. That's not a pleasant prospect at age 56.

[steve2470]

20. I agree and I hope she was being authentic

Last edited Fri Dec 15, 2017, 07:50 PM - Edit history (1)

Maybe her "sins" really are coming home to roost. At age 56, you should have some degree of maturity, introspection and insight, and stop blaming everyone else for your problems.

As I said above, repent your sins sincerely Ann, in public, and become a sincere Democrat. You can then tell us all the GOP secrets and become a good Democrat.

[Gabi Hayes]

144. She doesnt have an authentic

“bone” in her body

[Gabi Hayes]

145. I think that was my favorite post ever

!

[lunatica]

26. If it makes her suffer a smidgeon of what she causes to others to suffer then I'm glad

[Dave Starsky]

36. Ah, the "Wolf Trap" syndrome.

That's where you wake up with Ann Coulter in bed with, so you chew your arm off in order to escape without waking her up.

[DFW]

47. I have a less painful solution

I'd just pinch myself and wake up to end the nightmare. I think I'd rather become a Franciscan Friar than voluntarily wake up next to the likes of her.

[steve2470]

52. lol nt

[PJMcK]

81. The "Double Wolf Trap"

After leaving one arm behind with Ann, you chew off the other arm so it never happens again.

[MineralMan]

11. Who cares what Ann Coulter thinks.

My wife and I haven't had any children. Neither did I and my former wife. I'm 72 years old. Our lives are not full of quiet desperation at all. It was our choice not to add to the population. It was a conscious, well-considered decison.

We work for and campaign for measures that help all children. We never mind our tax money going to that. That Coulter does simply makes her a bitter curmudgeon. I celebrate her desperation and hope she wallows deeply in it.

[Fullduplexxx]

12. Well ann if you didnt eat your young you too could be a happy family

[Hortensis]

87. Lol, but impossible to imagine that last.

[bettyellen]

13. Bitter old spinster sounds like some regressive RW judge bullshit. Pls edit this crap.

[Tipperary]

39. It sounds like when women were labeled by their relationship to men.

Certainly not something I would expect to see here. It is archaic.

[TheBlackAdder]

14. She should move to a Libertarian Utopia. That's right, Libertarianism is unworkable bullshit fantasy

[Voltaire2]

15. Oh for fucks sake. No single people, you are not being picked on.

The child tax credit barely makes a dent in the enormous costs of raising children. Singles have no such obligations. The complaint is bullshit.

Does society have an obligation to ensure that all children have the basic necessities of life? Is that really a question on an allegedly liberal message board?

One way to ensure that is through the tax system.

And yes we all benefit, single or not, from the care put into raising the next generation.

The complaints here that agree with Coulter's rightwing bullshit are astounding.

[steve2470]

17. totally agree

Someone told me one time you didn't need money to raise kids. What ?!

Yea, if you want them to grow up in poverty. It takes a huge amount of money to really give your kids any kind of advantages.

[procon]

40. The decision to have children is the parent's choice.

The taxpayers already pay for a long list of public social services, benefits and programs to support children and families, and all that is important to a thriving society. The Child Tax Credit offsets some of personal costs associated with raising children, but not every family is eligible. The Child Tax Credit is geared toward helping working, middle-class parents. Higher earning households can't get it, and there's less help for low income families where the poorest parents can’t claim anything at all.

If a benefit is carved out for one segment then it discriminates against everyone else who can't get the same deal. Consider change the name, give the tax benefit to everyone to use as they need to.

[MaryMagdaline]

45. Agreed. I have no children and would

Gladly pay more taxes to help families with children. It's the reason I am a Democrat.

Even if I did not think it was the moral thing to do, it is beneficial to society and would make our country a nice place to live in.

[Mariana]

49. You don't hate children and the people who have them.

Some, including some Democrats, strongly resent any accommodations or expenditures that are made for the benefit of parents and children.

[Hortensis]

92. I don't think they comprehend what's happening,

not just don't understand or care about the child tax credit. It seems like deflecting to use of language may for some also be a way of denial. These are scary times.

But in any case, others will read your sensible post.

[Blue_Tires]

19. Being desperately single and lonely is bad enough

but now I have to be associated with her as well??

[onenote]

21. If she was married, her spouse would be living an empty life of desperation.

[steve2470]

23. haha! nt

[Achilleaze]

24. The sPirIT of KGOP republican "KONzervativE kompASSion"

is so freakin stanky. Shame.

[TheCowsCameHome]

25. It's no wonder she's single.

I mean......c'mon.

[lunatica]

27. Stop your whining and go adopt a kid so you can get your credit

But let someone else bring it up or you'll be accused of child cruelty.

[snowybirdie]

31. Yes dispense with the old spinster crap

But her words are really dumb. How many of us parents have all our days "filled with joy"? She assumes much. And it's her own fault of she dies in desperation and alone. Life is what you make it Ann, either married or single. Buck up and live a little. It can be awesome if you have the right attitude

[get the red out]

32. If she is living a life of "quiet desperation"

It is not because she is single, but because she is an abhorrent human being.

[treestar]

34. Oh please, we do not

we still have families -siblings and nieces and nephews. And friends. You could make the argument a tax provision is unfair without the dramatics.

[Mike Nelson]

37. I dislike her, but...

...that was funny!

[suffragette]

43. Revealing the real reason some people in US dont want to fund societal good - jealousy.

Like Ann, they fear someone else might be:
Having more fun
Happier in their lives/choices
Might live in improved conditions
Might be successful or more successful than her

They view any improvement to others or society as a whole as something taken or that might be taken from them.

This applies to Social Security, education funding, welfare, jobs programs, health care, etc.

Pretty bleak when your world view is consumed by jealousy.

[madinmaryland]

46. Well, Ms. Coulter, you reap what you sew. You have sewn hatred your entire life and

it will be leaving you alone, shunned, and in quiet desperation. I feel no sympathy for you. You have spent your entire life ridiculing the people you now are jealous of. Life sucks doesn't it. Deal with it, you jealous and useless old woman. You made those choices and now you are left to deal with those choices.

[madinmaryland]

78. I don't think sow's want to be compared to Ann Coulter...

BTW, I am Coulter's age and if someone wants to call me an old useless man, then so be it. Though I would prefer they refer to tRump as an old useless man, but I think dangerous fits better.

BTW, welcome to DU!

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

82. You reap what you sow. You have sown hatred your entire life.

Sew and sow meaning extremely different things.

I was picturing Ms Coulter hunched over a sewing machine and doing a terrible job of sewing.

[madinmaryland]

93. Goddam grammer nazis.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

96. Not grammar.

Vocabulary. The grammar is correct. The word is wrong.

[madinmaryland]

100. Kelsey Grammar is a goddam moron.

[Jim Lane]

132. The English word is "grammar" but the actor's surname is "Grammer".

BTW, please don't call me a grammar Nazi. On this occasion I'm being a spelling Nazi.

[rzemanfl]

106. She gets really frustrated sewing "Great Again" over and over on those hats. Wait, that's

some underpaid woman in a sweatshop somewhere.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

131. LOL!

But I really could somehow see Coulter hunched over a sewing machine, not entirely sure how to work it, breaking the thread over and over, sewing crooked seams, sewing together things that weren't supposed to be sewn together.

I've had my own bad experiences with sewing machines, so the thought of Coulter tormented that way is quite delightful.

[Bradshaw3]

48. How about "grumpster" for us single old men?

Although I'm rarely grumpy, it definitely defines a lot of my older compatriots. I'm retired and happy but then I'm not a nasty, hate-filled grotesque like Ann. Maybe she's feeling irritable from all those black and blue marks left by the 10-foot poles guys touch her with.

[madinmaryland]

101. GET OFF THE LAWN, YOU GODDAM KIDS!!

[JHB]

50. Who's this "we", Coultergeist?

Don't drag the rest of us into your bitter, pathetic, hateful misery.

[cilla4progress]

51. Explains her negativity and

hatefulness.

[MineralMan]

53. Here's my Twitter reply to Coulter:

Replying to @AnnCoulter
Utter nonsense. Maybe that describes you, but not every single or child-free person or couple. For most of us, the decision not to reproduce was made after considerable thought. For me, it was a population concern. I decided not to reproduce in 1969, and have never looked back.
12:31 PM - 15 Dec 2017

[vlyons]

61. Simply put, she lacks compassion

She is not a happy person, because she is too selfish to work for the benefit of others. Too greedy to surrender anything for the benefit of others. This is the classic stance of selfish ego. This is why she leads a life of quiet desperation. And BTW: she doesn't have to die alone. She could make some, ya know, friends.

May all sentient beings experience the joy of appreciating the success, happiness, and well-being of others.

[muntrv]

66. Call the waaahhhmbulance.

http://tse2.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.-yv8pLGLTAlLbHYJrxIKvQHaE3&w=281&h=179&c=7&qlt=90&o=4&pid=1.7

[RandomAccess]

68. I just want to make sure you don't miss this --

the subthread about your inappropriate language.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=9987574

[bettyellen]

69. Thank you. I'm sick of the misogyny here, Coulter is no excuse.

[RandomAccess]

73. Yes, so many people (and not just men!) have the attitude

that if it's one of our political enemies, gender slurs are a-okay.

They're definitely not!

[Baitball Blogger]

70. I thought you were being harsh! But now I see you were being fair.

Lady is cray-cray.

[GoCubsGo]

77. Yet, not a peep about her ilk who want women to be nothing but breeders pushing out tons of babies.

See, for example, Peggy Noonan, Mike Pence, Roy Moore...

[handmade34]

83. her attempt at sarcasm...

she is supposed to be a writer... for goodness sake, she should be able to do better

[betsuni]

86. I was just going to say, am I the only one who thinks she's being sarcastic?

I can't see it any other way.

[steve2470]

119. I think she is, also

Somehow I can't see Ann Coulter baring her soul on Twitter. Maybe her intended sarcasm has some roots in her reality, who knows, I sure don't.

[Jim Lane]

134. I agree with you.

She's making fun of a fairly widespread attitude toward single people. The cultural dismissiveness applies to single men, women, Democrats, Republicans -- in fact, just about all singles except members of religious orders.

We don't get lynched. We don't even get discriminated against at bakeries. This isn't a huge problem, but the attitude is there.

[cwydro]

89. Spinster???

Really?

The 1800s called. They miss you.

[tavernier]

91. I do feel for her.

Not because of some phoney, sarcastic bullshit that she thinks she is putting out as a clever dig, but because her happiness derives from making others feel small and undeserving. It’s like eating cookies without butter or flour or nuts or icing or flavor. Her batter contains a cup of bitters and a spoonful of salt, and no matter what pretty Holiday tin she pours them into, no one will choose to eat them for long.

Fa la la.

[steve2470]

94. the OP is from Germany

I have no idea what spinster means in Germany. Still...this is an American board. One adapts to American sensibilities. On German boards, one adapts to their sensibilities if one can.

[cwydro]

99. The OP has had numerous responses educating him

that it’s an inappropriate word.

I think the OP is well aware.

The Germans I know are very good in English. Much better than most of us are in German.

All that aside, if I was posting in another language and was told I was being offensive - I’d quickly edit.

Good of you to point that out (seriously). It shows your good heart.

Sadly, I don’t think that excuse will fly for the OP.

[steve2470]

123. thank you for the kind words, appreciated

I do agree with you.

[cwydro]

142. And youre appreciated too.

I know we’ve not always agreed, but I know you’re a good man.. and an ally.

[RandomAccess]

124. How do you know the OP has even seen it??

He hasn't posted since the OP. You can't edit what you're not aware of.

I think people have confused a subsequent poster with the OP. I hope that's not true for you.

[Initech]

98. Ann needs a puppy. Or something.

But I can't imagine anyone as soulless as her finding joy in anything.

[DFW]

167. She could always get herself a puppy and then find joy

...by kicking it and starving it to death.

[MicaelS]

112. It is pathetic that many here are more concerned

About the use of the term spinster, rather than Coulter's comment. Coulter is bitter, and old, and single. After all the shit she has espoused, I am not surprised she is lonely. What kind of man would want to be around her 24/7.

Oh yes one other thing. I would add SHREW to that OP description.

[Tipperary]

116. Wow are you seriously writing this? Really? This is an educational thread for me.

I hate these threads that disappoint me so much.

[hlthe2b]

135. Give him time and he'll whip out the ole "c" word. Not all men are progressive here (or respectful)

at all.

[Squinch]

137. It's impossible to underestimate the disrespect some who post here have for women.

And every one of them thinks he's enlightened. Sad but true.

Just go into it knowing that and you won't be caught by surprise.

[cwydro]

143. Damn, but youre so right.

Ima have to do my usual now and trash this thread.

Kudos to the good men on Du. I know they are the majority.

Those who are not make themselves pretty clear. Pretty fast.

[UT_democrat]

138. Lol

[Oneironaut]

126. Im single and my life is not at all empty.

On the other hand, being an annoying asshole and pretend bigot for attention would no doubt leave one feeling empty. The adage about laying with fleas is apt here.

[n2doc]

127. Hate to break it to you Ann

But you undoubtedly are funding many things (schools, roads, etc. ) that you don't personally use but that others do. It isn't like you are lacking for funds.

[BigDemVoter]

130. She is one NASTY piece of work.

[Jim Lane]

136. About the several posts saying that no man would want Ann Coulter

Get out of your bubble, people. She could put up a personal ad on Free Republic and date a different guy every night for the rest of this year.

I speak metaphorically, because FR doesn't carry personal ads. My point is that she has quite a following, including many heterosexual conservative men who think she's brilliant and hot. It takes all kinds to fill the freeways.

[Squinch]

139. Holy shit... You seem really comfortable using a creepy and monumentally sexist term...

Wonder what that says about you...

[treestar]

141. At one time, spinster just meant unmarried woman

I have seen it on old marriage certificates. A 19-year-old bride would be deemed a spinster, simply for being unmarried.

The negative connotation seems to be the usual patriarchal reaction - extended to being unmarried is, for a woman, undesirable to society.

[Mariana]

160. My husband's parents' 1956 marriage certificate says that.

That was in England, though, not in the US.They were Bachelor and Spinster. She was 21. Also, his birth certificate calls his sex "Boy" rather than "Male".

Honestly, I've never seen the term used in any US marriage record, even very old ones.

[treestar]

171. In the 60s in America there was this show the Dating Game

They would have a woman interview three men she could not see, or the opposite and pick which one to go on a date with and the show provided an expensive date, but never followed up on that all that much.

They used the terms "bachelor" and "bachelorette." The contestants were all young of course, as they had no divorce rate yet to bring about dating of older people. So even then they must have thought the term was a but dated.

Now we seem to have abandoned those terms and use "single man/woman" instead. And now a marriage license will have boxes, single, widowed, divorced.

[DFW]

169. Quite correct. See this article

From the Huffington Post, no less:

WEDDINGS 05/01/2014 05:00 pm ET Updated Dec 06, 2017
Old Marriage License Reminds Us That 28 Was Once Spinsterhood
By Taryn Hillin


When you think of the term “spinster,” the image of a bitter, old maid comes to mind. But alas, history is here to remind us that single women of any age were at one time considered “spinsters” simply because they didn’t have a man.

From the looks of it, the groom was considered a “bachelor” and the bride a “spinster” — despite her age being a mere 28.

Slightly offended for this poor young (yes, young!) woman who was clearly in her prime, we did some digging. As it turns out, the term “spinster” was used on marriage licenses in England for women of any age until 2005!
--------------------------------
By the way, although the OP is German, and his English is excellent, I would like to point out that in Germany, the version of English that is taught in schools is almost without exception British English. When my girls were in school here in Germany, I had to actually have a conference with their English teachers to not diminish their grades for using American spellings or terms, which I had taught them from birth. In their classes, they got points taken off for not using the French spelling of "-our" words ("Honour, rumour, behaviour, etc.). The storage space in the back of a car was NOT a "trunk," but rather a "boot." It took some wrangling with their English teachers, invariably Germans who did not have a native command of English, to get them excused from being penalized for using American English. Some allowance has to be made for the possibility that the OP may not have intended to offend with the term.

As a side note, I will add that my elder daughter was so traumatized by one of her last teachers of English (as usual, a German whose English was worse than hers, and apparently felt intimidated by that), that she swore that if she ever went on to college after graduating, she would never attend another German school again (she did, and she didn't).

[treestar]

173. I once got to tour Noah Webster's home in Connecticut

I think there I learned he had done the dictionary and deliberately made the different spellings (honor/honour) so as Americans we would have our own distinction! Also the "z" in "realize" or such, wich the British using "realise."

Nowadays your daughter could set the computer to British English, so it would underscore as a mistake the usage of American! (Like my computer warns me of error for quoting the British spellings above.)

"Spinster" also makes me think of an old woman at a spinning wheel. That may have been a mainstay activity of the single woman in the old days. It could be they had a chance to live longer as they would not have been involved in childbirth.

[DFW]

175. When she was in school, they didn't have computers

Hell, when she started school, even I didn't have a computer!

[treestar]

176. Yes, I remember those days

when the scandal was should we be allowed to use calculators in math classes!

[DFW]

178. She didn't even go to school in the USA

Her first experience there was a semester "abroad" in Dallas. Other than that, she had no school in the USA until college.

[treestar]

180. "abroad" ha!

Do they have good schools in Germany? That is, are they better than US schools?

[DFW]

185. That depends on what you consider "good."

Each State has its own education ministry, and decides a rigid curriculum. All teachers in a state are given guidelines on how they are to teach the subjects. Creativity is discouraged. In their math classes, if the students found another way to solve a problem than the one prescribed by the teacher (and thus the state) then they got marked wrong, even if they got the right answer.

Teachers are what is called "beamtet," in other words they can never be fired from their jobs, no matter how bad they may be. One semester here, three quarters of my daughters math class was getting paid outside tutoring because the teacher was impossible for all but future Nobel Prize nominees to follow. The whole class's parents had a meeting with her, and she haughtily explained it was their "age group" that made teaching them difficult. Contrast that with her semester in Dallas. At her school (a Dallas public school), they had the same problem with a new math teacher. They couldn't understand anything and all failed the first test. He was fired within two weeks. In Germany, he would have been there for the rest of his life. They got a new math teacher, and she learned more math in the one semester in Dallas than she had learned in the past two years in Germany.

That having been said, there is not the huge contrast here like there in the States. In the USA, you will have public schools that are so poorly funded, or so poorly administrated, that they practically look like third world schools. That is almost unheard of in Germany (or most anywhere in western Europe). In parts of Texas, some public schools are in miserable shape. Contrast that with Highland Park High School in Dallas, which is better funded than most New England prep schools. It's free--but you have to live within the school district. I met a teacher who worked there, and he said they had plenty of parents faking their residence documents just to get their kids in there.

So it's a question that really can't be answered with a yes or no. They DO have some good schools here. They have some good ones in the USA, too. It's more complicated than "is one better than the other." There's a lot of luck of the draw involved. My daughter had the luck to spend her semester at Highland Park High. Most of the kids there were from rich families, and didn't give a crap about their schoolwork. My daughter, on the other hand, after her rigid Gymnasium (high school) in Germany blossomed academically like a rosebud in the Spring. She took journalism and astronomy, courses German high schools don't offer, and she did very well in both. When she returned to finish her high school in Germany, she felt like she had been given a furlough from prison, and was being returned to serve out her sentence. When her younger sister decided she also wanted to go to the USA for her time "abroad," she requested to stay on, and finish her high school there (she landed in Hawaii, so there WAS an added bonus or two). We warned her that German universities did not recognize US high school diplomas (they have 13 years here). She said, then to hell with them, I'll apply to college in the USA. She never set foot in a German classroom again. Her sister's experience in the high school here was not lost on her.

[Awsi Dooger]

146. Assign any negative term to her and it fits

Examples are not necessary

[treestar]

174. It may be a bit un-feminist of me

but I am always amused by those terms: Shrew, harridan, scold, termagant, virago, harpy. The woman described that way in previous centuries would have, for her time, had some willingness to speak up for herself!

[Wolf Frankula]

149. Back in the Day I said

I wouldn't fuck her with Donald Rumsfeld's cock. I stick to that.

Wolf

[malchickiwick]

179. You've been in middle school for a LONG time!!

Pro tip: Nobody talks like that beyond the eighth grade.

[jmowreader]

151. Ann Coulter doesn't do anything "quietly"

Why should I believe her desperation (which has nothing to do with the number of children she has) is quiet?

[Mariana]

162. That's exactly what i thought.

When has she ever been quiet, about anything, ever?

[lunasun]

152. Fake sadness for sympathy to cover her cheap ass ayn Rand ways

[LuvLoogie]

157. I ain't mad at you...

[blogslut]

168. I'm mostly pissed she steals from Thoreau

Ann is a tired old thing. Now she's lifting lines from liberal lions. Congratulations dear. You made us look.

[DetlefK]

170. An over-the-top word for an over-the-top tweet from an over-the-top person.

I'm a little bit confused here...

It's somehow not okay to use an antiquated, over-the-top word to describe Ann Coulter... And yet the DU-community was perfectly fine with ridiculing John Boehner for having a medical condition where he cries when he gets agitated. Or with calling Chris Christie fat.

[kentuck]

172. She is probably going thru Holiday depression...

like many, this time of year.

Not an easy time.

[treestar]

181. True. I had this divorced friend who always

had a "girlfriend" by early December, and it was a thing to bet on - how long into the new year she would last!

[yardwork]

177. I laughed.

[whathehell]

183. Hmm..Funny one doesn't hear about "bitter old bachelors"

Get it now?

[Vogon_Glory]

184. Sexual orientation may be biological, BUT

Bitter spinsterhood is by personal choice. Sorry, Annie, but I have no sympathy for you.

[stonecutter357]

187. lots and lots of pearl clutching in this thread .