• The Center Square: Federal employees reportedly told to remove pronouns from email signatures.
    • arglebargle
      link
      fedilink
      English
      42 months ago

      Well like any other employee, you can say whatever you like, but you might get fired for it.

      I don’t see how the first ammendment applies here.

      That said, I think this is a stupid and mean spirited order. It is by design trying to continue the exodus of federal employees while also the tyrannical denial of being able to identify people however they find appropriate for themselves.

        • arglebargle
          link
          fedilink
          English
          1
          edit-2
          2 months ago

          Not how this works at all. Do you really believe that an employee can just do or say anything while on the job just because they work for the US government?

          Lets take Email for example, because that is what we are talking about here. There are policies about structuring emails. An agency can say: Your name goes at the bottom of every email, followed by your position, and then the Logo of the Agency. If you choose to sign your emails with someone else’s name, from “This is such bullshit department” and a logo you made up, you WILL get disciplined.

          Your freedom of speech ends at the door. Outside of work feel free, not at work.

          • @Maggoty@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            42 months ago

            Most of that isn’t political speech. You absolutely still have the right to political speech as a government employee. Even the military was forced to let soldiers have political speech. The dividing line is where it looks like the speech is from the government instead of from you. Personal pronouns are hardly going to be from the government.

            In your assertion the government could simply remove the rights of civil servants by issuing a policy. And that’s just not how rights work.

      • @JustARaccoon@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        102 months ago

        Well it’s not a private entity hiring them, it’s the actual govt. Usually the defense is that those are private companies and they can do what they want but that doesn’t apply here

        • arglebargle
          link
          fedilink
          English
          02 months ago

          Yes it does apply here. Why would you think it would be different?

          There are always policies in government, just like anywhere else you have people working. Freedom of speech is not an excuse to break those policies.

    • Queen HawlSera
      link
      fedilink
      English
      42 months ago

      When “What Trump wants goes” is all the Supreme Meme Court cares about

    • @bss03@infosec.pub
      link
      fedilink
      2
      edit-2
      2 months ago

      I’m been told that it is not just virtue-signaling (it is), but that it is also a virtue (allyship) in action. Normalizing sharing that information make it easier for people that have a more complex relationship with their gender than I do.

    • @mercano@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      182 months ago

      It’s useful for people with unisex names like Taylor, Chris, or Jordan, especially in email, where you may not have any face-to-face contact.

      • partial_accumen
        link
        fedilink
        82 months ago

        Or for people with names from cultures not associated with English naming standards such as Chinese or Indian cultures working in western companies or governments.

        Pop quiz anti-pronouners! 星辰 Xīng Chén, girl or boy? 美莉 Měi Lì, girl or boy?? Would you like to buy a pronoun now?

    • @leftytighty@slrpnk.net
      link
      fedilink
      English
      152 months ago

      You fuckers need to let your vice-signaling go. Funny how “freedom” to ignore pronouns quickly gives way to banning them. The only freedom you guys seem to care about is the freedom to be ignorant pieces of shit.

    • partial_accumen
      link
      fedilink
      22 months ago

      And good; it’s ridiculous, virtue-signalling bullshit and you’ve got to let it go.

      You’re expressing a VERY strong negative reaction on words in an email signature. Why are you so threatened by what someone puts in their email signature? How does it challenge or change what you are that you’ve put so much thought into it to get this angry about it?

      • @feedum_sneedson@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        -2
        edit-2
        2 months ago

        Because it’s very, very silly identity politics and the majority of people agree. You’ve got to let it go and focus on important things, like the insane and ever-increasing wealth inequality.

        • partial_accumen
          link
          fedilink
          32 months ago

          Identity politics for email signatures? There was no federal policy around email signatures like this until folks like you decided to make it politics forcing removal.

            • partial_accumen
              link
              fedilink
              1
              edit-2
              2 months ago

              Do you find my statement offensive? Are you not celebrating this new policy? How would you not be folks that share your mindset be like you?

              • @feedum_sneedson@lemmy.world
                link
                fedilink
                12 months ago

                I don’t know if celebrating is the right word. I’m not American and would never have voted for Trump, but in isolation this seems fairly benign and I think a majority of people will be glad to hear it. You might disagree, that’s fine, I’m not interested in an extended argument about it.

  • @prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone
    link
    fedilink
    512 months ago

    This is just begging for malicious compliance.

    You want to eliminate an entire part of speech? Then good luck trying to understand what the fuck my email is trying to say.

    • @humorlessrepost@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      7
      edit-2
      2 months ago

      Does the reader want to eliminate an entire part of speech? Then good luck trying to understand what the fuck the writer’s email is trying to say.

      Could be fun. I bet ChatGPT could automate it.

      • @prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone
        link
        fedilink
        0
        edit-2
        2 months ago

        Exactly… Maybe have a boilerplate disclaimer at the top of each email that does include pronouns, just explaining that the following email has had all pronouns removed so as to comply with the new rule.

        • @JustAnotherKay@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          22 months ago

          “The following email has had all pronouns removed in compliance with blah blah blah. Readability has unfortunately, but obviously, been significantly reduced. Apologies will be made available at a later date.”

      • @btaf45@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        12 months ago

        Does the reader want to eliminate an entire part of speech?

        Which one are they going to outlaw next? Verbs? Or Adjectives?

    • In the article it specifies you to remove pronouns from your email signature. Definitely less fertile ground for malicious compliance, but it’s still doable.

      • Tiefling IRL
        link
        fedilink
        6
        edit-2
        2 months ago

        End every email body with “For your response, I am referred to using (feminine/masculine/any/whatever) pronouns”

        • @Maggoty@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          4
          edit-2
          2 months ago

          Replace it with “[Insert Pronouns Here]”. Make sure to have your desk already cleaned out though.

  • @superminerJG@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    172 months ago
    • I → (the) speaker/writer
    • you → (the) listener/reader, pl. (the) audience
    • they → that person, pl. those people

    The writer believes that such an idea is quite stupid. In fact, the writer believes that the audience will find this language extremely obtuse. These methods will only cause more pain to the federal employees in question.

    • ⛓️‍💥
      link
      fedilink
      English
      32 months ago

      I think we need a tool that automatically rewrites text to remove all pronouns, but I’m not even sure that is possible.

    • @Pacattack57@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      5
      edit-2
      2 months ago

      Wouldn’t the world be better off if no one knew each others gender? If you’re a cis man and find yourself attracted to another man? Congrats you’re gay now.

  • @socialmedia@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    252 months ago

    So is it alright to just assume trump is female? The email signature no longer states her preferred pronouns, so I think this is what she wants?

  • @nul42@lemmy.ca
    link
    fedilink
    62 months ago

    nul42 would stop using pronouns completely and just use genderless nouns or proper names instead.