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0 pointssidusknight8y ago0 comments

Yeah, you're right. Not sure what the guy is talking about.

0 comments

> the guy is talking about

I don't want to be overly semantic or PC on HN, but just saying the GP may be female, judging by their name on profile. Being misgendered could be very offputting and discourages participation, so you may have wanted to say "this person" even if it doesn't sound as offhand as you'd have liked it to come across.

cm20128y ago

In the NorthEast US, guy is often a gender neutral term. It's totally fine to say, "Hey you guys" to a group of only women.

figgis8y ago

Personal experience tells me it's a pretty common thing across the US.

> I don't want to be overly semantic or PC on HN

Proceeds to be overly semantic or PC on HN...

suchow8y ago

Calling a group of women "you guys" is different from calling a person of unknown gender "guy" because in the former case the gender-neutral usage is the only possible interpretation, whereas in the latter it might either be gender-neutral usage or an assumption of the commenter's gender. Given that this ambiguity is nearly always a distraction from the primary purpose of the conversation (as it is here), rightfully or not, pragmatically it is better to use terms that steer clear of it. See Bryan Garner's Modern English Usage for fuller advice on safely navigating this linguistic and sociocultural terrain.

mpfundstein8y ago

I am so happy to be European... you guys in America always take everything to the total extreme.

knicholes8y ago

How are you so sure the commenter is a person? ;)

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