Do Words Matter

I think with words, there is a fine line that many people cant see when it comes to saying the correct term, politically correct term. This case is very evident when talking about african americans, should we say blacks, colors, minorities? I really don't know what is correct, or what african americans prefer to be called. This is also evident when talking about about females, when is the correct age to start calling a girl a woman, and how professional does a woman have to be before she becomes a lady, or does she have to be professional at all? I have abosolutley no idea. This is also can be said about when to stop calling a boy, a boy and start calling him a man, or when he actually becomes a gentlemen. What about when someone has a few pounds more than someone else on their body, obviously fat is inappropriate and would hurt there feelings, but should we say obese, or overweight? When it comes to someone being mentally challenged, I really dislike the word "retarded", and I dont, and I try to teach all my friends not to say it either. So I prefer the word disabled, or handicapped.