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A KIRO Radio hosts' comments about a gender neutral bill in Olympia is apparently ruffling some feathers. (KIRO Radio/file)

Flood of interest in gender-neutral bill after Dori Monson rant

BY KIRO Radio Staff  on February 4, 2013 @ 9:16 am (Updated: 2:43 pm - 2/4/13 )

A KIRO Radio hosts' comments about a gender neutral bill in Olympia are apparently ruffling some feathers.

"I've been getting non-stop media calls because of a news talk host last Friday ridiculing me and the legislation and ranting, so we got a flood of calls and email into our office, which this is just sensible- why can't someone be called firefighter if she's been a firefighter for 10 years and is protecting the public and if she feel uncomfortable with being called a fireman?" said the sponsor of the bill Senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles.

So, who was that host who went on a "rant" about making state law gender neutral?

"We have a story going on in our state legislature in Olympia that is just, it's breathtaking to me with all the nonsense that we have to deal with in this state, with the multi-billion dollar deficit that we run up every year, then they have to figure - how are we going to pay for education? How are we going to pay for basic law enforcement? How are we going to keep the criminals in jail? You know what they're worried about in this legislative session in Olympia? They are going to try to make all language in state law gender neutral," said Dori Monson on his KIRO Radio talk show Jan. 25.

"Senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles, a Democrat who represents people with way too much free time in our state, she's introduced and successfully passed six other bills that have changed the language of the laws bit by bit, but this bill would make 100 percent of the state's RCW gender neutral," said Monson.

Kohl-Welles latest bill SB 5077, is meant to clear out any existing non gender-neutral language still on the books.

Over the past six years, state officials have engaged in the task of changing the language used in the state's laws, including thousands of words and phrases, many written more than a century ago when the idea of women working on police forces or on fishing boats wasn't a consideration.

That process is slated to draw to a close this year. So while the state has already welcomed "firefighters," "clergy" and "police officers" into its lexicon, "ombuds" (in place of ombudsman) and "security guards" (previously "watchmen,") appear to be next, along with "dairy farmers," "first-year students" and "handwriting."

About half of all U.S. states have moved toward such gender-neutral language at varying levels, from drafting bills to changing state constitutions, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Florida and Minnesota have already completely revised their laws as Washington state is doing.

The final installment of Washington state's bill already has sailed through the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee with unanimous approval. The nearly 500-page bill has one more committee stop scheduled before full Senate debate.

Seattle Councilmember Sally Clark and former Councilmember Jan Drago, the Seattle City Council has long eschewed the terms councilwoman or councilman, brought the issue to Sen. Jeannie Kohl-Welles in 2006 after they came across references to firemen and policemen in the mayor's proposed budget, as well as in state law dealing with local government pensions.

Clark and Drago's findings sparked the initial gender-neutral language law that was passed in 2007, immediately changing those terms and directing the state code reviser's office to do a full revision of the rest of the code. A 1983 Washington state law had already required all new statutes to be written in gender-neutral terms, so state officials were tasked with going through the rest of state statutes dating back to 1854 to revise the rest.

As in past bills on the issue that have tackled sections of the state code, some revisions were as simple as adding "or her" after "his." Others required a little more scrutiny. Phrases like "man's past" changes to "humankind's past" and a "prudent man or woman" is simply a "prudent person."

Kyle Thiessen, the state's code reviser who has been working on the project along with two attorneys since 2008, said that the work was not without obstacles. Words like "manhole" and "manlock" aren't so easily replaced, he said. Substitutes have been suggested _ "utility hole" and "air lock serving as a decompression chamber for workers." But Thiessen said those references will be left alone to avoid confusion.

Republican state Rep. Shelly Short, of Addy, has voted against earlier gender-neutral language bills and said she plans to do the same this year.

"I don't see the need to do gender neutrality," she said, adding that her constituents want her to focus on jobs and the economy. "We're women and we're men."

Kohl-Welles, who has sponsored each of the gender-neutral language bills, said that while this project hasn't been her top legislation every year, "overall, it has important significance."

"I believe," she said, "that the culture has changed."

Dori says, "Man society just sucks with that gender specific language. I hate society. I won't like our society until we become fully gender neutral. In fact, I won't like our society until every human being in the Puget Sound area is completely, totally and utterly androgynous. Forget about the language, I don't think we should have men or women anymore."

He goes on.

"Gender neutral state law may be coming to Washington, and let me just say as the father of three daughters, as a girl's high school basketball coach - shoot - as a athlete's high school basketball coach myself. And by the way we have a game tonight, we'll be playing a little man-to-man defense - Dang it - I hate myself for how society has engrained such misogynistic nonsense inside of me. We are going to be playing student athlete-to-student athlete defense," said Dori. "Senate Bill 5077 is going to make all language in state law gender neutral and finally we can have some pride in the state in which we live."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

KIRO Radio Staff, Staff report
Straight from the newsdesk.
More Dori Monson

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Comments (39)


  • Add A Comment

  • ron prevost wrote...
    Dori can rant all he wants, but this kind of stuff has been going on for nearly 50 years - and it's usually harmless.
    February 4, 2013 9:19 am
    Granted, 'waitperson' was kind of stupid - server is much better. ... And occasional real estate bans on words like 'family room' (it might offend singles) also make little sense. ....... But 'firefighter' makes perfect sense.

    What the objection is (or should be) is that we may actually expend State funds to ENFORCE gender neutral language. .. Unfortunately, Dori's opposition sounds more like 'I don't like it' than a fiscal concern. But, then, on a lot of things lately, Dori is sounding more and more like Andy Rooney - but without the humor.

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  • DJFavorite wrote...
    the complaint is
    February 4, 2013 9:24 am
    not that language is changing, but the waste of taxpayer money to change the words just for the sake of changing the words. If the RCW was being updated for some other change/update that was needed (i.e. the Liquor laws that were adding pot to them) then the language could be updated to gender neutral. But to just go in to change that is a waste of money.
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  • DJFavorite wrote...
    I should clarify...
    February 4, 2013 9:26 am
    I didn't read the second half of your comment correctly the first time. Sorry. I agree with your second statement.
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  • Fuego wrote...
    Further proof
    February 4, 2013 9:20 am
    the state has too much money. Evidently all the other problems this state is facing has been solved.
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  • Citizen of Krazy Town wrote...
    I'm curious to know how the bathrooms will be labeled at the Capitol
    February 4, 2013 9:22 am
    Maybe "standers" and "sitters"?
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Oly80 wrote...
    PCU...
    February 4, 2013 9:32 am
    was a great movie mocking this EXACT thing that was en vogue in the 90's. i thought this was dead!

    this is taking things WAY too far.

    it's not worth the trouble.

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  • The Dude Abides wrote...
    Anyone else think this way?
    February 4, 2013 9:44 am
    I honestly am looking forward to this opportunity. The minute some feminazi gets all huffy with me and tries to rudely correct me for not using the gender-neutral term of something, I will let her have it..."hey cupcake, wanna come back to my place, make me a sandwich, and give me a b j?" (RIP George Carlin, and thanks for allowing me to paraphrase you). I try to be good, when it comes to remembering gender neutral terms when it comes to these things, but come on? Do we really need to waste a buttload of money on this? I say nay-nay.
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  • William Lawn wrote...
    A picture of Dori picking his nose
    February 4, 2013 10:19 am
    How nice!
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  • Clearwater3 wrote...
    Actually...
    February 4, 2013 12:07 pm
    ...I believe he's trying to hide his chins.
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  • It's me! Ha ha! wrote...
    They can pass all the laws they want!
    February 4, 2013 10:29 am
    I am still a FIREMAN! The are still policemen. Repair men. Garbage men. I mean no disrespect by my words, I will not have government telling me what and how to speak!

    They can have my first Amendment rights when they can pry them from my cold dead body!

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  • po_guy wrote...
    I am with you.
    February 4, 2013 11:17 am
    I posted a sign over my desk in the IT Dept saying "Political Correctness NOT Spoken Here". Never had to take it down but some did not like it (Mainly the older females)...I still do not speak PC, and never will. Glad I don't have that many years left on this planet, and then it just won't matter to me any longer what the homos and politicians do to the country.
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  • dadling wrote...
    Will you break the law???
    February 4, 2013 10:39 am
    So, if they pass this complete waste of time bill and institute the law...a very graphic example of the liberal mindset (you don't know what's good for you...but WE DO!)...will you be a criminal??? Will you be subject to arrest, fine, jail time?? Lot's of questions go with the implementation of laws...not just the non-sense these law makers come up with...this Representative is a great example of what we elect...Nannies...waste our money Nannies !!! Watch out for her stated purpose and it's consequences....
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  • Judy L wrote...
    Waste of Money!
    February 4, 2013 10:51 am
    So call her a "Firefighter", but don't waste my tax money to make all our laws gender neutral! What a bunch of PC Crap. Any yes, this is a woman saying so! What's next? "Personkind" instead of "mankind"? "Huperson" instead of "human"? Stupid!!!
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  • DJFavorite wrote...
    can we use 'person'?
    February 4, 2013 11:49 am
    After all is contains the word 'son' which has a male gender connotation. Oh and forget about using the word female to describe our gender. It contains 'male' in it. :P How far will this ridiculousness go? (I'm a woman, female, girl, wife, mother,... all imply a particular gender)
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  • hnuh wrote...
    Culture
    February 4, 2013 11:01 am
    at one time was the natural growth of human community. Our culture was that at one time just as the Ubangi still is. Our misfortune is that our system of government has become the master of our culture so dingbat crackhead ideas take on the force of law. We can stand around and squawk but the fact is, the parasitic class has become our master. A parasite will never release its host voluntarily. Often the parasite causes the debilitation and death of the host. Sound familiar?
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