Wow! You guys must all be closer than I even knew, because you even know each other's intent! That's amazing!
I must be missing something, though, because I still don't understand why a person may not express his or her own positive emotion ("I'm glad...") about something seen as "foolish". This is how I interpreted (because I don't know anyone's intent for sure) the post. Is it forbidden to praise something foolish? As stated, the word itself does not contain any praise, but this was added (if you know the posters intent) by the poster, or at least the poster was happy to observe it. I don't understand why this is so objectionable.
Certainly a person may do just that, using language playfully, or using the word temerity ironically. I simply do not detect that use in the following passage (I could be wrong):
I'm glad someone has the temerity to use gay to have a meaning other than the one currently most common. We should not lose perfectly good definitions to trends.
And it isn't THAT big a deal. In my initial reply on this subject I was merely pointing out, as gently as possible, a distinction between a word's meaning and the message that the user intended, apparently, to convey. To me, using
temerity to express a positive reaction is like using
stench to praise a woman's perfume. I maintain that temerity is a word that conveys a sense of disapproval. Using
http://www.onelook.com I entered
temerity to see what other dictionaries say about it. Here is a partial but not exhaustive list:
te•mer•i•ty [ tə mérrətee ] noun Definition: boldness: reckless confidence that might be offensive (Encarta
temerity • noun excessive confidence or boldness. (Compact Oxford English Dictionary)
noun [U] FORMAL DISAPPROVING a willingness to do or say something that shocks or upsets other people: [+ to infinitive] She had the temerity to call me a liar. (Cambridge Dictionary)
reckless or foolish boldness; rash disregard of danger. (Wordsmyth)
Foolhardy disregard of danger; recklessness (Bartleby.com)
Te*mer"i*ty (?), n. [L. temeritas, from temere by chance, rashly; perhaps akin to Skr. tamas darkness: cf. F. témérité.] Unreasonable contempt of danger; extreme venturesomeness; rashness; as, the temerity of a commander in war. Syn. -- Rashness; precipitancy; heedlessness; venturesomeness. -- Temerity, Rashness. These words are closely allied in sense, but have a slight difference in their use and application. Temerity is Latin, and rashness is Anglo-Saxon. As in many such cases, the Latin term is more select and dignified; the Anglo-Saxon more familiar and energetic. We show temerity in hasty decisions, and the conduct to which they lead. We show rashness in particular actions, as dictated by sudden impulse. It is an exhibition of temerity to approach the verge of a precipice; it is an act of rashness to jump into a river without being able to swim. Temerity, then, is an unreasonable contempt of danger; rashness is a rushing into danger from thoughtlessness or excited feeling. (Websters)
temerity - ( ) A form of extreme boldness (Grandiloquent Dictionary))Cambridge specifically identifies the word as one of disapproval, and the others use terms like reckless, excessive, foolish, rash, foolhardy, and unreasonable in their definitions. Only the last definition has the least bit of ambiguity about disapproval, using "extreme" which IMO expresses not quite the same judgement as the other adjectives.
