#13 God is Dope
The First Amendment to the Constitution gives us the freedom and our modern society and media gives us the opportunity to metaphorically “stay” anywhere we want. For some of us, that means listening only to the music that we knew while growing up, eating only the foods we like, and listening to only the news we like to hear. For many of us, the choices extend to the language we speak and the informal word usages and meanings that we choose to use. Some of us choose to use profanity in rather imaginative ways. Others speak in a very formal version of English that we are most comfortable with.
While walking along the beach walk in Virginia Beach on a very balmy November afternoon, my husband Toby and I were able to see a variety of dogs and many parents pushing their cute kids in strollers. We met one or two panhandlers and a few joggers. Walking toward us on this fine afternoon, was a couple wearing matching red hoodie sweatshirts with this message printed in tall white letters: God is Dope.
Of course, Toby could not let this pass. “What does that even mean?” Of course, I knew what it meant (the vocabulary of an emergency physician as compared to a gastroenterologist) but how to even explain what it is, what it means, and why was it on a sweatshirt was a tough ask. I pulled out my phone and went on to the search engine. God is Dope is listed as a clothing store in Atlanta noted as “a playful boutique selling its own brand of streetwear and accessories with the ‘God is Dope’ message.” Yes, but still did not explain the meaning conveyed here of the word dope.
The online dictionary defines the word dope in many ways. As a noun, a drug taken illegally for recreational purposes, a stupid person, information about a topic that is generally not known, or a varnish applied to the fabric surface of model aircraft to strengthen them and keep them airtight. These did not seem to be the correct meanings for the hoodies.
As a verb the word dope means to administer drugs to (a racehorse, greyhound, or athlete) in order to inhibit or enhance sporting performance. It also means to smear or cover with varnish or other thick liquid or to add an impurity to (a semiconductor) to produce a desired electrical characteristic. Also, not the meaning that the hoodies sought to convey.
The use of dope as an adjective called an “informal” usage, means: very good. The synonyms listed were: excellent · wonderful · marvelous · magnificent · superb · splendid · glorious · sublime · lovely · delightful · first-class · first-rate · outstanding · consummate · perfect · goodly. This was the meaning of the hoodies and a new vocabulary word Toby learned that morning. We all get to express our religious beliefs or non-belief in our own language and in our own clothing. And that freedom, my friends, is so dope.
