From Scenes From a Multiverse:
This first caught my eye because of the slur blindie ‘blind person’ (here used as an address term), suggesting blondie ‘blond(e) person’, which was new to me (though it’s in Urban Dictionary). Obviously pronounced with /aj/, though UD also lists blindie as a portmanteau of black and indie, in which use it’s presumably pronounced with /ɪ/.
UD also has deafie ‘deaf person’, said to be acceptable in the deaf community. Unsurprisingly, neither blindie nor deafie is in the OED, though of course dummy (in a variety of spellings), based on dumb, is in OED2, in several senses, from 1598 on; OED2 compares dummy to blacky and darky.
Then there’s the main point of the cartoon, the main character’s rage at (what he perceives to be) being looked at. As I said about a porn model,
He’s giving observers the Gaze Direct, looking straight in their eyes — a gesture that’s famously open to interpretation as challenge, bid for dominance, friendly bonding, honest and open dealing, invitation, or imploring (a multiplicity of understandings that in real life can lead to all sorts of trouble).
And just staring at someone, even if not gazing into their eyes, is similarly open to multiple interpretations, but is likely to be seen as an invasion of privacy.
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