Infant, Infant, Infant!

I’ve never liked the word “baby” when it’s used, particularly in songs, in reference to one’s beloved.  Romantic relationships belong to consenting adults, and I can’t see any reason to call someone whom I love that way a baby.  It feels demeaning.  But in the various news reports about the Grammys, one of Justin Bieber’s songs was repeatedly inflicted on listeners.  In this song, the boy sings “baby, baby, baby” over and over.  Given the fact that Bieber is himself a child, the word may actually be appropriate here.