OT -- Re: random cover of a range

[Mike Parker]

Bill Baxter wrote:
> On Wed, Feb 18, 2009 at 8:31 AM, Mike Parker <aldacron at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Bill Baxter wrote:
> 
>> The problem I have with the stigma on swearing is that people who find these
>> words objectionable tend to replace them with other words that aren't so
>> objectionable in order to get the same intent across. Nick mentioned this
>> already. To me, it's an absurd practice.
>>
>> Consider the case of insulting someone. If I were angry at someone and
>> wanted to let them know what I thought of them, I might say one of the
>> following:
>>
>> "You're a piece of shit!" --> unacceptable
>> "You're a piece of crap!" --> acceptable to many, but the intent is same
>> "You're a piece of poo!" --> who would object to that?
> 
> The problem I have is that if you decide they're all equal, what do
> you say when you've really reached your limit and are totally on the
> edge?   You've turned it up all the way to 11 just by default already,
> so where can you go from there?  Nowhere really.   You've severely
> limited your capacity for dynamic range.  Just like the
> crapily-produced music these days with compression turned all the way
> up all the time to make it sound "louder".  But the irony is that if
> everything sounds loud then nothing sounds loud.


I didn't decide they're all /equal/. Usually, when someone calls you a 
piece of poo, they aren't being serious. They're just poking fun. That's 
why I use "shit" when I'm angry, because the connotation is more 
serious. Especially when combined with an angry tone. My problem is that 
society has declared "shit" too dirty, or too offensive, to say in 
public. Some people go out of their way to avoid saying it. Can you 
imagine reading this in a novel:

"With fire in his eyes, his mouth twisted in rage, my nemesis snarled, 
'You're a piece of poo!'"

It's ridiculous to say "poo" when you really mean "shit". What I'm 
trying to say is that no word should be considered so dirty that it's 
anathema to say it. We need to be teaching our kids to keep their intent 
and tone of voice civil, rather than spanking them for cussin'.

By the same token, if I jokingly call my friend a piece of shit or, more 
realistically, just say the word "bullshit" when I think he's full of 
it, it's ridiculous for some random passerby to feel offended by that. I 
wasn't speaking to that person and there was no insult meant to my 
friend. Everyone has the right to be offended. But I have the right not 
to care. Though as I mentioned in another post, I usually check my 
language in public anyway. Not that I'm much of a cusser.


> 
>> That said, I admit to cringing every time I read superdan's posts. In my
>> mind, I know it's ridiculous. But ideas forced on us in childhood are hard
>> to let go of completely.
> 
> You say that as if you *should* let go of it completely.  Why should
> you?  If we were talking about a childhood idea like "slavery is
> good", then I'd agree with you it's important to try to ditch that
> notion.  But not all ideas forced on us in childhood are bad.  Like
> having respect for others, working hard, playing fair, etc.

There's good, there's bad, and there's silly. I agree with you that 
slavery is bad. And that the other things you mention are good. But in 
my book, this thing about expletives is one of the silly. We're taught a 
lot of silliness actually. I'll save my thoughts on that for my blog ;)