Poll: Profanity: Why?

[scw55]

My mum has a perculuar view on 'profanity'.
She doesn't consider words like fuck and shit as swear words.
She considers words like hell, christ, bloody, god and other blasphemy word as swearing.

Never-the-less, I don't swear infront of her. It's just respect.

 

[Danman1]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7N6Phmale_Q

Made me hink of this. Couldn't agree more with it.

 

[Dexiro]

Sentence enhancers!

Sometimes you just can't go without em! Although not every sentence needs to be enhanced.

 

[Koganesaga]

In certain circumstances it gives the impact that is called for. Two examples, A porn movie, it wouldn't be as hot if she was screaming "yes! stick your ding-a-ling into my private spot and do the bump!" Also in a war zone were a high grade explosive is about to hit a group of infantry that will not be able to escape the blast, I believe they earned the right to say "yup, boys we are officially fucked, last cigar anyone?"

 

[Daniel Cygnus]

A porn movie, it wouldn't be as hot if she was screaming "yes! stick your ding-a-ling into my private spot and do the bump!"

Is it bad that I'd want to see that hypothetical porno just to MST3K it?

I don't swear much in day-to-day conversation. I save my swears for select emphasis.

 

[ethaninja]

I think over the years, the people have warped it. Made mountains out of molehills.

If I recall the history of the word Fuck, it used to be an acronym for Forced Upon Carnel Knowlage, meaning rape or something.

And shit used to stand for Stored High In Transit, as shit combusted a lot in the bottom of cargo ships, so they had to mark the boxes with S.H.I.T.

 

[Buzz Killington_v1legacy]

If I recall the history of the word Fuck, it used to be an acronym for Forced Upon Carnel Knowlage, meaning rape or something.

And shit used to stand for Stored High In Transit, as shit combusted a lot in the bottom of cargo ships, so they had to mark the boxes with S.H.I.T.

Sorry, but those are both etymologies [http://www.snopes.com/language/acronyms/fuck.asp]. Acronyms didn't really enter the language until roughly World War II, and "fuck" and "shit" are both much older than that.

 

[leviathanmisha]

I was raised by a hot-tempered Italian, so I have no problem with swearing and do swear a lot myself...even though bastard has become a favorite word as of late.

 

[Killdebeest]

I think it's all context. If somebody says, "Oh fuck, that was scary." No need to get offended, but if it's something like, "Fuck you, you bitchy little asshole!" I would not appreciate that.

 

[2012 Wont Happen]

"there are no bad words, only bad intentions"

- George Carlin

That quote sums up my whole fuckin' opinion on swearing.

I don't think that a sound made by passing wind through stretched flesh chords can be inherently bad.

 

[Killdebeest]

I think it's all context. If somebody says, "Oh fuck, that was scary." No need to get offended, but if it's something like, "Fuck you, you bitchy little asshole!" I would not appreciate that.

Yet your would get offended not by the profanity, but by the insult. That's faulty logic, seeing as this topic is about profanity.

By your logic, you would not be offended if I called you "fruity little boyscout who sleeps with his mother and cries each night when his butthole is torn to shreds by a large horsewiener", as that does not contain "swear-words".

Are you convinced yet, or shall I conjure forth another example?

Touche, good sir.

 

[Aurora219]

Ah, if everybody didn't mind it there wouldn't be any point. It's designed to be a slightly shocking thing to say to get the point across. It doesn't bother me in the slightest, I've been subjected to by far the worst language in the world at various times so I don't think it can really affect me any more.

 

[Gardenia]

So tell us what offends you, and why.

My new year's resolution this year was to never get offended.
Not because I was chronically offended previously, it just pissed me off when other people tried to control what people said because their feelings were hurt.
It's going great so far.

As for the swearing, yes, I swear all the time. Doesn't bother me or my friends, who all swear like sailors. I moderate my language naturally in certain situations, and when someone tries to shush me for profanity, I just repeat the sentence they found to be offensive.

 

[Bakaferret]

I don't have a problem with hearing profanity in general, but I think the point that a lot of people miss is that if you use it a lot, it loses all of its meaning. I personally avoid swearing, not because I think it's "evil" or anything, but I have found that when I DO actually use it, it has MUCH more meaning. Being known as the "friend who doesn't swear" has it advantages when you're really pissed off at someone and start cussing them out. :3

 

[Agayek]

I can be offensive to some, but I've never had much of a problem with it. It's just words. I've been swearing all my life, although not excessively, and my parents swear too. As long as you don't overdo it, it can be a great way to emphasise your point.

I don't know why people don't like it. It is, as I said, just another word.

This basically summarizes my feelings on swearing.

Though I would add that if you are offended by anything anyone says, you need to A) grow the fuck up, and B) stop being an idiot.

 

[DustyDrB]

It's not that profanity bothers me, it's that any word will bother me if said constantly. I'm thinking like in the movie The Departed. It was just

Spoiler

fuck fuck fuckity fuckness you motherfucking fuckwad of fucked up fuck.

Mix it up a little bit. The English language has all sorts of wonderful words.

 

[hopeneverdies]

Fuck is a word that I honestly have to quote the Princess Bride for:
"You keep saying that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."

It's thrown around as often as someone else would use the word "the".

Profanity is alright, just can be a bit excessive in some situations, and just as often used excessively.

 

[Beardon65]

I don't mind it really. So long as it isn't infront of the children or used too much. I swear, I was standing at a raspa stand (for those of you who aren't 7 miles away from the mexican border (like I am (that's right I put parenthesis inside a parenthesis)) a raspa is basically an icee. Just more better) and some 15 year old prick chick was, running her mouth... infront of my 10 and 9 year old sister and brother.

 

[Agayek]

I think over the years, the people have warped it. Made mountains out of molehills.

If I recall the history of the word Fuck, it used to be an acronym for Forced Upon Carnel Knowlage, meaning rape or something.

And shit used to stand for Stored High In Transit, as shit combusted a lot in the bottom of cargo ships, so they had to mark the boxes with S.H.I.T.

http://www.snopes.com/language/acronyms/fuck.asp