DEBATE: Swear words

[frezal]

That is correct. They just are offensive. Why is showing a middle finger offensive? Because we have made it, as a society, that way.

From what I hear, it has to do with the archery days. Nevertheless, I couldn't care less about somebody flipping me off. I'm not an archer from the past, so it really doesn't mean anything to me.

Same with swear words. There doesn't NEED to be reason if the reality of it is that there are people who think of them as offensive, and nearly everyone looks at people differently depending on if they swear or not.

I would wager that nearly everybody uses these words. The next time you stub your toe, jot down what it is that you shout.

Would people have voted for Obama if all of his speeches were full of cussing, swearing, and religious or sexual references?

I would have actually been excited to vote for him if that had been the case. Instead, my vote was reluctantly given to him. With Sarah Palin appearing on the ballot, I couldn't take any chances.

Probably not. He has a controlled manner about him, and that is why he is such a good speaker.

I will counter with Samuel L. Jackson. Everybody loves Samuel L. Jackson. What is he most famous for? His use of language that you disapprove of.

As for Reier, I think you misinterpreted my post. I'll try to remember to clarify it later. For now, I have some foods to consume.

[Sage]

Just because you don't care doesn't mean everyone else doesn't.


Yes, because I can stub my toe on an internet forum.



You say that now, but he wouldn't even have been up for election if there was swearing in his posts. Swearing makes you a strong, passionate, hot-headed speaker who shows that they will fight for what they believe in and don't care at all what other people think, which is fine. However, that is not the kind of person that people want for the president. We need a cool-headed person, that keeps his emotions at bay and has poise and control.



Yea, everybody loves movies. And Samuel Jackson is a very good actor. However, it is the directors choice whether or not to have swearing in his/her movie, just as it is the choice of the forum administrator to ban swearing.

[frezal]

Just because you don't care doesn't mean everyone else doesn't.

If somebody were to flip you off, would you actually care? Why or why not?

Yes, because I can stub my toe on an internet forum.

I think it was fairly obvious I was speaking in IRL terms.

You say that now, but he wouldn't even have been up for election if there was swearing in his posts. Swearing makes you a strong, passionate, hot-headed speaker who shows that they will fight for what they believe in and don't care at all what other people think, which is fine. However, that is not the kind of person that people want for the president. We need a cool-headed person, that keeps his emotions at bay and has poise and control.

George W. Bush and Dick Cheney. Twice elected. Both known for their use of "bad words" and hot headedness. I've got plenty more examples if you're interested.

Yea, everybody loves movies. And Samuel Jackson is a very good actor. However, it is the directors choice whether or not to have swearing in his/her movie, just as it is the choice of the forum administrator to ban swearing.

By all means does an administrator have the right and choice to ban swearing. On The Electric Playground forum, I could ban references to puppies. The show's hosts may not like it, but I certainly could.

What we're debating (or at least what I thought we were debating) is the merits of certain words. I am genuinely curious as to why people are offended by the words in question. Being offended by racial/ethnic slurs makes sense to me as the definitions are indeed hateful. But being offended by certain words and not their synonyms is baffling. Why does it matter what society arbitrarily decides? Society gets so much sh** wrong. (Segregation, anyone?)

[123savethewhales]

That is correct. They just are offensive. Why is showing a middle finger offensive? Because we have made it, as a society, that way. Same with swear words. There doesn't NEED to be reason if the reality of it is that there are people who think of them as offensive, and nearly everyone looks at people differently depending on if they swear or not. Would people have voted for Obama if all of his speeches were full of cussing, swearing, and religious or sexual references? Probably not. He has a controlled manner about him, and that is why he is such a good speaker.

I can offend people without using a single profane word, conversely I can use profanity (such as in holy "sh**") without necessarily being offensive.  So offending people is not exclusive to profanity and thus a non unique harm.

Therefore, what you are advocating is the monitoring of people's intent, not a specific sound or a specific combination of alphabets.

As for Obama, I did not vote for him, his speeches are too full of filler words and too little in substance.  That aside, George W Bush got elected twice, surely you are not telling people to imitate his way of speech just because "people have voted for" him.

[Reier]

As for Reier, I think you misinterpreted my post. I'll try to remember to clarify it later. For now, I have some foods to consume.

Even if I did misinterpret the statement, by question is still legit. You seem to have misunderstood my post aswell, please answer it.

[Sage]

OK, so we're moving off the internet forum thing and actually into a legit debate about why swear words are harmful, bad, or offensive? Fine.



If I were to flip of either my mother or the principal of my school, there would be severe consequences for showing disrespect. If I got flipped off by a little kid, I would punch him in the face for being an annoying brat. But, if he say, waved to me, then that would not happen. So you tell me, why is that?


OK, I still thought we we're talking about the forum. In real life, sure I'll yelp out a cuss word if I stub my toe really hard. Unless there are people around that would care (like my parents, teachers, etc. ) then I just let out guttural sounds of pain and such.



Yea, and Bush ruined the country. Like I said, swearing makes a strong speaker and people follow strong speakers. But strong speakers don't always make the right choices. Because they are hot-headed. However, many people in our country don't realize this as much, and this is why he was elected.



http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/300417

[Stagfish]

i cant take all this arguing
 
YOU WILL ALL BE HYPNOTISED BY THE MIGHT OF THE BANANA SMILEY!!!!
 

[Naryar]

Why the hell are you posting such an enormous off-topic picture in this thread exactly ?

[Stagfish]

because this debate is meaning less

people like LRA2 (i call him Lame RA2) wont listen to this and no ones agreeing to anything

[Sage]

So? The entire chatterbox is meaningless. What's the meaning of life? To continue the existence of our species? So what's the point of that? What does that do? Is life meaningless?

Haha I'm kidding. But seriously, what's the big deal? Why do you have you go ruin our debate for us? You look like a douche now.

[frezal]

If I were to flip of either my mother or the principal of my school, there would be severe consequences for showing disrespect. If I got flipped off by a little kid, I would punch him in the face for being an annoying brat. But, if he say, waved to me, then that would not happen. So you tell me, why is that?

Because you, your mother, and your principal are pricks? You tell me why you guys are offended by it.

OK, I still thought we we're talking about the forum. In real life, sure I'll yelp out a cuss word if I stub my toe really hard. Unless there are people around that would care (like my parents, teachers, etc. ) then I just let out guttural sounds of pain and such.

Why change what sound you let out based on who's around if just about everyone yells out a "bad" word?

Yea, and Bush ruined the country. Like I said, swearing makes a strong speaker and people follow strong speakers. But strong speakers don't always make the right choices. Because they are hot-headed. However, many people in our country don't realize this as much, and this is why he was elected.

Swearing didn't make Bush a strong speaker. In fact, he was a terrible speaker who didn't seem to grasp the rules of grammar. Anyways, you asserted that no presidential candidate would get elected if they used "bad" words. He was elected twice. Thus, your assertion doesn't appear to be true.

http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/300417

I'd rather not read the opinions expressed on that blag until after this discussion has run its course. I don't want to inadvertently steal any of their ideas. You may feel free to take some of their material, however. Just keep in mind that it's far from a scholarly source.

[russian roulette]

Now that American t.v. doesn't blur the middle finger anymore, I take it as a thumbs up to swear all we want to.

[Sage]

Swearing is offensive because of the church a long time ago. Back then, the church had influence over almost every aspect of society. And they believe that some words were not acceptable because they were sinful. Anything sexual was sinful (ever heard of nuns?), and anything that went against the religion or used the lords name in vain (God damn, Jesus christ, etc...).


The other category of swearing lies in the slang words of society. Slang, in it's definition, is an extremely informal way of speaking. This is why my principal and my mother and a ton of other people think that swearing is offensive and disrespectful. Do you think formality is a complete joke? Should everyone go around wearing tattered clothing, drunk, and swearing like a sailor? That is the kind of thing formality prevents. Slang terms are just informal synonyms of other things.

If I were to sub my toe in front of my friend's parents and yell F_UCCCKKKKKKK!!! what do you think they would think of me? DO you think they would invite me back into their house? Just the other day I was at a friends house and another kid came over. After a while, my friend's mom sent him home because he was being too course and swearing, as well as using sexual terms repetitively and obscenely. I don't want that to happen, which is why I try to refrain from swearing in front of other people as much as I can.


I have never seen a public speech by Bush where he swore. That's what I was talking about, public speeches. I could care less what they said in casual conversation, cause that's not broadcasted  over the entire country. I said a president would not be elected if he swore in public speeches. I stand by that. Unless you can provide a good, legit speech of Bush or someone else swearing their head off in a public speech. I can't find one.

[Reier]

Jeff still hasn't answered my query.

[frezal]

Swearing is offensive because of the church a long time ago. Back then, the church had influence over almost every aspect of society. And they believe that some words were not acceptable because they were sinful. Anything sexual was sinful (ever heard of nuns?), and anything that went against the religion or used the lords name in vain (God damn, Jesus christ, etc...).

The church also prevented people of different races from dating, but you don't see the bulk of society keeping that one alive.

The other category of swearing lies in the slang words of society. Slang, in it's definition, is an extremely informal way of speaking. This is why my principal and my mother and a ton of other people think that swearing is offensive and disrespectful. Do you think formality is a complete joke? Should everyone go around wearing tattered clothing, drunk, and swearing like a sailor? That is the kind of thing formality prevents. Slang terms are just informal synonyms of other things.

Calling things you like "cool" is also slang. If it's formality that bugs your mother and "a ton of other people", do they smack you when you say, "That's cool!"?

If I were to sub my toe in front of my friend's parents and yell F_UCCCKKKKKKK!!! what do you think they would think of me?

I don't know your friend's parents, so how could I possibly know the answer to that question?

DO you think they would invite me back into their house?

My friends' parents allow me in their house all the time and I don't censor myself. So if your friends' parents aren't complete prudes, they should have no problem with you exercising your vocabulary.

Just the other day I was at a friends house and another kid came over. After a while, my friend's mom sent him home because he was being too course and swearing, as well as using sexual terms repetitively and obscenely. I don't want that to happen, which is why I try to refrain from swearing in front of other people as much as I can.

People should be able to talk about sex all they want (so long as they're not sexually harassing anybody). Whether or not your friend's mom agrees is her problem.

I have never seen a public speech by Bush where he swore. That's what I was talking about, public speeches. I could care less what they said in casual conversation, cause that's not broadcasted  over the entire country. I said a president would not be elected if he swore in public speeches. I stand by that. Unless you can provide a good, legit speech of Bush or someone else swearing their head off in a public speech. I can't find one.

Off the top of my head, this video comes to mind: There's also this Dick Cheney gem:http://politicalhumor.about.com/b/2004/06/25/cheney-to-leahy-go-fk-yourself.htm  If you would like me to actually do some research, I'm sure I could find the time.

[ACAMS]

Yea, and Bush ruined the country.

Bush DID NOT ruin the country....it was/is all those damn democrats like that damn Polosi bitch in congress and the senate. They are the ones allowing all this happen, and now they have a monkey on a string in their corner that don't know sh** from shinola so it will only get worse.

[Urjak]

ACAMS, your posts always make me laugh...

[frezal]

My apologies for the delay. In real life, I'm planning a New Year's party, so I'm a bit scatterbrained at the moment. (More so than usual.)

How can you tell this? Because he does not agree with you?

I wasn't telling the kid that everything he believed was a joke. I don't know enough about the guy to know what he believes. What I was doing was making a hypothetical example. Nobody does a wholesale ban on attacking one's personal beliefs, but many do so with an arbitrary set of words.
 

Why? I could be mean and vulgar and stoop to your level with personal insults, but I haven't. I think you wouldn't like it if someone else insulted you, why should you insult someone else?

Yet you don't have a wholesale ban on insults, which, by definition, are actually offensive.
 

Ok, then how about why do you use swear words?

Why do you use the words you use? I use words, in general, for effect, for accuracy, and because I like the way they sound.

If in your opinion they're all the same, why don't you just be nice to the guy who thinks one is worse than the other and say the "non-offensive" one?

If I'm expected to change my vocabulary in an attempt to not use words you don't like, you must do the same for me. I can assure you, my list of words would be much longer and as equally arbitrary.

In addition, if you really did think they were the same, you would use them interchangeably. I have not seen you do that. To be honest, I do not think you really believe this. This is just an excuse to swear.

I do use the words interchangeably. For instance, I don't usually say, "Ah, sh**!" I much prefer, "Ah, crap!" To me, it sounds better that way. Maybe it's because I grew up with The Simpsons.

[Sage]

Yes, but that wasn't integrated into society. That was the church exercising its power. Swearing will become less offensive as time goes on, but it will be a slow process, and for now the thoughts of the old days still ring true in our society.


Yes, but that isn't obscene slang. The synonyms are not vulgar. Awesome, a synonym, is OK. The synonym for sh**, however, is a horribly disgusting pile of feces that brings a bad image to ones head.


That's true, you don't know them. The answer is no.



You, being 21, have a completely different relationship with your friends' parents than me, being 15. Therefore, you can't compare.

It becomes my friend's problem when he gets kicked out of the house.


Was this before or after he was elected? Was this broadcasted nationally on TV? Also, does anyone have any respect for Dick Cheney?

[ACAMS]

Just wanted to let you know I received my stimulus package Yesterday....
It contained watermelon seeds, Cornbread mix, and Ten coupons to KFC.
Directions were in Spanish.