Entry #659586, added on 07-17-09 @ 6:18 pm EDT
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| Cursing or Cussin'--It's Still @#$% ! | Entry #659586 |
Title: Cursing or Cussin'--It's still @#$% !
Date: July 17, 2009, Friday
Thought: You will no longer hear those utterances from me, nor will you see it written in my work. Over the years, I have removed this colorful language from my written and spoken vocabulary.
Jog: Like so many others, I have been spending some time on a different blog page recently. I don't know if I like it there. WDC feels so comfortable. And, I have a better idea about how many folks are visiting my simple little blog, here. So, I thought I would post a few of my entries on both pages and compare the responses. This is the first of the double-posts. Now, I'll just sit back and watch.
To say the least, I am not a newbie to the art of skillful cursing…or cussin’ as my grandmother called it. The first word I learned was ‘damn it’; so my father tells me. And, he ought to know since he is the one who taught me. In fact, my father found great joy in teaching all his grandkids simple cussin’—you know words like damn and hell.
There was plenty of cussin’ around our house. My father was born and raised in the oil fields of Oklahoma. As a young man, he joined the Marine Corps and was sent to Okinawa in time to fight in WWII. When he came home he resumed his work in the oil fields and remained there for forty years, honing and perfecting the delicate art of cussin’. Well, there was a short period of time when he owned Jack’s Bar, which I must insist was not a tavern or pub; it was a honky-tonkin’ bar.
Naturally, I learned the fine art of using cuss words at an early age. I used them sparingly around Mom. A guy just doesn’t cuss around his mother, or grandmother for that point—even though that grandmother has a higher proficiency of use than even his father. It’s something you just did not do. So, I developed some level of constraint, which leaked out occasionally in a sudden burst when the moment seemed to warrant, causing me much embarrassment and sometimes bringing reprimands.
I say all this to assure you I am no prude when it comes to profanity and language. I will not gasp in horror when you utter some expletive or profanity. I also am not offended by cussin’. I have always considered it a item of personal choice. However, you will no longer hear those utterances from me, nor will you see it written in my work. Over the years, I have removed this colorful language from my written and spoken vocabulary. I have done it out of a sense of propriety and consideration for those who are forced to be around me. I know that sounds a little prudish, but really, it’s not.
I consider cussin’ to be related to farting and belching in a crowded elevator. I would ask you not to do that and I will restrain as well. I am somewhat disappointed when I meet someone, either male or female, who constantly peppers their conversation with cussin’. I realize that I am an aging being, and the youth of this age is not hampered with the fetters and bonds of propriety. We are living in a liberated world where old fashioned rules regarding speech and communication are, well, old fashioned.
So, I was just wondering. When do the words we use become offensive? I’m not talking about verbal attacks. I’m talking about the proliferation of profanity in our spoken and written words. Are there things you can say that you will not write? Is there a need to even try to control it? Should there be constraints? I’m not talking about censorship here; I’m talking about personal restraint. Is there a socially accepted standard? And, if there is, where/what is it? I mean, like I really want to know. I no doubt will not change my position; because that is how I feel. But, I’d just like to know.
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