Sun Oct 10, 2021, 02:15 PM

pnwest (3,202 posts)

I'm confused by people who are offended by swear words.

Last edited Sun Oct 10, 2021, 05:00 PM - Edit history (1)

(in response to a now-deleted thread about cursing)

Words are just universally agreed-upon sounds that convey concepts. I don’t understand being offended by sounds. I DO understand being offended by the concepts conveyed by those sounds. Personally, I’m a huge fan of both fucking and shitting. Not sure how those concepts are offensive. I’m offended by the concepts conveyed by words like “murder”, “rape”, “misogyny”… but I don’t lose my shit when I hear those words.

In my experience, everyone who has ever tried to make me quit swearing by making me look small for using “swear words”, has been a self-righteous fucker, with a pathetic need for attention.

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136 replies	Author	Time	Post
I'm confused by people who are offended by swear words. (Original post)	pnwest	Oct 2021	OP
This message was self-deleted by its author	Chin music	Oct 2021	#1
A good bout of shouted profanity can be	pnwest	Oct 2021	#5
This message was self-deleted by its author	Chin music	Oct 2021	#8
You might be feeling good	malletgirl02	Oct 2021	#13
Smash your finger with a hammer and see what word comes to mind.	world wide wally	Oct 2021	#77
This one agrees...	pnwest	Oct 2021	#131
Intent is important. Profanity can be humorous and entertaining, it can also be cruel and violent.	sop	Oct 2021	#2
'Zakly!	pnwest	Oct 2021	#6
Yes, it is the intent	PatSeg	Oct 2021	#54
Profanity, at times,...	DEbluedude	Oct 2021	#73
I agree.	Javaman	Oct 2021	#125
This always surprises us in Europe about Americans.	OnDoutside	Oct 2021	#3
Faux prudishness is an apt perception.	pnwest	Oct 2021	#7
Probably just cultural differences - there are a few :)	Steelrolled	Oct 2021	#15
Faux prudishness mixed in with a sense of moral superiority.	GoCubsGo	Oct 2021	#31
a yup!!! don't get me started...	bluboid	Oct 2021	#44
Not really faux prudishness. These are usually people who view it as their entitled deference.	plimsoll	Oct 2021	#59
This message was self-deleted by its author	malletgirl02	Oct 2021	#67
No, they're assholes.	plimsoll	Oct 2021	#75
Of course you should be offended by an insult directed at you personally.	pnwest	Oct 2021	#93
well, but....	druidity33	Oct 2021	#103
Also it demonstrates a lack of	whistler162	Oct 2021	#99
limited vocabulary does that.	Voltaire2	Oct 2021	#116
I don't like it when anyone here tries to make anyone look small for any reason	MissMillie	Oct 2021	#4
Truth.	pnwest	Oct 2021	#9
It seems we all have our own set of bad words that we don't like to hear.	Steelrolled	Oct 2021	#10
I am offended far more by people telling others what they can and can't post...	MissMillie	Oct 2021	#19
Couldn't have said it better myself...	GoCubsGo	Oct 2021	#34
I believe I have a couple that offend me	Mossfern	Oct 2021	#36
Gendered and racial slurs bother me. I don't use them.	Scrivener7	Oct 2021	#89
It's not the word, it's the intention behind it.	meadowlander	Oct 2021	#98
This message was self-deleted by its author	malletgirl02	Oct 2021	#11
Thank you	question everything	Oct 2021	#18
That's a fair point	PJMcK	Oct 2021	#48
I am mixed about the subject, while I understand some people are deeply offended, to me based on a	ShazamIam	Oct 2021	#12
I come from a long line of champion swearers.	luvs2sing	Oct 2021	#14
Actually, "swear words"	billh58	Oct 2021	#16
My opinion is that when every other word is F**k it shows a poor vocabulary	question everything	Oct 2021	#17
It can happen with a person who has a good vocabulary	soldierant	Oct 2021	#49
Exactly. Thanks for explaining, has nothing to do with vocabulary.	onecaliberal	Oct 2021	#84
Using just one or two swear words, but a lot, is a sign of a poor vocabulary	muriel_volestrangler	Oct 2021	#91
Sometimes exasperation clouds ones mind.	onecaliberal	Oct 2021	#105
Amen to this!	soldierant	Oct 2021	#133
I got an almost perfect SAT verbal score back in the day. And I curse a lot.	Scrivener7	Oct 2021	#85
👆🏻👆🏻👆🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻	onecaliberal	Oct 2021	#134
It might also be the inability to express themselves while speaking.	Steelrolled	Oct 2021	#101
Good thing we don't need to rely on your opinion.	Act_of_Reparation	Oct 2021	#123
I gots tons of vocabules and I say fuck and shit on the reg.	Iggo	Oct 2021	#124
From my somewhat older perspective,	dumbcat	Oct 2021	#20
Does this translate into feelings of...	ret5hd	Oct 2021	#32
Interesting questions	dumbcat	Oct 2021	#58
TY (nt)	ret5hd	Oct 2021	#66
vulgar	Slammer	Oct 2021	#68
The person I asked the questions of...	ret5hd	Oct 2021	#71
Pretty much my thoughts	dumbcat	Oct 2021	#86
Did you have parents?	milestogo	Oct 2021	#21
There were words that were not to be spoken in my house,	Ocelot II	Oct 2021	#26
Yup.	milestogo	Oct 2021	#28
My Dad never swore but my Mother did have a potty mouth at times	kimbutgar	Oct 2021	#27
My mother was a veeeery strict, old-school Dutch woman, who had	pnwest	Oct 2021	#29
Your parents have never tried to make me quit swearing, I've never met them. So by default	pnwest	Oct 2021	#35
My father used them, hell, damn, shit	treestar	Oct 2021	#94
what my lifelong hero Frank Zappa had to say about this;	90-percent	Oct 2021	#22
Swear words are used because they are transgressive. Because they are transgressive,	Ocelot II	Oct 2021	#23
But they fail to be transgressive when they are overused.	milestogo	Oct 2021	#33
Exactly my point. I'm not shocked by vulgarity, but I'm sometimes annoyed	Ocelot II	Oct 2021	#38
That is an excellent book!	Behind the Aegis	Oct 2021	#60
Taboos change. Go ahead and use the F-word, but do not use the N-word.	Klaralven	Oct 2021	#24
I swear sometimes but not usually.	pwb	Oct 2021	#25
As an elementary school teacher	teach1st	Oct 2021	#30
I have to admit that I like to swear around my uptight sister in law. It makes her	flying_wahini	Oct 2021	#37
The target of my cussing is usually the computer.	Xipe Totec	Oct 2021	#50
Sometimes swearing can be appropriate, even excessive swearing.	keithbvadu2	Oct 2021	#39
Using the F word	DownriverDem	Oct 2021	#40
This message was self-deleted by its author	malletgirl02	Oct 2021	#41
because those are aimed at your physical appearance and are directed TO YOU	Kali	Oct 2021	#51
This message was self-deleted by its author	malletgirl02	Oct 2021	#61
This message was self-deleted by its author	pnwest	Oct 2021	#74
fucking obtuse	Kali	Oct 2021	#114
OMG just choked on my coffee.	róisín_dubh	Oct 2021	#118
LOL	inthewind21	Oct 2021	#126
And then there are two-way words ...	Martin Eden	Oct 2021	#42
If thy eyes or ears offend thee, get thy shit together and get fucked up.	Tommymac	Oct 2021	#43
We have to come up with some new swear words	tiredtoo	Oct 2021	#45
John Goodman's scene from Treme. F you, you F ing, F's	sarcasmo	Oct 2021	#46
I remember a post calling the word "fuck" a "rapey" word.	roamer65	Oct 2021	#47
They're the closest things to actual magic words we have	TlalocW	Oct 2021	#52
Same	ColinC	Oct 2021	#53
Free trip to HR in my office.	Throck	Oct 2021	#55
This message was self-deleted by its author	malletgirl02	Oct 2021	#63
is there an hr dept where you work? why not report them? nt	orleans	Oct 2021	#110
kids	Slammer	Oct 2021	#56
I don't ask anyone not to swear around me (aside from my daughter)	Ms. Toad	Oct 2021	#57
As you can see from the responses, it can be quite classist.	Behind the Aegis	Oct 2021	#62
This message was self-deleted by its author	malletgirl02	Oct 2021	#65
Did I say that?	Behind the Aegis	Oct 2021	#69
This message was self-deleted by its author	malletgirl02	Oct 2021	#72
How ironic.	Behind the Aegis	Oct 2021	#78
This message was self-deleted by its author	malletgirl02	Oct 2021	#83
No, I didn't make your point. You missed the point.	Behind the Aegis	Oct 2021	#104
omg--(been reading these back-and-forth exchanges); you have the patience of a	orleans	Oct 2021	#112
Wait, what?	róisín_dubh	Oct 2021	#119
If they called you a grossly obese woman	Voltaire2	Oct 2021	#117
I have found that when I feel the need to make a point by swearing.....	jaxexpat	Oct 2021	#64
I get tired of overuse.	LisaM	Oct 2021	#70
Fine use swear word	malletgirl02	Oct 2021	#76
My Dad used to tell us 4 kids "If you hear me say it, YOU can say it."	Talitha	Oct 2021	#79
I like to curse. I curse here a lot. I replied to that thread and said so. But the DUer	Scrivener7	Oct 2021	#80
Lenny Bruce - when you outlaw the "f" word, you outlaw the ability to say "f" the government.	AZLD4Candidate	Oct 2021	#81
The last time I emailed my little brother, now a child not quite 70, I asked him if he could	Vinca	Oct 2021	#82
I hear you	Skittles	Oct 2021	#87
Your OP doesn't make sense.	muriel_volestrangler	Oct 2021	#88
Hm. I can see what you mean. If I'm not stating my case clearly, let me elucidate:	pnwest	Oct 2021	#92
I think Ocelot II explains it pretty well in #23.	muriel_volestrangler	Oct 2021	#97
delete	Manifestor_of_Light	Oct 2021	#90
Seems to me that in your Buddhist template you have it backwards. Saying "shit" or "fuck"	Scrivener7	Oct 2021	#95
my takeaway from this is that you were proud of your daughter	pnwest	Oct 2021	#100
Most "curse words" aren't actually curses anymore...	Buckeye_Democrat	Oct 2021	#96
Like others, I'm of an age where it was forbidden	dickthegrouch	Oct 2021	#102
For true desensitization to the F-bomb...	roamer65	Oct 2021	#106
A tutorial.	roamer65	Oct 2021	#107
Fucking hilarious	pnwest	Oct 2021	#129
Go ahead and spit on the sidewalk and scratch	SharonClark	Oct 2021	#108
Words-- specifically dehumanizing words -- are prelude to action.	ExTex	Oct 2021	#109
Not a bit offended.	tavernier	Oct 2021	#111
Everything in moderation. Be aware of your audience.	LakeArenal	Oct 2021	#113
Swearing is easy, anyone can do it	Raine	Oct 2021	#115
Message auto-removed	Name removed	Oct 2021	#120
I've fallen short of my own principles with regard to cursing	ecstatic	Oct 2021	#121
Cussing around grownups bothers me zero and it bothers me less and less that it bothers others.	Iggo	Oct 2021	#122
One of my favorite Lenny Bruce routines:	thucythucy	Oct 2021	#127
HA! That's great	pnwest	Oct 2021	#128
Here's another one you might like.	thucythucy	Oct 2021	#130
It sucks if it's done by assholes in the wrong settings or as spice to mask boring or stupid	gulliver	Oct 2021	#132
Country Joe McDonald the fish cheer	cksmithy	Oct 2021	#135
Just because this belongs in this thread	CelticCrow	Oct 2021	#136

Response to pnwest (Original post)

Chin music This message was self-deleted by its author.

Response to Chin music (Reply #1)

Sun Oct 10, 2021, 02:23 PM

pnwest (3,202 posts)

5. A good bout of shouted profanity can be

a huge emotional release 😊

I'm confused by people who are offended by swear words.

5. A good bout of shouted profanity can be

13. You might be feeling good

77. Smash your finger with a hammer and see what word comes to mind.

131. This one agrees...

2. Intent is important. Profanity can be humorous and entertaining, it can also be cruel and violent.

6. 'Zakly!

54. Yes, it is the intent

73. Profanity, at times,...

125. I agree.

3. This always surprises us in Europe about Americans.

7. Faux prudishness is an apt perception.

15. Probably just cultural differences - there are a few :)

31. Faux prudishness mixed in with a sense of moral superiority.

44. a yup!!! don't get me started...

59. Not really faux prudishness. These are usually people who view it as their entitled deference.

75. No, they're assholes.

93. Of course you should be offended by an insult directed at you personally.

103. well, but....

99. Also it demonstrates a lack of

116. limited vocabulary does that.

4. I don't like it when anyone here tries to make anyone look small for any reason

9. Truth.

10. It seems we all have our own set of bad words that we don't like to hear.

19. I am offended far more by people telling others what they can and can't post...

34. Couldn't have said it better myself...

36. I believe I have a couple that offend me

89. Gendered and racial slurs bother me. I don't use them.

98. It's not the word, it's the intention behind it.

18. Thank you

48. That's a fair point

12. I am mixed about the subject, while I understand some people are deeply offended, to me based on a

14. I come from a long line of champion swearers.

16. Actually, "swear words"

17. My opinion is that when every other word is F**k it shows a poor vocabulary

49. It can happen with a person who has a good vocabulary

84. Exactly. Thanks for explaining, has nothing to do with vocabulary.

91. Using just one or two swear words, but a lot, is a sign of a poor vocabulary

105. Sometimes exasperation clouds ones mind.

133. Amen to this!

85. I got an almost perfect SAT verbal score back in the day. And I curse a lot.

134. 👆🏻👆🏻👆🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

101. It might also be the inability to express themselves while speaking.

123. Good thing we don't need to rely on your opinion.

124. I gots tons of vocabules and I say fuck and shit on the reg.

20. From my somewhat older perspective,

32. Does this translate into feelings of...

58. Interesting questions

66. TY (nt)

68. vulgar

71. The person I asked the questions of...

86. Pretty much my thoughts

21. Did you have parents?

26. There were words that were not to be spoken in my house,

28. Yup.

27. My Dad never swore but my Mother did have a potty mouth at times

29. My mother was a veeeery strict, old-school Dutch woman, who had

35. Your parents have never tried to make me quit swearing, I've never met them. So by default

94. My father used them, hell, damn, shit

22. what my lifelong hero Frank Zappa had to say about this;

23. Swear words are used *because* they are transgressive. Because they are transgressive,

33. But they fail to be transgressive when they are overused.

38. Exactly my point. I'm not shocked by vulgarity, but I'm sometimes annoyed

60. That is an excellent book!

24. Taboos change. Go ahead and use the F-word, but do not use the N-word.

25. I swear sometimes but not usually.

30. As an elementary school teacher

37. I have to admit that I like to swear around my uptight sister in law. It makes her

50. The target of my cussing is usually the computer.

39. Sometimes swearing can be appropriate, even excessive swearing.

40. Using the F word

51. because those are aimed at your physical appearance and are directed TO YOU

114. fucking obtuse

118. OMG just choked on my coffee.

126. LOL

42. And then there are two-way words ...

43. If thy eyes or ears offend thee, get thy shit together and get fucked up.

45. We have to come up with some new swear words

46. John Goodman's scene from Treme. F you, you F ing, F's

47. I remember a post calling the word "fuck" a "rapey" word.

23. Swear words are used because they are transgressive. Because they are transgressive,