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Post by Homeloaf on Mar 14, 2006 1:41:29 GMT
Okay, I could embarrass a sailor in a bar. With a bunch of bikers. And make the bartender run at me with a hotdog.
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Post by earlofqb on Mar 14, 2006 1:55:35 GMT
I don't swear a lot, and not in public; but I do do it. I think everyone does, and even psychologists recommend it. Swearing is our civilized way of fighting. Rather than beat someone's brains in, we see it as better to swear at them.
Truthfully, swear words aren't evil. In fact, the f word has no actual connotation whatsoever, as there are infinate forms of {censored} someone. You could do anything from steal from them to actually physically get intimate with them. Further, the way that one particular word is used is paradoxical. {censored} someone is, in its truest way, an expression of love. So, if someone hits your car, do you love them? No, so why do we use it? No one knows.
So, really, swearing itself is nothing more than letting off steam and not punching the guy's face in. Its far better and it's really no surprise that people do it as often as they do. Back about 20 years ago, there was a small petition to make swearing in public 100% legal (right now, you can be sued for swearing, as it isn't really covered in the 1st Amendment because it is also a form of slander, which is illegal). It failed, but it was actually a good idea. I'm sure we'll see it come about again the next time society as a whole is really argged off about everything.
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Post by Mikrondel on Mar 14, 2006 9:16:34 GMT
True enough, but I can't stand the growing number of people who swear constantly during normal speech. Funnily enough it tends to be the undereducated.
I try to avoid swearing but I'm going to admit that I probably end up doing it daily. Maybe not quite so often. I hate it but when the emotions kick in it's hard to stop them. If my logical "side" had full control I reckon I'd swear about once a month.
I find that when I go on school camps, the level of swearing I use skyrockets and takes about 2 months to calm down again.
And about those people who swear every second word: I just think that they have a limited vocabulary. If you're intelligent, swear as little as possible.
Just my slice of rant.
P.S. I'm not voting because I barely ever swear at PEOPLE. Just at pain, frustration, etc.. I almost never get reprimanded. But I do swear.
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Post by mopsy on Mar 14, 2006 15:18:05 GMT
Lately I don't swear that much. Unless I'm so angry I can't think straight I can normally keep a level head.
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Post by Homeloaf on Mar 15, 2006 4:47:08 GMT
WARNING: Obscene content!
I will not censor myself just this once, but not in a tasteless way. I hope you don't take this down, as I am using examples taken from real life, and I would like it to be preserved. But if you must, I understand.
I'm a hot head. I control my anger by flipping out and threating to make people's internal organs become external organs.
Okay, so it's not that bad. But I have serious anger issues.
I swear well, though. Here's an example of what a girl at school said to me once:
"You're a damn head!"
Okay, this is stupid. Of course, everybody around her laughed. But even as a very small tyke, I swore well. If I dropped something, I said "shit," not, "hell." The grammar of swearing comes naturally to me, so I can pull it off.
I use swearing to enhance my point, rather than making the swear-word the point itself. It can be used as a tool. People who use the swear-word to shock are often ineffective in it. If someone were to say to me, "Damn shit hell bitch," I would make one of two assumptions:
1. They're joking
or
2. They're retarded
I believe that there are no bad words. Some just have negative thoughts behind them.
I hope nobody has been offended by this post. It was certainly not my intention, and my sincerest apologies to all those negatively affected by it.
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Post by Homeloaf on Mar 15, 2006 4:50:01 GMT
I forgot:
I always make sure that nobody is offended. If you swear to the point that people are uncomfortable, then your point is nullified. I always apologize when I go too far, and it's good to stop swearing after that point. I set limits.
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Post by earlofqb on Mar 16, 2006 3:04:25 GMT
I sort of agree with Mikrondel's point (that swearing is what unintelligent people do), however I do contest it to an extent.
Just because one is un-learned doesn't mean that they are unintelligent. Further, failure to express one's self is nearly universal among intelligence levels. Even Einstein must have felt that no one got what he was trying to say. I also know (not personally, but professionally) of genii (at least IMHO) who swear constantly. They don't do it because it is what they must resort to, either to express themselves emotionally or to give the information at a level low enough for someone else to understand it. They do it because it behooves them, and it is a bridge between people.
Swearing is nearly universal. Even your local religious leaders swear (well, hell is a place and a swear word), although not publicly (they are human after all).
I pretty much agree with Homeloaf, that if done properly, swearing is a sign of intelligence after all. I'll refer to his examples, as they are well thought out. If I drop something, it would be poor swearing ability of me to simply say "hell". If, however I said, "hell no" that's acceptable. Further, if I substituted it for "dammit" or "crap", that's even better. As one can see, there is a logic to it and it can be used as a sign of intelligence.
I know of many people who can't swear intelligently. There's nothing wrong with them intellectually, just that they lack the knowledge of how to do it. Yes, I realize I'm equating swearing to be an art form, but really it is. Just today, I had to listen to these morons try to express their displeasure at how our graduation thesis (rf to my thread "QBasic thesis" in the "QB Questions" section). It was really quite terrible. Fortunately, those who complained were the better swearers I know, so I won't list examples as they weren't overly bad.
Now, I'm not saying I'm much better, mind you. Just yesterday, while trying to actually teach one of them how to properly swear, I slipped the tounge and failed them. The scenario was "someone just hit you, what do you say?". I responded that there were two answers: "damn" or "f*** you". Did you see my mistake? Saying "damn" is a statement of displeasure, not anger. Instead, they should've said "go to hell" or called the person one of the many swears related to describing a person.
Not to get further into the study of swearing, I'll quit on that there.
As far as swearing at people, I don't think I do that in a serious way. Mostly I'll do it as a joke, such as calling an idiot an @$$ or whatnot, but that's about it. The person knows that I'm not serious and that I mean no harm. Other than people, I'll swear a bit to sort of exaggerate my emotions. Sure, it is poor swearing policy to use it to exemplify emotions, however as Mikrondel said, once the emotional side kicks in, you really haven't the control necessary to show your intelligence by proper swearing.
Anyway, in conclusion, swearing (if done properly) can be a sign of intelligence. Sure, it shows a bit of lack of restraint, however what matters it if you call someone an @$$40|3 instead of an "deferred scientist"? Really, nothing at all; and swearing is sort of half-proven to relieve stress and show familiarity (after all, swearing among friends is, in some cultures, considered a sign of acceptance). So, when one swears, one is either angry (emotional) or trying to show a kindness towards someone (rf to above paragraph, "I do it... (when I'm not being) serious and mean no harm".
I'll kick out a personal example on this. Because of a recent work re-scheduling, I was thrust into a new environment these past few months. Sure, I saw my real-world friends quite often, but never spoke to them. In essance, I was pretty friendless while at school (my friends went to work after lunch, I didn't). It took 6 months, the "epiphany point" was reached (psycho-babble for point where you're generally accepted into a group and they treat you as a 100% equal). Once that happened, I noticed that the level of swearing picked up a good bit and people seemed happier speaking to me. So, swearing does serve a valuable sociological purpose: it shows whether or not you've been accepted into a group (applies only to potential friends, not complete strangers; obviously).
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