Profanity

"According to the Associated Press, residents of Middleborough, Mass., have voted 183-50 to approve a proposal from the police chief to impose a $20 civil fine for loud, profanity-laden language in the downtown area and public parks.

Yes, I know about slippery slopes, unintended consequences, overly vague ordinances and jackbooted Big Brother thugs. And I prefer parental discipline, old-fashioned shaming and anti-profanity public service announcements to actual regulations; but I still admire Middleborough and the other communities and states taking aim at incivility".  This appeared in the Pioneer recently.  It was written by Danny Tyree.  It is titled One town's war on profanity.

The school that I was in has made a statement on the use of the f-word.  Two day suspension for using it in school.  That includes all the other words that have surfaced as its replacement.  Flipping, freaking, and fricking to name a few.   I remember suspending a boy for a gesture of FU also.  He was just amazed that I was able to recognize it.  Just off the cuff I told him that I knew 53 ways to flip some one off.  Well, he spent his two day vacation trying to come up with all 53 and couldn't.  When he returned to school and after his apology, he asked me if he could talk to me.  Until the apology is made and he is back in good standing again he knew better then to engage in chit chat.  So I told sure I would love to talk to you.  He told me that he tried to get  all 53 ways to flip someone off and could only get twenty five.  Since I had just made that number off I asked him if he would share his list.  Out of his pocket came the list.  He gave me permission to photo copy it. It certainly was interesting reading and contained a lot of  amunnition for future use.  That young man has now graduated and has kept in touch with me over the years.  He told me once that because of me he does not use offensive language.  But he said I surely hears a lot of it as he is a defense attorney.  I finally confessed  that the number I told him was purely made up.  He just laughed and told me that that day in my office changed his path in life.

 "I know profanity supposedly adds spice and color to life; but if you’re going to use it, start sharing early in the morning. Because after your listener has spent all day bombarded with middle initials for deities, scatological exclamations, threats to the derriere, invitations to the netherworld, anatomically impossible suggestions and the like, you flatter yourself if you think your contributions are going to be particularly clever, productive or memorable."