FCC and the F-Word

[FRE]

I heard the word "bitch" for the first time watching Dynasty some time in the 80s. Though completely unoffended, it did surprise me.



Hate to split hairs, but isn't there a difference between blasphemy and run-of-the-mill vulgar swearing?

Some of these things are not entirely clear and there are differing opinions. Many people would consider both "GD" and "JC" to be both blasphemy and swearing, but some would not consider them to be blasphemy.

Decades ago I decided to avoid words and phrases which were commonly regarded as offensive. On the other hand, it seems silly to avoid the proper words for body parts and instead refer to "the male organ," etc., just because some people find them offensive. These things can be carried ridiculously far. In the Victorian era, there were satires written about that.

A man's mother died and he decided to give her nice silk stockings to the maid. When he told her that she could have them, she began screaming at the top of her lungs because a gentleman would not know that ladies have limbs. That was a favorite story of my paternal grandmother. At one time, the words "leg" and "breast" were avoided because they were considered slightly indecent; "limb" was used instead of "leg." And, when asking what part of a chicken one preferred, one would not say "leg" or "breast." Instead, one would say, "drumstick" or "light meat." Examples are legion. Fortunately the era of extreme hyper-delicacy is over, but in my opinion, we've gone to the opposite extreme.

As one poster said, advertising Viagra on TV, which includes mention of erectile dysfunction, can create problems when parents are called upon to explain them to young children. Until recently, products were advertised to clean the "bathroom bowl," but the "bathroom bowl" always remained discretely out of sight below the bottom of the TV screen. Now the camera takes viewers into the men's room and even shows men standing in front of urinals. Recently I've seen signs in supermarkets indicating where the toilet paper is; the signs used to say "bath tissue."

 

[FRE]

BSG was one of my favorite shows ever, and it brings up the point I made.

Fuck is bad, but Frak is acceptable despite meaning the same exact thing. Silly.

It is really easy to avoid words which many people find offensive. Here are some useful words:

folderol

nonsense

annoyed

irritated

irked

tamper

interfere

meddle

Decades ago, I had to deal with a problem tenant. Every time he interrupted me, I remained silent until he stopped talking, then I started over from the very beginning and made a point of talking softly. I didn't use a single word that anyone would find offensive, but by the time I got through with him, he was actually shaking. There is more than one way to make a point effectively.

 

[MercyfulFate]

It is really easy to avoid words which many people find offensive. Here are some useful words:

folderol

nonsense

annoyed

irritated

irked

tamper

interfere

meddle

Decades ago, I had to deal with a problem tenant. Every time he interrupted me, I remained silent until he stopped talking, then I started over from the very beginning and made a point of talking softly. I didn't use a single word that anyone would find offensive, but by the time I got through with him, he was actually shaking. There is more than one way to make a point effectively.

I'm not like that though, if it offends people I'll do it more often. People who are bothered by swears just piss me off, goddamn word prudes.

 

[HazelGod]

Decades ago, I had to deal with a problem tenant. Every time he interrupted me, I remained silent until he stopped talking, then I started over from the very beginning and made a point of talking softly.

Now that's frakkin' brilliant! :wink:

 

[FRE]

Now that's frakkin' brilliant! :wink:

It also requirers considerable restraint and self-discipline.

 

[B_VinylBoy]

I understand that my upbringing was a bit less conventional than many, but foul language was never a big deal in my house growing up. My sister and I were simply taught that adults have prerogatives along with their responsibilities, and that swearing was one of them. Though our language was monitored, there were no filters on my parents' speech at all.

This takes me back to 1983 when my older brothers and sisters wanted to watch "Eddie Murphy: Delirious" on cable TV. Of course, I wanted to watch with everyone else but I was only 9 when it made its debut. A very short discussion was had beforehand about whether or not it was OK to allow me to watch it. My mom, in one statement, made it very clear - "Sure, he can watch it with us. But if I hear him saying anything from it, he's gonna get spanked".

* "Spanked" being the operative word here, of course. :biggrin1:

Suffice to say, I already knew not to even mutter something out of bounds in front of my older brothers & sisters or my mother. But this made it even more official and I obeyed. And I got to laugh when Aunt Bunny fell down the steps... and when Ralph asked Norton to fuck him in the ass... and what happens when kids don't get ice cream... and why Brut by Faberge makes a sucky gift. Even up to this day, I find it difficult to use any form of vulgar language in front of my older siblings just out of respect. And I have yet to swear in front of my mother.

Parents need to be parents and do their job raising their kids properly. They'll never be able to prevent their kids from swearing outside of the home, but they can definitely control what they're exposed to at home and taught how not to conduct themselves in front of their elders.

 

[Bbucko]

My maternal grandparents were quite prudish, even considering their age (born between 1905-1912) and upbringing (small town in mid-state Maine), and my grandmother forbid any "rough" language whatsoever (including the word "fart"). My grandfather was a genius at coining words that sounded filthy but weren't.

My paternal grandfather (born 1900), on the other hand, had one of the filthiest mouths on the planet. I owe him the honor of having introduced me to "cocksucker" (not directed at me: I was just a kid)

We were told to ignore it (and did our best).

 

[MercyfulFate]

This takes me back to 1983 when my older brothers and sisters wanted to watch "Eddie Murphy: Delirious" on cable TV. Of course, I wanted to watch with everyone else but I was only 9 when it made its debut. A very short discussion was had beforehand about whether or not it was OK to allow me to watch it. My mom, in one statement, made it very clear - "Sure, he can watch it with us. But if I hear him saying anything from it, he's gonna get spanked".

* "Spanked" being the operative word here, of course. :biggrin1:

Suffice to say, I already knew not to even mutter something out of bounds in front of my older brothers & sisters or my mother. But this made it even more official and I obeyed. And I got to laugh when Aunt Bunny fell down the steps... and when Ralph asked Norton to fuck him in the ass... and what happens when kids don't get ice cream... and why Brut by Faberge makes a sucky gift. Even up to this day, I find it difficult to use any form of vulgar language in front of my older siblings just out of respect. And I have yet to swear in front of my mother.

Parents need to be parents and do their job raising their kids properly. They'll never be able to prevent their kids from swearing outside of the home, but they can definitely control what they're exposed to at home and taught how not to conduct themselves in front of their elders.

Exactly. This belief that things need to be banned for everyone to protect some baffles me.

 

[Bbucko]

Parents need to be parents and do their job raising their kids properly. They'll never be able to prevent their kids from swearing outside of the home, but they can definitely control what they're exposed to at home and taught how not to conduct themselves in front of their elders.

For all the eccentricities and dysfunctionalities in my house growing up, we were always taught to be aware of those around us and to act accordingly. It's a lesson that seems almost antique now.

 

[Bbucko]

Some of these things are not entirely clear and there are differing opinions. Many people would consider both "GD" and "JC" to be both blasphemy and swearing, but some would not consider them to be blasphemy.

The problem is that the etymology of all three words: "swearing", "blasphemy" and "profanity" all have religious connotations. Though the word "profane" still carries primarily a religious significance, in common, everyday usage "profanity" no longer does, nor does "swearing"; only "blasphemy" still carries its full religious weight and connotations.

The reason why some may take issue with the examples you mention above is religious, as it breaks one of the Ten Commandments; using vulgar expressions for body functions and sex does not. Though I can (partially) understand why some may be truly deeply offended by blasphemous speech for religious reasons, ordinary vulgarities carry no such weight.

As such it's partially justifiable (from a Sharia Law perspective) why blasphemy could still be forbidden from broadcast TV, but it's not and hasn't been for years. There is no justification for barring vulgarity except that it "coarsens" society somehow, when such language is part of the everyday vocabulary of the vast majority of Americans for decades now.

 

[SilverTrain]

How many of you actually have kids? I believe HG just joined the club. If I'm correct about that, Welcome to the Dollhouse, mon cheri.

I understand and share pretty much all the sentiments in this thread. But practicalities, especially in the ever-evolving technological age, are a bitch. It's so easy to say "I'd protect them from X". Walk in the shoes, and we'll talk.

 

[MercyfulFate]

How many of you actually have kids? I believe HG just joined the club. If I'm correct about that, Welcome to the Dollhouse, mon cheri.

I understand and share pretty much all the sentiments in this thread. But practicalities, especially in the ever-evolving technological age, are a bitch. It's so easy to say "I'd protect them from X". Walk in the shoes, and we'll talk.

My opinion won't change if I have kids, which I somehow doubt because I hate this world and most of the people in it.

 

[B_VinylBoy]

How many of you actually have kids? I believe HG just joined the club. If I'm correct about that, Welcome to the Dollhouse, mon cheri.

I understand and share pretty much all the sentiments in this thread. But practicalities, especially in the ever-evolving technological age, are a bitch. It's so easy to say "I'd protect them from X". Walk in the shoes, and we'll talk.

I don't have my own kids, but I have 5 nieces and nephews as well as 4 great nieces and nephews. Many times they have come to visit me and have stayed for overnights. They may not be mine, but they are also family. Saying that someone has to have their own children to know what it's like doesn't seem too fair here.

 

[HazelGod]

How many of you actually have kids? I believe HG just joined the club. If I'm correct about that, Welcome to the Dollhouse, mon cheri.

In my spoken tongue at least, I'm becoming less fluent in goddamnedsonofabitch! and more practiced in Oh, for the love of...

 

[SilverTrain]

I don't have my own kids, but I have 5 nieces and nephews as well as 4 great nieces and nephews. Many times they have come to visit me and have stayed for overnights. They may not be mine, but they are also family. Saying that someone has to have their own children to know what it's like doesn't seem too fair here.

Perhaps not, although neither is "I'd do X if I had 'em!"

Nevertheless, it appears you may qualify, on the merits.

Fact: it's literally WAY easier for a kid today to view ass-to-mouth + bukkake, or a snuff de-limbing, then it was for me to snag an un-sanctioned piece of candy.

 

[B_VinylBoy]

Fact: it's literally WAY easier for a kid today to view ass-to-mouth + bukkake, or a snuff de-limbing, then it was for me to snag an un-sanctioned piece of candy.

Ironically, that's one of the reasons why I'm so involved with the lives of my nieces and nephews. None of my older brothers & sisters (or my mom) know how to work most of the new parental technology on computers and televisions, and I've always been the gear nerd of the troop. :wink:

 

[dandelion]

I understand and share pretty much all the sentiments in this thread. But practicalities, especially in the ever-evolving technological age, are a bitch. It's so easy to say "I'd protect them from X". Walk in the shoes, and we'll talk.

Dont have any kids and not likely to. Maybe it would make a difference, but my natural instinct is to let people live their own lives. Theres a lot of anecdotes here from people who as 10 year olds or whatever came across sex and got interested/entertained/educated, and similarly how are children not going to be exposed to real society around them? I know there is a growing tendency to lock children away indoors and never let them meet anyone, but it goes hand in hand with growing levels of obesity which is killing people. So some of that may be due to the internet and just the sort of thing we here are up to (I mean simply chatting, not sex), but over protection of kids which in fact does them harm has been growing for decades. I went to a school which had a vast row of bicycle racks. Schools still there, but the bicycle racks are gone. Children are supposed to be taught how to survive and get on in society, not to avoid it. So I dont believe in hiding things. Growing up gay in a society where this was a lot more repressed than it is now never did me any good, indeed did me harm. Swearing isnt quite the same but a lot of the reasoning behind why it should be kept away from kids is the same and false. Sure, teach kids the self-discipline of speaking politely and turning off the swearing when it is appropriate, but trying to censor out certain words from their environment is at best pointless and at worst doing them harm in learning about real life.

 

[willow78]

I personally don't have a problem with swearing or sex/sexuality on television but I do think there should be restrictions on when it is shown. Rather than 'edit' or censor the content to make it suitable for everyone, I think it should be screened late at night after children's bedtime.
Here in Australia, you can see TV ads for phone-sex (not as graphic as the phone-sex ads on porn videos/dvds) late-night/very early-morning. But that's the same time they show the religious programming! So one minute, you're watching Reverend Whoever talking about Christian values and living a clean and moral life-style and suddenly you're confronted by a near-naked woman offering "chat" and photo and video mobile downloads of her and her equally near-naked girl-friends "having fun" in a spa, or stripping and pole-dancing "just for you". I think it's hilarious, but I feel sorry for the people who really want to watch the religious programs. There can't be many though, otherwise they wouldn't have such a dead timeslot.

 

[FRE]

@ Dandelion,

Apparently the over-protection of children is not unique to the U.S.

When I was in grade school, I walked about 0.5 miles to school or rode my bicycle. In high school, I rode my bicycle about 1.7 miles to school, although at that time it was for some stupid and silly reason considered that high school kids were too old to be riding a bicycle. Now parents drive their kids less than 0.5 miles to school! When I was a kid, there were no play dates. If I wanted to play with a kid, I'd walk to his house and ring the bell. I even rode the city 'bus by myself! Although concern about child molesters is legitimate, the concern has become exaggerated to such an irrational degree that it is doing more harm than good and, as you point out, is actually depriving children of opportunities for exercise and social interaction. It's strange that this over-protection does not extend to junk foods which are partly responsible for the obesity epidemic.

However, I do believe that it should be convenient for parents to limit what their children can see on TV. There has been a general coarsening of society; rudeness that would not have been accepted 20 or more years ago is now accepted. Even women who consider themselves to be ladies (a term which is used far too loosely) make obscene finger gestures while driving.

 

[midlifebear]

Well, Jesus-creeping-shit! -- as my father would say. Regular broadcast television in the USA will rarely let anything beyond the words bitch and ass be allowed. If you subscribe to cable or satellite TV reception, ALL parents have the option to create a screening profile that prevents their angelic little girls and boys (who already know more sexual euphemisms than one can imagine) from accessing programming not rated PG. For the parent or supposed "adult" in the family to watch those programs rated higher than PG, he or she simply enters a pin code that isn't shared with the children. And if you still don't want to hear "bad" words on TV, then might I suggest you do something more important such as read a book and not watch TV at all?