--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, turquoiseb <no_reply@...> wrote: > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, laughinggull108 <no_reply@> wrote: > > > > Totally non-sequitur: My wish is that some posters would > > clean up their "sailor mouth" because it forms an opinion > > in my mind of who that person is inside (i.e. angry, > > speak/write before they think, etc.). And I ask myself, > > would I use that kind of language around my children, > > grandchildren, Maharishi, etc., and if not, then why use > > it at all. Then again, I have to ask myself, what makes > > certain words unacceptable to me, after all, words are just > > combinations of letters, aren't they? Hmmm, interesting... > > I'll bite, just on the off chance that I'm one of > those fuckin' sailor mouths you're talking about. :-) >
It's interesting, Barry, that you at least recognize this in yourself and aren't afraid to respond to it with some good insights. However, you weren't the poster to whom I was referring above. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/message/327551 In reading the above, it just kind of struck me how discordant the message felt juxtaposed against the voice of the lady I hear in the youtube videos about her finches or her granddaughter, or whether she would even say such words around Maharishi or her grandchildren. As for you, Barry, when I see those words written by you (for all the reasons you've described), it doesn't strike me as discordant. > I don't know about anyone else, but I have a strong > affinity with strong language...as a *writer*. It's > a useful tool, on many levels. For one thing, when > one is writing on Things Tantric, nothing quite makes > the *point* of Tantra quite like waxing eloquently > about something in traditional "spiritual" language, > and then segueing seamlessly into sailor-speak. > > Doing so creates a *contrast* that the reader has to > deal with. The writer is clearly capable of using > only blissninny-speak *if he wanted to*. He is also > clearly capable of using sailor-speak. Interspersing > the two modes of speech forces an audience to deal > with that contrast, and thus (if they choose to keep > reading that writer) deal with the fact that he is a > complex being, full of opposites. Opposites, and the > reconciliation of them, is what Tantra is all about. > > On a more mundane level, I'm a big fan of Richard > Pryor, George Carlin, Lenny Bruce, and other ground- > breaking comedians/social commentators. They all knew > the value of sailor-speak, how it cuts through the > bullshit and enables one to speak plainly, and also > how it pisses the hell out of some people. As you > point out yourself, they're just words. Why do some > of those words provoke more of an aversive reaction > than others? And why in some people and not in others? > > I suspect it's far more of a "nurture" issue than a > "nature" one. Some people were raised to abhor strong > language and consider those who use it lesser than > themselves, and others were raised to barely notice > it, and consider it just as valid as other forms of > language. > > Sometimes more valid. Bang your thumb with a hammer > and shout, "Oh fuck," and you're perceived by most > people as pretty normal. Bang your thumb and shout, > "Oh fudge," or some other "sweet truth" euphemism, > and most people will perceive you as quaint and > laughable. Maybe from Fairfield. :-) > > I don't know whether you can get old BBC TV series > where you live -- maybe at a library or on Netflix > if a Region 1 copy was ever made of the DVDs -- but > if you can there is a segment in Stephen Fry's > great series "Planet Word" that is fascinating on > this subject. He undergoes MRI scans and finds out > what parts of the brain react to swearing. As I > remember (it's been some time since I saw it), there > is even a comment or two about how swearing relieves > pain. One doubts that saying, "Oh fudge," after > whacking one's thumb with a hammer diminishes the > feeling of pain, but there is some scientific > evidence that saying, "Oh fuck," really does. > > http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01614w9 > > Here's another fascinating article on the subject: > > http://people.howstuffworks.com/swearing4.htm > > Just as one last reason for using sailor-speak on > Internet forums, sometimes it's the only way to get > rid of a long-term stalker. If they've stalked you > for, say, seventeen-plus years and you've told them > outright that you don't really wish to have anything > to do with them but they keep stalking you anyway, > hoping that you'll give in and argue with them again, > or change your mind and agree with them or something, > you're in a bit of a pickle. Sometimes I've found > that telling them what you *really* think of them > in the clearest possible sailor-speak is one of the > only ways to get them to STFU for a while. >
