<<Michael while I agree there is a clear line that fellow 3DHS members should try not to cross,
it is odd for a complaint to originate from you because you use near obscene language on
this message board on a weekly basis. >>
CU4, with all due respect, I was complaining about death wishes from one member to another. BT's original prohibition, I believe, was against insults, and whether or not you consider a death wish as a form of insult, neither a death wish nor an insult is necessarily obscene.
Obscene language I freely admit to using. I believe the kind of street language commonly considered obscene has a unique value in expressing such things as feelings (often negative feelings, such as anger, outrage, etc.,) comic exaggeration, social status commentary etc. In other words, this kind of language is expressive, descriptive and useful in many ways. I have often heard that resort to this kind of language is a form of laziness, that there is always a way to convey the exact same message using language that your high-school English teacher would be proud to hear you using. I won't agree that it's universally the case but it may often be true. Two points, however: 1, I'm not convinced that there is always a non-"obscene" way to express, to "get" or capture exactly what has just been expressed perfectly, but in an X-rated format, and 2. Time IS important to some of us who are already spending way too much time in this forum, and anything that shortens the time is a legitimate means of expression.
On another level completely, I believe that insistence on "proper English" usage, including the avoidance of slang, "obscenities," etc., is a form of class tyranny and mind control. In principle two people should be able to exchange and express ideas without filtering them through artificially constructed regulations of language rules, so long as comprehensibility is not sacrificed. Which is why I rarely correct the grammar, spelling or usage of anyone in this group, and God knows there are plenty who are in desperate need of correction. If you don't mind some gratuitous advice, I think you are chaining up your own mind by avoiding and objecting to the use of so-called "obscene" language. Language is just a tool and the more tools in your toolkit, the better and faster you'll be able to do the job, the job in this case being self-expression. But don't mind me, CU4, that is just one well-intentioned suggestion from one majorly fucked-up Communist nutcase. Feel perfectly free to disregard it.
