I can remember where I was and what I was doing the few times my Father dropped the F bomb in my presence...Since it was so rare - when he did do it, it got my attention and made an impact!
that's because they were accustomed to using it amongst themselves. i seriously doubt they talked like that with their families or in the supermarket, or on a damn forum! lol people change throughout the day depending on who and where.
That particular take of "Little Village" was deemed "unsuitable for airplay"-it's not like that song was in any radio stations rotation. It was taken from the masters,but was not played over the airwaves.
Lester, that comment about "hell" was about use in a song that was going to be performed in a school, and it was suggested it would likely draw complaints which would have been a hassle for the guy who was performing, who was a teacher at the school. i reckon that was sensible. I say "well-spotted" to whoever picked it up.
Billy occasionally said sensible things too, mainly about the mental health benefits of getting laid. i liked how his initials were BS. i appreciated his lists of songs. i got annoyed by the way he removed his posts, because it ruined the stories. i didnt see the swearing post, and it wouldnt have bothered me personally but i agree its bad form. i liked his home made instrument ideas too.
The profanity thing is a variation on the old pornography quote about knowing it when I see it.
Personal discretion. Some people have it, some don't.
As with any good stagecraft, you gotta know your audience. Years ago, I learned that there were times when certain vocabulary was sociologically part of the banter appropriate for the environs. Sitting on the front porch sipping and playing, is one thing late at night. It's quite another on a sunny afternoon when kids are running in and out. Same porch, same folks, different tone.
I use to come home from being offshore (where it was piled high and the cussing could peel the paint off the walls) and instinctively knew to engage my "grandma filter" when I was around decent folks.
Profanity has it's place. But, use the rheostat God gave you to get that subtle, yet effective tone.
[the Red Hot Chili Peppers are performing on Krusty's show] Krusty the Clown: Now, boys, the network has a problem with some of your lyrics. Do you mind changing them for the show? Anthony Kiedis: Forget you, clown. Chad Smith: Yeah, our lyrics are like our children, man. No way. Krusty the Clown: Well, okay, but here where it says, "What I got you gotta get and put it in ya," how about just, "What I'd like is I'd like to hug and kiss ya." Flea: Wow. That's much better. Arik Marshall: Everyone can enjoy that.
I recently purchased the "Son of Schmilsson" album, which I like to call the "professional suicide" record, by Harry Nilsson. All the fans he garnered with his Grammy winning "Without You" single were lost in an instant when he sang, "You're breaking my heart, tearing it apart, so fuck you." He tried to explain later that there was no better way to put it. That song, BTW, was a group sing at his gravesite many years later, led by George Harrison. When it's right, it's right.
@superbee; I understand that the context was for school and parents and so the sensitivity meter had to be set on max; but 'hell'? Is that a cuss word in the states? (My grandmother would shock them all in everyday conversation if she'd been around!) I currently work with high school students, and because of the context am frequently shocked with their use of language; if I could get them to say hell instead of some of their other choices, I'd be rapt.
I only recently made the connection between Billy and his initials. A few people didn't get it (or him). ---------- Lucky Lester
Hah ha, maybe im sensitised! One of my earliest memories is of telling my dad how I'd greased my tricycle and now it "goes like hell!". My excited 4 year old self was totally unprepared for the corrective reaction that brought from the old man. He was pretty quick with the clip round the ear. I can't really elaborate without violating the forum creed, but maybe I can say there are a bunch of words which people who hold certain strong beliefs find offensive when used in a disrespectful context. "hell" is one of those. And there are many such people, some of whom are prone to make life hard for others in the belief they are doing good. ----------
Last Edited by on Jul 07, 2012 5:49 PM
"I understand that the context was for school and parents and so the sensitivity meter had to be set on max; but 'hell'? Is that a cuss word in the states?"
While some people surely count hell as a cuss word, I don't think it is so much that as it is religion-affiliated. Hell is a clear reference to one specific religion. When a teacher speaks of heaven or hell, they are showing favor for one religion over others, which is not right.
I could see that coming a mile away! @ eharp Unless he's NUTS! Don't be to sure! I use to tell my kidds that swearing is a sign of stupidity or a trailor trash up bringing! So ever time I hear you swear I'm going to slap you in the head! My daughter is 24 and my son is 19. Niether one has EVER sworn in front of me! My wife said she has never heard them either! How a person person talks and what they type is an indication of how they are!
I swear all the time and my mother never allowed it growing up, am I from a "trailor trash up bringing?" I also maintain a 4.0 GPA, so swearing clearly may not be a reliable indication of stupidity.
The problem with your claim is that swearing habits are not necessarily caused by parental influences or intelligence. My swearing habits started because of influence from friends, not family.
BTW, I am not suggesting that you are attacking anyone (I know you have never done so), I would just simply like to challenge your assertion. ;)
Last Edited by on Jul 08, 2012 11:03 AM
There are places in this world were if you don't swear everyone looks at you funny, and pretty soon you don't have any friends because no one wants to hang out with a goody-goody. There are other places where you get a dirty look for saying heck. Some people only live in one or the other of those worlds. Some people struggle moving back and forth between. Other people can change how they talk and can glide back and forth effortlessly.
I don't want to throw it into an already charged thread, but that might be a good blues discussion someday in another thread, moving back and forth between the white and black, from the bar stools to the pews, from the North to the South, from generation to generation, between written and spoken English.
There are different conjugations in English depending which side of the color line you grew up on. While there is a way that is considered 'correct' if you are in school, there is an internal consistency within the 'incorrect' forms too.
I noticed, walking around a college campus one day that the 'F Bomb' has become a tick, like 'um' or 'ah'. Personally, I don't like it used that way, not because I'm not a fan of the word. I think it's a great word, when it's used for emphasis.
And here is a fact that should make all of our hearts go cold- there is now a successful internet novel written entirely in text speak. BRB I'm going 2 throw up.
" Miles Dewar 1322 posts Jul 08, 2012 9:20 AM "I understand that the context was for school and parents and so the sensitivity meter had to be set on max; but 'hell'? Is that a cuss word in the states?"
While some people surely count hell as a cuss word, I don't think it is so much that as it is religion-affiliated. Hell is a clear reference to one specific religion. When a teacher speaks of heaven or hell, they are showing favor for one religion over others, which is not right."
Miles,
You may want to revisit world religions 101 before making the bold statement that only ONE religion teaches of a hell, and as a result that being a "bad" thing. It's not just Christianity that teaches of hell, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, etc have doctrines of "hell", or at least of a hell-like place. Just FYI!
"You may want to revisit world religions 101 before making the bold statement that only ONE religion teaches of a hell, and as a result that being a "bad" thing. It's not just Christianity that teaches of hell, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, etc have doctrines of "hell", or at least of a hell-like place. Just FYI!"
That is quite alright! Even if 100 religions use hell, that still supports my case. It is not right for a teacher at a public school to make casual reference of any one of them. What I am saying is that by using hell, you are favoring one religion over another, and that is not right. By all means, use it all you want, just don't do it in a public school if you are a teacher in presence of children. That is all.
Last Edited by on Jul 08, 2012 1:31 PM
When my daughter was on the change table, a bit over a year old, her grandmother walked past in the hall and uttered a loud "S&*T!" (imagine Australian accent here) which the wee one repeated perfectly. Granny said "I'm never going to swear again." Two guesses as to how long that lasted. In Aus it is common to drop the S bomb and even the F bomb on radio and TV. Our former PM Rudd famously referred to the "global financial sh*tstorm". He also said some very undiplomatic things which I won't repeat here as I don't want to cause an international incident.
edited to fix F#*&ing typo
Last Edited by on Jul 08, 2012 5:52 PM
We do have a long tradition of colourful language. I always remember this poem from long ago. How things have changed; these days it would probably Tumba F'ing Rumba:
"Tumba Bloody Rumba"
by John O'Grady (1907-1981) (aka Nino Culotta – They’re a Weird Mob)
I was down the Riverina, knockin' 'round the towns a bit, And occasionally resting with a schooner in me mitt, And on one of these occasions, when the bar was pretty full And the local blokes were arguin' assorted kind of bull, I heard a conversation, most peculiar in its way. It's only in Australia you would hear a joker say: "Howya bloody been, ya drongo, haven't seen ya fer a week, And yer mate was lookin' for ya when ya come in from the creek. 'E was lookin' up at Ryan's, and around at bloody Joe's, And even at the Royal, where 'e bloody NEVER goes". And the other bloke says "Seen 'im? Owed 'im half a bloody quid. Forgot to give it back to him, but now I bloody did - Could've used the thing me bloody self. Been off the bloody booze, Up at Tumba-bloody-rumba shootin' kanga-bloody-roos." Now the bar was pretty quiet, and everybody heard The peculiar integration of this adjectival word, But no-one there was laughing, and me - I wasn't game, So I just sits back and lets them think I spoke the bloody same. Then someone else was interested to know just what he got, How many kanga-bloody-roos he went and bloody shot, And the shooting bloke says "Things are crook - the drought's too bloody tough. I got forty-two by seven, and that's good e-bloody-nough." And, as this polite rejoinder seemed to satisfy the mob, Everyone stopped listening and got on with the job, Which was drinkin' beer, and arguin', and talkin' of the heat, Of boggin' in the bitumen in the middle of the street, But as for me, I'm here to say the interesting piece of news Was Tumba-bloody-rumba shootin' kanga-bloody-roos. ---------- Lucky Lester
@ Miles There are always exceptions to the rule! I'm not God! I'm not condeming you or anyone else. I was useing an example that I live by. If you don't live the same way that's your business! I'm not an angel by any means! That doesn't make it right though either! Here's where I'm coming from. Why continually act that way when you don't have to?
I support the addition to the creed in that it does not rule out all adult language, but addresses continued gratuitous profanity and graphic adult content. This is a public forum centered on modern blues harmonica. I agree that extreme and prolonged vulgarity could alienate some forum participants and undermine the forum's purpose. I do not think that making posts with occasional swearing will lead to banning, and most adults can tolerate some adult content/language.
From his posts it appears that Billy has strong opinions. He has a distinct approach to presenting his views. He often jumped into forum exchanges and made strong statements of questionable validity, using language and narratives that might offend others. His posts were dramatic. At times they troubled me, but he also could bring a fresh and thought provoking perspective. Some of his narratives were almost poetic, though at times frustrating due to the extreme positions he would take, and his scornful dismissal of others' ideas. Threads would be diverted from the original intent into argument about things Billy posted.
The most bothersome behavior by Billy on the forum was when he would engage in provocative posts, elicit outraged replies from others, and then Billy would delete his posts, leaving the wreckage of the thread exchange to confuse and upset others.
I would have liked for Billy to turn it down a little and stay within the forum's rules, but I suspect that turning it down would not be Billy. I miss some of his contributions, but others I do not miss at all. I believe he brought this about through his own behavior after being warned. He identified himself as an instigator, and I think that gives insight into who he is. ----------
