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Sunday, February 28, 2010

Once You've Said It, It's Always There

I was recently watching iCarly, a show I usually only watch while babysitting. The episode I was watching was iKiss, where Carly's friend Sam told everyone watching the iCarly web show that their other friend, Freddie, had never kissed anyone. Freddie gets extremely embarrassed and stops coming to school or talking to anyone. Carly gets angry at Sam for humiliating him like she did, telling her that no matter how she apologizes to him, nothing will work - she's already done the damage and spread the word. (Watch the episode to find out the resolution!)

This concept can also go for cursing. Once you've said a bad word, you've said it; there's no way to take it back. This isn't to say that if you say one bad word in you're life, you're doomed to being thought of as someone who curses. However, it is a reminder to always really guard your mouth. You don't want people thinking that you curse often, and if you let words slip more than a few times, people may start thinking so.

This is also something to be remembered when gossiping, too. While Bleep!'s message is primarily against cursing, anything relating to bad language is also in Bleep!'s general domain. If you say something against someone, spread a rumor that's true or false, anything bad about anyone else, there's no way to take it back. It will always be out there. Think about what you say before you say it: is it something you want to be floating in people's minds forever?

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Certain Words in Certain Places

I think everyone knows that if you insist on cursing, you shouldn't yell out "f**k you!" in the middle of a preschool or "you b***h!" in a house of worship. As the creator of Bleep!, I hold that all alternatives to bad words (e.g. shoot, crud, etc.) are acceptable to use. They are. However, even alternatives have their time and place. A friend of mine pointed out that when I yelled out "what the heck?" in the middle of the school lunchroom, it might not have been the most appropriate place to use any word in that vein.

I'm not trying to say that it was inappropriate that I used that kind of word; I'm just saying that you (and I) have to remember where we are at all times. It's not so appropriate to say "what the heck" to a teacher or in school; it's not appropriate to say "oh, pooh," in the middle of religious services. If it's a choice between an alternative and a real word, then hands-down no question, use the alternative. However, bear in mind that while words like heck and crud are appropriate when you're among friends, they may not be in certain other situations.

Sunday, February 21, 2010

You Can't Be Punished for Your Thoughts

People who don't curse often tell me that they feel guilty when they say a bad word in their thoughts. Here's a secret: I curse a lot in my head. I just don't allow it to come out of my mouth. While it's advisable to avoid cursing in your thoughts and your speech (since you know you're cursing and may lose self-respect, in addition to the possibility of something slipping out), it's not the end of the world if you do. You can't be punished for your thoughts, only your actions. If you think about dumping a camera into the sink but don't do it, your parents aren't going to yell at you. If you do it, however, look out. It's the same with cursing; if you think a bad word, no one's going to punish you or think less of you, but if you say it out loud, you get the consequences.

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Cursing in Writing is STILL Cursing

A friend of mine and I were emailing recently, and she cursed in one of her emails. I asked her to avoid that kind of language when talking to me in the future, and she said, "But it's just in writing! It doesn't count if you don't say it out loud!" My personal opinion is that yes, it does count when you use a bad word in writing. All the negative effects are still in place, and you're still using the word, if not saying it out loud.

Some members have told me that they and their friends would never say a bad word out loud, but when writing they're not so picky. Put it this way: if you would never bully a person in real life, would you cyber bully them?

A few days later, the same friend emailed me and used the acronym LMAO, which stands for "laughing my a** off." I told her that I would really prefer if she doesn't use that kind of language, and she said, "But I didn't even write out the word!" Even if she didn't use the word, I know what word she would have said had she written the phrase out, so to me, it counts as cursing. (When I want to use something to the effect of LMAO, I either do LOL, ROFL, or LMTO (laughing my tushy off!!).)

So, to sum up, using bad words in writing still counts as cursing, and using acronyms that have bad words in them also counts as cursing.

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Living Well is the Best Revenge

George Herbert once said, "Living well is the best revenge." (R.E.M. also had a song by the title "Living Well is the Best Revenge.") This sentiment can be applied to small-scale situations of getting revenge against a person by showing them that you don't have to stoop to their level to get revenge, but that you're living well and way above them. It can also be applied to larger-scale situations, like the Jews vs. the Nazis. The Jews were able to come to America after they were liberated from the concentration camps and create new lives. My maternal grandparents are of these people; they came to America, built up new lives, and perpetuated the Jewish nation that Hitler sought to destroy. My grandmother always felt that having children was the biggest slap across the face she could give Hitler, as if to show him that his mission utterly failed: Jewish children are being born. The Jews live.

Living well is the best revenge. By living a proper life, you are avenging people that do not want you to have one. This doesn't only apply to the Jews and Nazis; it can apply to African-Americans and the KKK, Japanese-Americans and those who put them in internment camps, Native Americans and the government that sent them on the Trail of Tears, etc.

By living well, by speaking eloquently, you are showing the people who discriminate against you that they're wrong. You are an articulate person; you are not inferior to them. They are inferior to you.

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

What Do You Think of the American Idol Rejects?

On today's American Idol, Ryan Seacrest said "Denver, Colorado...the air is always clean. That us, until Idol shows up." (Check out the first minute of the Denver auditions to see how many people they had to bleep out!!) People who were turned down by the judges were then shown, with bleeps covering up the words they were saying. What do you think of those people, "dirtying" the air with the words they were saying?