Concerning free effin’ speech

Has everyone heard about the kid who formed a club and website called the No Cussing Club? I saw another video in which he talked about possible laws prohibiting people from cussing in public, and when he was asked what should be done with someone who breaks such laws, he said something about "beating them" and putting them in jail, and then laughed and said, "Just kidding!"

You know what my initial reaction was? Yeah, it was a phrase of two words, and second word was "you."

Hey kid! I think I'm going to form my own group that condemns anyone who says "you know" constantly in a conversation, and my club is going to try to throw those people in jail. And you know what? You're gonna be cooling your heels for a long time in the Big House because apparently you can't put a sentence together without including "you know" in it! Listen, you sanctimonious little snot, you don't get to decide how people talk or what people say!

Don't worry, I'm exaggerating to make a point. I'm not forming a group, and I'm not going to beat the kid up (although I think I could take him). The sad thing is that this kid has received death threats, and that is totally not cool and just plain wrong. I don't think anyone wants kids going around spewing profanities, and it's a noble effort that he's attempting. But making profanities illegal? Kid, you've got a lot to learn. (I think he needs to listen to George Carlin's bit about the Seven Words.)

I'll be honest--I've got a foul mouth. I'm the proud winner of the Foulest Mouth Award on the 6th floor of Mysch Hall at Ball State, and if you could have heard some of my floormates, you'd know that's sayin' somethin'. Nothing has really changed since then. But I also try to be respectful of other people's feelings, and refrain from letting my mouth go when I'm in public. I don't put a lot of profanity here in my blog, but it doesn't bother me if someone drops a well-placed F-bomb in comments. I don't cuss around my parents, because I know it would offend them. It's a matter of respect, not just to my folks, but to others who might be offended by such language, and any kids that might be within hearing range. I'm proud to say that I never once cussed in front of Ken's kids. Sometimes at games, people can get nasty, and I would have no problem with turning to someone and asking them to tone it down a bit, because kids don't need to hear that. Heck, I've gone to Notre Dame games with my Dad, and I wouldn't want him to have to hear that, and he's an Army guy who has heard it all.

My feeling on this is that if someone is being offensive, ask them politely to stop. If they are belligerent and won't tone it down, that's what security is for. If they get to the point where they are disturbing the peace, that's what the police are for. If they've crossed over the line into inciting a riot, that's when you remove yourself from the situation and call the police from afar.

But you can't start arresting people for foul language. I submit to you: I find the language of several ultra-right wing "pundits" (although I can think of more choice words than "pundit") quite foul and extremely offensive. However, I recognize that they have the right to say such things without being arrested for it. If people don't care for it, they can either not listen, or in the case of someone spewing profanity in front of kids at a ball game, ask them to refrain. I'd be willing to bet that nine times out of ten, they'll respect your request.

So I guess if cussing is going to become illegal, I'll see y'all in the slammer. I'll see if I can find a recipe for making wine in the toilet.