Salty Language
I was meeting someone for lunch and they told me a certain local political player had inquired about me. Said political player did not like me very much and did not have any desire to meet me because of my salty language. I had written some things about said political player. I thought at the time that maybe if I gave up the salty language, I could have met said political player and changed their mind on a particular issue. Then we’d both have a Coke and a smile and everyone would be happy.
Then, it occurred to me that maybe (just maybe) I should cut down on the potty mouth because maybe someday I could try to legitimize myself as a real writer. I even asked you guys. And you basically said fuck that.
I still entertain that notion of cleaning up my language. And I had a conversation at the NRA Convention about exactly that. That is, about whether or not I should stop using foul language. Everyone told me to keep doing what I’m doing because I apparently use an amount of foul language that is edgy but not over the top. One of the people who said that was David Kopel, who recently wrote this:
Did your grade-school English teachers ever tell you that people who overuse foul language do so because they don’t have much to say? Your teacher was right.
Boy, talk about mixed signals.
Update: In comments, Drake reminds me of one of my favorite quotes:
Profanity is the inevitable linguistic crutch of the inarticulate motherfucker.
And, obviously, I didn’t stop cussing today.
May 22nd, 2008 at 8:59 am
Profanity is the crutch of the inarticulate motherfucker. Then again it also enlivens otherwise bland opinion.
May 22nd, 2008 at 9:21 am
See, it depends on your end goal. My end goal is not to meet politicians as I’ve little time for them and their bullshit. My goal is to educate the masses of their rights and change minds regarding firearms and their role in society.
If I were really to hunker down and want to be a professional blogger / journalist, yes, I’d have to change my my language level to reach the broadest audience possible, but I’m not in it for that.
I don’t curse much, and when I do it’s usually (a) because I’m ticked or (b) I’m trying to add a little zing to my writing. I don’t cuss simply because I don’t have other words available in my dictionary.
May 22nd, 2008 at 9:34 am
I have to wonder if someone who is offended by “salty language” is really that interested in what you have to say in the first place..
May 22nd, 2008 at 9:43 am
The key here is “overuse”.
For several reasons, I try very hard not to allow my 21 years as a sailor to “color” my language so to speak…even so, I find the occasional mild epithet useful to emphasize a point…but even as a person who usually frowns on foul language, I don’t think your stuff is overly obnoxious.
Every once in a while I think you could said it in a different way, but most of the time I don’t think you “overuse” foul language. And “overuse” was the point of David’s statement.
Most likely the “political player” objected more to your positions than your language, but used language as an excuse to avoid having to address the substance.
May 22nd, 2008 at 9:58 am
There is no avoiding the question of who your are writing for, and why – you can decide it explicitly, or just allow it to happen by itself, but either way, the choice is made.
If you want to make an explicit change, by all means, go for it. Personal growth is a good thing, and you have the talent to take it where ever you’d like. My only advice is that you should always write in a style that satisfies you – as soon as writing becomes a chore, it starts to dry up.
May 22nd, 2008 at 10:00 am
So, are you blogging to attract the approval of others or to express your opinion?
And, did you get to the point in the blogosphere of being talked about by a political-whatever-the-fuck-he-thinks-he-is by being bland and polite?
If you are going to start trying to please others, you might as well shoot the donkey now and save it the anguish.
May 22nd, 2008 at 10:02 am
As General Omar Bradley said: “Profanity is a weak mind trying to express itself forcibly”, to which Sergeant Rusty responded “But sometimes nothing else fits”.
As a rule, I try not to use the really bad words unless the piece I’m talking about uses it first, then I let loose.
May 22nd, 2008 at 10:04 am
I had not noticed a problem with language here. What must that say about me?
May 22nd, 2008 at 10:07 am
Remember, you happy motherfucker, you are doing this shit to entertain your own damn self and not those other god-damn cocksuckers!
May 22nd, 2008 at 10:08 am
Profanity can either be a filler of a conveyance of emotion.
Your mileage may fuckin’ vary.
May 22nd, 2008 at 10:11 am
Or any other satchel-assed sons-of-bitches.
May 22nd, 2008 at 10:13 am
As a rule I don’t use foul language. Having kids does that to you sometimes. Having said that, back when I did use it, I tried to make a point of not doing it habitually because it becomes hard to break that habit when you really need to, such as a court appearance. Finally, I can’t say that I’ve been offended by your site and I don’t even notice the salty language.
May 22nd, 2008 at 10:16 am
Noooo!!!!!! I justify my cussing in part because you cuss. Plus, I’ve noticed that the people most concerned with my potty mouth are indeed the people just looking for an excuse to not take what I say seriously. So, fuck ’em.
May 22nd, 2008 at 10:22 am
It is very easy to swear poorly, and swear words are a crutch for people who have no working vocabulary.
But in the hands of a master of language, vulgar language takes on a sublime trancendance that can evoke emotions that no amount of purple prose can.
The well crafted curse is something to be treasured and celebrated.
May 22nd, 2008 at 11:26 am
Must say something about my own language use as I never really noticed.
May 22nd, 2008 at 12:03 pm
Dad never cussed… Well, almost never. He had to be pretty angry to let loose. Whenever he heard one of us kids blurt out something he considered foul, he would remind us that “the use of profanity reflects a limited vocabulary. I raised you better than that and your language is a reflection on me.”
Then he would rap us upside the head just to make sure we got the point.
May 22nd, 2008 at 12:19 pm
Not when i write, but my normal speech is so salty it can cause heart attack, stroke, and hypertension. I love to find new and imaginative ways to cuss. I find it quite funny.
May 22nd, 2008 at 1:28 pm
Overuse is the issue. Vulgar words should have impact, and if you use them for punctuation I tend to tune you out when passion rises. I parse out cuss words when really needed.
I agree about “new and imaginative”, and also like to resurrect dated phrases and expressions, both vulgar and otherwise. If people don’t like it they can hug THIS nut. (Don’t exclude the accompanying vulgar gesture.)
May 22nd, 2008 at 1:31 pm
Don’t change. Not all change is good.
May 22nd, 2008 at 2:21 pm
Dude, you can’t give up the language. After all, you’re the nicest fucking guy I know!
May 22nd, 2008 at 2:24 pm
Hah!
May 22nd, 2008 at 2:47 pm
I always thought cuss words were adjectives, Shit guess I was wrong.
May 22nd, 2008 at 3:15 pm
My brother had an English Writing professor at his State University who reveled in the colorful use of foul language as “authentic” and believed that it enhanced “legitimacy” — so he wrote a lot of shitty-ass stories where people fucking swore shit all the goddam time in each crappy writing assignment – and shortly after, fed up with that college bullshit, he dropped-out.
May 22nd, 2008 at 4:03 pm
You fucking pussy 🙂
May 22nd, 2008 at 4:07 pm
I guess what I meant was, you already have enough foul language and salty talk out there to sink your chances at legitimate writing employment IF the potential employer gave a shit about that sort of thing. Either it’ll hinder you or it won’t, I don’t think cleaning up your act NOW is going to change the outcome, because you already have an internet footprint.
Of course, you’re still a step ahead, because you write under a pseudonym. Any legitimate career could be pursued under your real name, or another pseudonym. Say Uncle is tarnished though, so to speak. So I say keep doing whatever feels natural under this name, cause it’s too late to be good now.
May 22nd, 2008 at 4:58 pm
I never put it in print, and I try not to use it as a general rule (with limited success in many instances).
May 22nd, 2008 at 5:03 pm
When someone attacks your manner of speech, it is typically proof positive that they, a) disagree with you and b) cannot think one god damned thing to say in support of their position. It’s the typical Leftist/passive-agressive tactic of “ingore and redirect”. In their minds, it makes you the bad guy and they the victims, which is how it always starts and ends with them anyway.
Besides, the more PSH you get from them directed at you, the more successful it shows you to be. It goes with the territory.
Now ask Eddie Murphy if “bad” language is a carreer killer.
May 22nd, 2008 at 5:05 pm
Uncle, your language use here is fine. Considering the utter stupidity of the other side (anti-gunners) we have to deal with, it’s hard not to shoot one’s mouth off (pardon the pun) every once in awhile out of sheer frustration.
May 23rd, 2008 at 1:59 am
The use of courteous language and lack of profanity has a rightful place in dialogue. However, there are times when nothing short of profane or obscene elocution conveys the subject matter in its proper light.
When substance is ignored in favor of parsing the language used, you know you have hit the target dead center and there is no recourse for your opposite number than to decry your lack of “sensitivity” to his feelings.
Such a diversion is usually successful, simply because most people will then try to pretend they give a shit about the feelings of one who preys on their rights. Why, is beyond me. But most concede the point, by trying to prove their sensitivity to the debater, rather than the subject of the debate.
Once that happens, the argument is lost because it becomes about what it is not about.
You’re doing just fine with the language. I have often call a bastard “one in a long line of unmarried and sometimes unacquainted people”, only to have them not understand I had just called them bastards. The language was certainly polite, but the impact was lost.
Many “smart” people aren’t.
May 23rd, 2008 at 2:32 pm
I wouldn’t worry about it too much. If you start fucking up we will be sure to let you know.