Beyond Opinion

This morning I heard on public radio an interview with people talking about the F-word; that well known word composed of four letters that surround the phrase "future shock". I will not mention the word here for fear of causing filters from all over the place to block my blog. The announcer says it is just four little letters, essentially. We want to protect the children, say the FCC and some right-wing groups. The interviewee said that most children learned it by 7. I learned the word at 11. I think that the word should be taught to children somehow; if not by children, then by teachers. That would prevent my having learned it at age 11 through back-door means.

The argument is whether it should be allowed if it does not mean to have sex with someone. Hey, that would be an improper use of the word! Saying "f-ing brilliant", like Bono recently said, is not using the word properly. Certainly he does not mean that it was so clever, whatever it was, that one would like to have sex with someone over it. The word means sex, and it should stay that way.

I heard at the end of the conversation that the speaker said that the FCC tends to forbid something if it would offend a few readers. That's why it does not allow the f-word in any form. If that's the case, how about the word "God"? That offends me when used in a non-religious context because it implies that the speaker implies that I should believe in his God. It is a form of discrimination. It seems to me that if the FCC bans the F-word, which has no such problems, and does not forbid the G-Word; i.e., "God", then it is hypocritical.