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The Year of the F-word
Cheney, Kerry and others bring the ultimate "4-letter word" to the fore
By Sam Boykin
Page 4 of 4
Stone says that just as the once-scandalous Gone with the Wind line "Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn" now seems tame, he sees the same thing happening with words like "fuck." He believes that such obscenities, although still considered offensive and beyond the pale by some, will soon become the norm on broadcast TV and other mainstream media outlets, and we'll be the none the worse because of it.
"As we evolve, words that are currently considered pornographic will become common," says Stone. "And our culture will never suffer as long as people are academically inclined and want to get a good job. Kids will always swear, but that doesn't determine their academic proficiency. So I don't think our culture will suffer one bit. Society is evolving to a broader embrace of words and vocabulary. Semantic proficiency and intelligence does not get diminished by vulgarity -- just look at Dick Cheney."
While there is certainly no shortage of passionate and articulate advocates with opposing viewpoints on this issue, perhaps the most salient statement regarding the F-word in our ever-changing society was issued over three decades ago. Back in 1968, a 19-year-old department store worker named Paul Cohen expressed his opposition to the Vietnam War by wearing a jacket emblazoned with "FUCK THE DRAFT. STOP THE WAR." Cohen was charged under a California statute that essentially prohibits "disturbing the peace...by offensive conduct." The US Supreme Court overturned Cohen's arrest in 1971. Speaking for the majority, Justice John M. Harlan wrote: "For while the particular four-letter word being litigated here is perhaps more distasteful than most others of its genre, it is nevertheless often true that one man's vulgarity is another's lyric."
Contact Sam Boykin at sam.boykin@cln.com or704-944-3623.
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The Story of Haylo, Time Capsule Tattoos and My Big Mouth 1
Time stamp
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The Year of the F-word
Cheney, Kerry and others bring the ultimate "4-letter word" to the fore
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Billy Graham & the Chamber of Secrets 3
My satirical trip through BillyWorld's hidden exhibits
