I've recently received a warning for using the word cunt. And it makes me wonder... Why do people feel so offended by this word? And more importantly, why do the act as if they were offended? When you act offended, you just give people ammo to offend you. By complaining about the use of the word cunt, and demanding that the mods reprimand its use, you just add fuel to the word. Now I know that in order to offend the whiny cunts who I know reported me, I just have to call them cunts again. Se what you did?
You're right, it's just a word, and pushing someone down the stairs is just an action, why be offended by anything really? Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
I have never met a cunt I did not enjoy! :itold: I just wish I could see more!Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
Who complained? Silly ole cunt.Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! I guess it depends on context. I mean it would be warning worthy I guess if you called someone a cunt in a discussion. What I notice is not specific words but almost ANYTHING someone is offended by, its bloody annoying too I can assure you. Remember when a thread title had to be changed because it said something about English people being wankers? The English bloody invented the wanker!:shrug:
English is my second language, and I shouldn't be chastised for using words whose meaning I don't even fully understand. If anyone should be offended here, it should be me.
I want to know why cunt is taboo, but dick and bollocks can be casually used in conversation. Oh, and CUNT!!!
I also like to use axe wound and festering gash. Do you guys think that these are better alternatives?
I'm not sure if the admins and mods find it offensive but one of the members obviously has. Its this whiny disease spreading through the site that bothers me.
Its not the point, I don't think the word anymore offensive than wanker, its not the mods its one of the members. I bet if you checked it was a member complaint. I am sick of these complaints over words like wanker and cunt its childish.
(Insert Title Here) Once upon a time, the predecessor of this site, called Exosci, allowed people to say pretty much whatever they wanted. But a few random flame wars developed and our first moderator was appointed. Shortly thereafter, enough complaints about profanity were logged that the moderator started taking action, even against words like "hell". Over time, this simply wouldn't stand with the membership. The effort against profanity is an example of democracy by somewhat civil disobedience. People just kept cussing in their posts. It was an overwhelming job to clean up and cite all those posts, and a fairly stupid reason to start kicking people out. Personally, I've wavered back and forth over the years, finally throwing in the towel and simply typing whatever word instead of a censored version of the same (e.g., f@ck). Interestingly, the one effective rule we still try to maintain has to do with profanity in thread titles. I'm not sure what, if anything, will happen to the title of the current discussion, but essentially, profanity in thread titles affects how search engines respond to the site, and might have the effect, in some cases, of attracting market sectors for whom an environment like Sciforums is clearly unsuitable. History and abstraction, I suppose. To the matter at hand, I think the problem is that the profane word was used in a pejorative manner. I mean, the other day I was talking to a biochemist about synthesized hormones and asked him, "But how do you make a hormone?" and he replied, "Kick her in the cunt. Duh." Okay, not really. It's an stale joke that no douche can redeem. But aside from being a really stupid joke, the difference between usages of the word cunt is that the joke refers to a body part, and doesn't attempt to insult someone as being a cunt. And here's the thing that gets me about such insults. It's not the usual post-feminist claptrap about insulting women. Well, it is, but it's also a variation on a theme. When you call a man a cunt—or a pussy or, my favorite, twat—you're labeling him as something that the most part of men desire. That doesn't make sense, although there is something inherently faggy about insulting a man as an object of desire for other men. But much like calling a man a fag, it seems problematic to make another person the basis for insulting the one. It just doesn't make sense. Flip a coin. James could have cited you for being profanely insulting, instead. Had you denounced blithering, whining, weak people, that would be one thing. But throwing words like cunt, bitch, fag, &c. into the mix clearly indicates the intent to insult. And therein lies the offense. And, as a side commentary, I wouldn't go so far as to say it's shocking to observe the craven need of people around here to be insulting; rather, it's disappointing. To the one, it would seem the death of the "Intelligent Community" motto might well have been apt. To the other, some might wonder if striking the motto has in any way encouraged such behavior. We're supposedly intelligent people; we can certainly find intelligent and creative ways to be insulting bastards to one another. We used to tell members, "Attack the argument, not the person." And it's true, there is plenty of room to insult the holy living fuck out of someone by simply thrashing their argument hard enough. But that's too much effort for most people, and always has been. My advice, then, is to at least put some effort into one's insults. I mean, it's not like we have especially high standards about that these days.
You did that on purpose, didn't you ? And I ain't talking about the obvious joke.. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!
Moderator note: Warnings are given for a reason on sciforums. If you receive a warning, my advice is not to go out and compound or repeat the offence you were warned about, or you may well then attract a temporary suspension of your account, as happened here. Varda has been banned for 3 days. In addition, every member who signs up to sciforums agrees to an explicit statement that they will not post obscene material. Several members chose to do so in this thread knowing the consequences - they have all been banned for 1 day. I remind members, as I reminded Varda in her warning, that people have been permanently banned in the past for failing to abide by the "no obscenity" rule.