> Please. Rape is a physical assault on another person. This is not similiar to
> language taboo.
>
> Just look at the results of language taboo. Kids and adults constantly use "bad
> words" among their friends and such. It's a mockery of our language. There
> have been no signs of rape caused by people telling kids not to do it because
> they know it's wrong since it hurts people. They can find no reason why certain
> words are wrong to say, and so they say them constantly in defiance of the
> taboo.

Last I checked, rape was about exhibiting your power to hurt people. Kids break the rules all the time. Swearing is just one of the easiest ways to do that. Not pointing out that these words are socially unacceptable doesn't take away their power. Society deems whether they have power or not. So to try and say that kids are more likely to say them because their parents don't let them is silly. It's society making the rules.


> You're second suggestion is that if they are exposed to these words, they may
> use them in settings where it may offend someone and be detrimental to their
> advancement in life? That is why they should know that unfortunately, it is not
> currently socially acceptable in certain formal situations to use those parts of
> the language. They can probably figure that out on their own. I don't forsee
> kids who are not told that it is morally wrong to use taboo language to go into
> their first job interview and recklessly toss around "fuck" and "shit".


Kids emulate the environment they grow up in. If I was swearing around the house, letting them watch R rated movies, etc., they are more and more likely to repeat that behavior. I should hope that my kid is smart enough to not throw around those words in a job interview, but yes - letting him know it's okay to speak less than properly will be a detriment at one time or another. Since there's already a billion things in this world that will try and hold him back, why would I create another?

CSP