On profanity...

Seemingly, lots happened this week... slept a lot... my heart was hurting.

However. There was a brouhaha about Little Lily on Modern Family using the F bomb, and some discussion about it. and a lot of blah blah. I really HATE that show, btw.

Now, Lawrence O'Donnell was right in making it an item in his show, 'The Last Word'. But missed the point entirely. Or nearly.

And believe me it gets trickier per language you acquire, and profanity should be the FIRST thing you learn, in my opinion, just so you don't inadvertantly insult someone you didn't mean to insult.

I learned that lesson very early at 23, working in the olympic village, and we were still in the training phase, had lots of time, and played cards, and told jokes and one evening got on the topic of 'what is the worst thing you can insult someone with in your language?' It was very instructive. Although I found the spanish ones the most shocking... mostly involving one's mother's genital areas... don't ask. Wiped my brain immediately. We were all multi-lingual, and in college, from all over the place.

But I'd had a run-in before as senior in high school. I used a word speaking with a girl I really liked and referred to someone as a 'schmuck'. She said, 'Do you KNOW what that means?' 'Well a jerk', I said. And she said no, and that in yiddish, it meant... well we'll get to that.

I turned bright scarlet and apologised and it seemed to calm the waters, but was friggin' embarassing.

Whatever, that evening in Munich was an eye-opener... some people are very creative with insults. And I inadverdantly did it again... told an egyptian I knew what the second worst insult in arabic was, had learned it from an army brat. He looked amused. Till I said it. But I knew what I was saying, and everyone else was being very horrific with things I had never imagined before. It meant, 'You are a male prostitute.' Hey, I was just adding to the conversation, but he was very, very offended. It wasn't like I was saying HE was.

I used to know the worst in arabic.. but I sort of erased it out of my memory.

Now, the sinking of the Concordia is still daily news here... big time. And it even got on the O'Donnell show. One aspect was that the Italians are suffering from low self esteem since Berlusconi, and there was this coast guard captain who got the captain of the ship on the horn, and yelled, 'Adesso commando IO', (Now I'M in command). Then 'Get back on board, 'CAZZO'.' And he became a hero when the tape was relased.' Tee-shirts immediately popped up all over the place with that quote. They were proud of someone who took charge and was adamant. There is a political agenda to that, referring to the government.

But there was the hitch on O'Donnel's show... he translated cazzo as 'dammit'. It isn't.

It means the same thing as 'schmuck' in yiddish. It means 'prick'.

Which is why I turned beet red after saying it in front of Susan in high school, and she told me what I'd said. Looking back, I wished I had had german in high school, because 'schmuck' in German means jewelry... if you pronounce it 'schmook'. Words are dangerous sometimes, in other words, and it would behoove anyone learning a language to learn the worst immediately... just so you can avoid being inadverdantly insulting... and a good tool if you want to be insulting.

For O'Donnell to do one of his re-writes, which I generally enjoy, and go ON about Lily in 'Modern Family' dropping the f-bomb... (the kid is four years old)...and explain that profanity is part of the culture now, and it is up to parents to explain when to use and avoid it, is commendable. But nearly in the same breath on the same show not to explain an italian word or make it harmless isn't doing anyone any good. Just imagine taking your kid to New Yawk, and the kid iuses the word thinking he or she is saying 'dammit'. NOT good. He could have easily circumvented it by saying it was to do with male genital anatomy.

I hate sanctimonious censorship.