Substituting “frig” for the f-bomb is even lamer than cussin’.
I agree that cussing can be evidence of a lack of polish, breeding and no substitute for real eloquence. Often, cussing is just an inarticulate expression of anger. It shows a lack of creativity and thought.
On the other hand, some people, like Mark Twain’s stevedore, can curse expressively, creatively, with insight and subtlity. They are the poets of profanity, the bards of blasphemy, and the world is richer for having them in it. The Army used to use them as drill instructors. There are occasions and situations were only native America profanity can truly convey the magnitude, import and scope of one’s failure to, say, properly execute a “column to the right FACE”. It was Truman’s genius to recognize that many of the best practitioners of this arcane art are African American men and made their talents available to whole Army. Southern boys, who grew up in the mixed company of presegration South (that is those growing up before 1970, when segration went from being merely de jure to a reality) often mastered the art.
Let me get this straight. “Frig” BAD,
“friggin’” GOOD. Henceforth I will do
my best to only use the word “friggin”.
Great discussion, men.
Again... I learned something new.
FREEPERS ARE FRIGGIN’ AWESOME!!!
Exactly, more than you know:
The key is, indeed, anger. If delivered ONLY in a tone of anger, expressing only maximum anger (esp. when overstatement thereof is inappropriate), then it is base and crude. When delivered with at least a trace of humor or creativity, it can be an eloquent tool. This is akin to the "distressed" look of otherwise fine furniture or fasion: there's a difference between jeans designed to look worn down with an eye toward "cool", vs. just plain worn out jeans which look, well, worn out. Those who cuss creatively (think drill instructor or quality comedians) do so at one level; those who just shout "****!" 'cuz something annoys them exhibit poor breeding, making themselves madder than appropriate and degrading those in their influence.
Cursing is not ABOUT thought. If someone thinks about it, THEN uses a curse word, they sound lame. And gay. Cursing is about ejaculating the first bad words that come to mind, nad if you have to think, too late. It’s about being in the moment.