Wednesday, May 10, 2017

We’ve Come a Long Way (Linguistically Speaking)


The blog, Legal Insurrection asks the question, "Is profanity the 'soaring rhetoric' of today's progressives?" It reflects statements I’ve made on this blog  here.  We’ve come a long way since Franklin’s fireside chats, Dwight’s quiet statements, John’s inspirational addresses, and Ron’s humor.   Clearly, Harry was a man ahead of his time.
It gives me pause.  Consider the outrage over the current President’s language just a few short months ago.  The whole, “locker room” talk thing.  The idea that he would discuss, in semi-private, the objectification of women with such vulgar terms has fueled a whole cottage industry.  Yet we now see the democratic politicians being “edgy” with the use of profanity in their public speaking.  How long before they move full tilt to the language used by Mr. Trump, or the comic/commenters of late night TV?
Perhaps I’m wrong, maybe it’s just a phase, but are we are setting down a path from which there is no return?  Or is it a case of the old guard trying to be relevant with a youth culture that grew up with profanity, vulgarity, and talk of sexual assault as part of their music and lives, and it is now an everyday expectation?

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