Settle down, Spaz

I've got to say that I am, at times, a bit of a teleholic and there are some TV programs that I try not to miss because they are so well produced.  I've seen a lot of TV during my life time - yeah, I'm quite proud about that because it keeps me up-to-date with current affairs and whatnot - and although there's (obviously) been a lot of change in the style and making of programs, the one thing that I've notice is the general tolerance of bad language on television.

I suppose it's because I try not to swear too much, especially at home (although you can catch me doing so under my breath), but I won't say that I don't because it's quite cathartic.  Anyway, I'm sure that 'crap' used to be quite a bad word when I was a young teenager, and 'fuck' was even worse (I'm sure this word got many films an 18-rating back then).

But now, 'crap' is okay around 6pm because it's in The Simpsons, 'fuck' after 9pm (oi, stop it!) and in 15-rated films (at least, I remember hearing it a few times before), and 'cunt' (apologies, I don't like the word either but it's for sake of example) is quite freely used in 18-rating films.  Now don't get me wrong, a bit of bad language is okay and probably builds character (and teaches kids bad words), and I'm not against it unless it's totally out of place (that is, more wrong-time-of-day-and-audience rather than overuse of).

It's just that foul language is becoming more tolerable in this modern society and whether it's a good or bad thing, well, it's not for me to say.  Personally, I don't mind it so long as the context is relevant, because I feel that expletives are just a strong way of expressing one's feelings - it shows that person's instantaneous emotional reaction to a situation.

Oh and 'spaz' is a word that isn't used enough - I know, I know, it's un-PC but the way it can be integrated so seemlessly into sentences is amazing - sometimes I think it's a special (no pun intended) talent to utilise it properly.  Family Guy, season 3, the episode where the FBI come in and take over the house - that's where the post title comes from - that made me laugh for longer than it really should have.

And why is bad language becoming more tolerable in our modern society?  I don't remember any particular point in my life when someone important said "Right, well, I've had enough of this taboo subject. Fuck it all."  But maybe that's just it, the number of taboo subjects back in the day was immense but now they've become more topical, and the world has become more colloquial.

To be honest, I don't know if anything is taboo anymore.