Comments on Brit Gal in the USA: Okie's may have the cleanest mouths ever!

I met my first Okies on my big bike ride last week...

2008-10-16T18:18:00.000-05:00

I met my first Okies on my big bike ride last week. Four of 'em! They were quite lovely and had totally clean mouths.

Up here on the west coast of Canada, I'm just wait...

2008-10-15T23:13:00.000-05:00

Up here on the west coast of Canada, I'm just waiting for the day my daughter and her husband get called into the principal's office because of what their (currently 4-year-old son) will have uttered in class or out. I've been warning them for quite a while and will just laugh in their face when it happens! lol

When I was an undergraduate in the UK (OK, it was ...

2008-10-14T20:21:00.000-05:00

When I was an undergraduate in the UK (OK, it was a long time ago back in the early 80s!), I went out for the day with an American university rugby team. I had NEVER heard the f word used so much! I thought it was an entirely American thing. Not that my English friends didn't swear - we did, quite a lot sometimes, but we rarely used the f word!

Sherri, you're experience in Ireland doesn't surpr...

2008-10-14T20:13:00.000-05:00

Sherri, you're experience in Ireland doesn't surprise me at all, they put us in the shade. In fact there's a wonderful comedy TV show called Father Ted that made 'Feck' an entry in the dictionary!

Sarah, when DH and I went to Ireland we noticed pe...

2008-10-14T20:03:00.000-05:00

Sarah, when DH and I went to Ireland we noticed people using the "f" word like it was their job. I had heard England was the same way. Here in Charlotte, NC you don't use those words very often either. With the Billy Graham Library right next door to where I work that word isn't used for often either!! That is alot for construction guys not to use it on a daily basis!

Very interesting feedback from you all. I would sa...

2008-10-14T20:01:00.000-05:00

Very interesting feedback from you all. I would say from the responses from Daryl in NYC and Toni in Chicago, this is a regional thing. OK is most definitely in the bible belt and I am certain this has a major effect.

Just today I commented to two colleagues, neither old that it was 'pissing' down, you should have seen their faces and I had to explain!

I also know the older generations in the UK are less inclined to swear than the younger ones.

Oh and my boss says dad gammit all the time, it tickles me to death!

Fuck Me !Oh.

2008-10-14T15:23:00.000-05:00

Fuck Me !

Oh.

As my Granny used to say, "It is as much a sin to ...

2008-10-14T14:54:00.000-05:00

As my Granny used to say, "It is as much a sin to think it as it is to say it!"

I can't bear to hear parents swear around their ch...

2008-10-14T14:26:00.000-05:00

I can't bear to hear parents swear around their children. And you're right, here in England - well in some parts anyway - swearing has almost shoehorned it's way into everyday language until it's the 'norm'.
I go shopping with my children and have to cover their ears from swear words being thrown around at high volumne - and it's usually from other children do.
If either of mine ever swear I will be down on them like a ton of bricks!

OMG!With OMG meaning Oh my goodness! Or.... not ex...

2008-10-14T12:47:00.000-05:00

OMG!

With OMG meaning Oh my goodness! Or.... not exactly... keep reading.....

I have lived all over, in the US, the UK, and other far-flung spots, but one encounter completely stands alone in the "cussin'" department.

Once, in Waynesboro, PA, I was speaking to a friend, and in the course of conversation, I said "Gosh!" (Thinking that I had really "cleaned up" my bad language.)

And her small 7-year-oldish daughter said, "You shouldn't say that!"

"Why?", I asked.

"Because you really mean to say "G-d", and that means you're taking the Lord's name in vain and that means your sinning and.... "

I forgot the rest, because I was so shocked and embarrassed and taken aback.

So generally, even your INTENTIONS are noted by The Higher Power ... so don't even THINK it!! You've been warned.

In the US, I do do DO try to keep it clean. Very challenging. I hope I don't have to ever live in Oklahoma. I may have to have my vocal cords surgically removed.

A blessing for everyone, perhaps. Esp my husband!!

haha...Oklahoma is a bit conservative in the langu...

2008-10-14T12:39:00.000-05:00

haha...Oklahoma is a bit conservative in the language department! I'd never really thought about it but I guess it is! Whenever I'm in public and hear someone cuss loudly I do turn in look out of shock. I'm sure there's a lot more cussing going on out there than what the public is leading on.

Could be an age thing. Most older people here in U...

2008-10-14T12:27:00.000-05:00

Could be an age thing. Most older people here in UK don't use the F word et al.

We were definitely a working class family, my Dad was a miner but I never heard him swear other than the odd bloody and then you heard my Mam's sharp intake of breath.

The first time I heard really bad langauge in public was when I went to work in a hotel. All the chefs language was absolutely foul, the hotel manager too.

Most young people here do seem to use bad language but they hear it so often on TV (after 9.00pm) that they think it's normal.

The worst language seems to be in American films though when often every other word is mother****** so it's strange it hasn't transferred to the general public in the USA.

Amusing. They are only words and only have power b...

2008-10-14T11:55:00.000-05:00

Amusing. They are only words and only have power because people choose to give them that power. One can use simple "clean" words to hurt if one so chooses. Words are just language after all.

gawd fcuking damn woman I dont think I can visit O...

2008-10-14T11:51:00.000-05:00

gawd fcuking damn woman I dont think I can visit OK ... and neither can anyone I work with ... my favorite expression is: its a fcuking disaster

And I say it a fcuking lot.

:-Daryl

during heated moments I am very much a potty-mouth...

2008-10-14T11:38:00.000-05:00

during heated moments I am very much a potty-mouth and that was NEVER cool as I grew up in an ultra-Christian environment. Still to this day I have to really watch my mouth around my family and friends. My kids have always gotten in trouble if they say "God" vs. "gosh". I get it. :) BUT I also agree that the lack of cussing is healthier and better for the whole environment because it does change attitudes and manners.

Well up here in Sodom, I mean Chicago, you hear th...

2008-10-14T11:33:00.000-05:00

Well up here in Sodom, I mean Chicago, you hear the F word a lot, and that's just the kids!
I love what Southerners say instead of swearing - they won't even say God dammit, it's dad gammit!

I must admit to having had to tone down my languag...

2008-10-14T11:07:00.000-05:00

I must admit to having had to tone down my language since moving to Oklahoma. (Not at home though):-)

Bloody seems to be acceptable, as it's not a cuss word here, and only a mild one in England. I also use gosh a lot, instead of God. I'm not religious myself, but do respect other's beliefs.

Hmmmmm, interesting post for sure! John hates to ...

2008-10-14T10:11:00.000-05:00

Hmmmmm, interesting post for sure! John hates to hear women cussing and doesn't like it when the occasional one slips from me (cuss word that is) ... I do think there is a comfort level of who you are around though -- people might swear more around certain people than others. I do agree that it is more of the regular vocabulary in England -- they don't even realize they are swearing sometimes! It's just language.

well holy shit! ;)Oklahoma is the bible belt of th...

2008-10-14T10:05:00.000-05:00

well holy shit! ;)

Oklahoma is the bible belt of the U.S. but I don't know what part of Oklahoma you're in because growing up there I heard cussing ALL THE TIME - from everyone.

Maybe that was just my family. hmmm... ;)

That's so weird that the British cuss more openly ...

2008-10-14T09:30:00.000-05:00

That's so weird that the British cuss more openly than we do. Or maybe it's not so weird. We Americans seem so prudish sometimes...