Why are so many Americans against swearing/cussing?

27 comments

1. What gives you that fucking idea?

2. We don’t fucking like it

3. The other day someone from Germany was here telling us all we do is swear all the time…

   Can’t win.

4. As with everything, [The Wire has a scene about this](https://youtu.be/O5JAlmjXN9c).

5. [There’s just no winning, is there?](https://youtu.be/p81hzAbdEGQ)

6. I have nothing against it. “fuck”, “dammit” “Jesus Christ” and the classic “shit” are my go to words when I’ll alone and something went wrong

   But I was taught growing up that frequently using swear words in a group setting makes you sound uneducated and like you can’t formulate a mature/professional thought or opinion. And that when you frequently swear, people will think worse of you. So I don’t swear that often in group settings.

7. I’m reminded of the quote;
   >Profanity is a weak mind attempting to express itself forcefully

   Fuck knows where I heard that though.

8. I have no fucking idea.

9. Where do you people come up with this stuff?

10. WTF gave you that idea?

11. For fucks sake

12. I don’t think very many are

13. Is this a thing?

14. Where the fuck do you guys come up with this shit?

15. I feel like if anything Americans curse way more than normal. I used to curse a lot and do much less now. Even though I think I am actually probably less in favor of cursing than most Americans, I can give you the viewpoint of this one American that might in some way explain it. Who knows?

    I don’t really think it is necessarily morally wrong, I think it can be depending on the situation. I’m a Christian guy, but it isn’t like the words “fuck” or “shit” are in the Bible as something not to say. I think it crosses a moral boundary if you are intentionally berating someone with curses to make them even more uncomfortable or intimidated. I also think it is wrong to curse in front of small children as they may pick up a habit their parents find objectionable.

    The primary reason I chose to curse much less often is that its trashy. Among friends peppering in some strong words to illustrate something, that is probably fine. In general though if you’re just inserting “fucking” into every other sentence you come off sounding uneducated and uncouth.

16. There are 330 fucking million of of us. There will be a lot of us for or against any shit you can think of.

17. The fuck you mean?

18. We’re not.

    What led you to believe this?

19. We aren’t.

20. To answer both your question, and the questions about why we swear so much:

    It’s a really big country with a whole lot of people that have an incredible number of backgrounds and ideals.

    Some people swear as easily as they breathe and don’t think anything about it. Some people are offended by someone saying “dang” or “crap”. The majority of people here are somewhere between the two.

21. They’re not? Not at all. I would say it’s quite the opposite, unless you’re a child.

22. I don’t curse, I speak the Submariner dialect of Navy.

23. Most of us are taught that there are times and places when it’s inappropriate and bad manners. For example, small children usually aren’t allowed to swear in school, or, often, by their parents. When they get old enough this rule is relaxed, but the idea is that by then they have at least learned how to speak more politely.

    When you’re an adult, it’s usually just in more formal or polite company that people refrain from swearing, although there are also people who just don’t curse much if at all and others who don’t modify their behavior for the circumstances. People who curse constantly no matter what the situation are usually considered uncouth.

24. Goddammit, it doesn’t make a fucking bit of difference to me whatever any other shithead wants to say.

25. Cite your sources.

26. Spend a day at my job and you will hear a comical amount of swearing all day.

27. Not swearing guarantees that when I start swearing people actually shut up and listen.