“Be yourself. The friends you make will be drawn to you, and not to some mistaken idea of what they think you are.” cheers.

somebody’s personal blog doesn’t strike me as a place where he shouldn’t be allowed to express his views without using silly contractions (and silly they are – you should really question their use); but I fully respect BBB’s choice to censor himself in favor of friends. it’s his choice, what I questioned is whether HOW he does it is particularly effective. so, thanks for understanding the difference. also, this is not an attack-defense discussion in the least, I think a little higher of the host than you might realize. I’m also kinda taking his side, more than he does himself, he he…

It’s an interesting debate for me, also in light of other recent articles out there (for ex. on EA’s recent forum policies for CoD3).

Just one thing to say here:

You do realize that when people lose that “filter” between what goes on in their head and what goes on in RL that’s considered psychosis, right?

There have been lots of people that I would love to smack right in the mouth but I refrained from doing so because it wasn’t the “right” thing to do. On a slighter note, there have been plenty of people that I would love to just come out and say, “are you an idiot?”, but have refrained because it wasn’t the right thing to do. Sometimes it’s not the right thing to do to speak your mind. You take into account, as BBB has put it, the company in which you are placed. If I’m on the job, I’m expected to not swear in front of a client. Why? Because it’s considered crass. You do, of course, have the right to use such words in front of the client but if they complain then you’re gonna be standing in line for some cheese. . .

I fully understand where you’re coming from on this and the line of thought by which you reach it, but just want the other side of the coin to be seen.

It’s funny that someone would have to defend their choice to be considerate of others with whom they choose to share company, though.

Swearing is human, it’s not a mortal sin, right? we all do it sometimes, we certainly all think it – it’s phony to get all huffy and puffy just because someone then says it too, in my personal opinion. in general I have a big issue with holier-than-thou people who think they’re saints for never speaking their mind (which can be seen as dishonest?). if at all, it’s our actions that define us – and then there’s a thing called sense of humor. nobody is discriminated or hurt by ‘fucking funny’ ‘shit’ etc…the odd swearword makes you a human being I care to read, rather than some detached preacher figure whose blog I would never frequent. I care for your texts because you are authentic.

Anyway, this was just an aside. opinions and cultures differ, call me very European. ;) I certainly didn’t mean to attack you here, I was just rather surprised at the self-censorship. I still think that for the case of asterixes*** and effing and “, which was my main point, anyone using them as replacement is lying to himself (I have certainly detected myself in this too in the past) and the rest. it’s where political correctness becomes bizarre. if you write f’ing it means fucking and is being read as fucking, there is zero difference. you intended to say ‘fuck’ – so, then say it. if your friends get offended by the idea of using this word, then f’ing surely offends them too. you can of course choose not to write it at all, at least then you come across as consequent.
I just wanted to let you know that for me personally, the BBB does not need to hide behind contractions and that as a smart and informed reader, I will understand his words in the spirit they were written (and also chuckle when he’s losing his temper) in an otherwise and still no-less formidable article. :)

Yours truly, using the odd but never superfluous swearword – Syl ^^

When I visit my Mormon friends in their home, or invite them to come into my home (as this blog essentially is), out of respect for their beliefs and feelings I refrain from using the hard language in their presence that I know would hurt them.

How I talk on the blog is, generally, how I would talk in front of all of my friends in polite company. I write how I think, and I think the way I’d speak aloud.

When you do see me swear, that is me being rude, and I shouldn’t. In the Marines, my drill instructors taught me loud and clear that you could be extremely expressive without havcing to resort to using ‘dirty’ words, if you actually have an imagination and a grasp of language.

That is why I always feel that if I have sworn on the blog, I’ve failed. I should have taken the time to come up with something just as expressive, but not as offensive, and funny to boot.

I don’t find it too limiting to my personal expression to use the contraction, and really what I should do is come up with some suitable alternatives that have the same emotional feeling behind them without the overt social stigma. That I haven’t done so is more a sign of my recent laziness as a writer. If I were on top of my game, instead of using words like that I’d be coming up with funny alternatives.

Come on, dear bear butt; with all the WTFs going on on your page and a formidable post on being true to yourself as a blogger some while back, surely you can write “fucking” when you mean to say “fucking” and everyone’s gonna read “fucking” anyway?

;)

Remember, we’re not assuming the person reading the ad already knows all about the ESRB, what they do, what they stand for, how responsible or valuable they are.

We’re looking at what we, as a total stranger, learn about the ESRB from their awareness ad.

I find it interesting that the ESRb has such vocal defenders, that the hint of criticism is met so strongly. That says good things for the ESRB, but doesn’t do anything to get the word out to new folks at all.

TL;DR: I am the one that SELECTS the games in my home and will use the ESRB rating in conjuction with other methods to determine what is appropriate.