Profanity—we're Almost There
In the 1980s, your congenial columnist took a Master's level course on American humor, which covered Mark Twain, James Thurber, and several other writers. For the most part the material was helpful, but, as a Christian, it was not amusing the day the instructor insisted that a student play George Carlin's routine from his Class Clown album: "Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television." Few of them are taboo any longer, and it may not be long before we arrive at the bottom of the barrel.
Society is growing coarser by the minute. With relatives visiting recently, we planned a trip to the cinema and thought we had found a safe selection with the new Spiderman movie—until our daughter-in-law looked up comments on the movie for parents and discovered there were two instances of using a certain four-letter word not generally found in a movie in this type. Also on display was a rude gesture. Is this going to become the fare for young people now? Shame on those who decided to include such vulgarity in the show, along with the "stars" who failed to object to it and insist that it be omitted!
Likewise, it was disconcerting to notice a man who came with his family into IHOP, a family oriented restaurant. He was wearing a hat that said, "What the ?" The last word, the same one as used in the Spiderman movie, contained all but the first letter of the obscenity. How disappointing that anyone would even manufacture such a hat, let alone that anyone would buy one! Doubly disillusioning is that his family would actually let him wear it in public! Have we become so removed from the bounds of decency that we no longer have any conscience? Children are growing up thinking that crude is cool. It's in Super Hero movies. Adults are teaching by example that it's all right to be vulgar. Has anyone read lately Ephesians 4:29? "Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers."
Adults are also being assaulted. For several months a book has been on the non-fiction best seller list. Using the same four-letter-word mentioned previously, it substitutes an asterisk for one of the letters, while using the other three. It's titled, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a . Nothing is subtle about the title. Again, who would consider paying good money for a book with such a dismal title? Is it the kind of book that enhances a home or an apartment? For a book to be that popular for several months (and number one last week), all that can be concluded is that America is continuing to fall fast and that the end could be nearer than we think. Nations are born with values and morals but die when they forget what made them great. In the meantime, Christians must resist the concerted efforts to corrupt society.