From: utzoo!decvax!duke!unc!bch
Newsgroups: net.flame
Title: Re: watch your language
Article-I.D.: unc.4751
Posted: Wed Mar  9 12:09:25 1983
Received: Thu Mar 10 01:26:45 1983
References: unc.4749

Even if Tim's assertion that the net uses "mostly spoken English" is true
(which I seriously doubt,) this does not justify the use of profanity or
personal derogation in submitted news items.   Remember that anything
submitted to the net may have literally thousands of readers, so that the
form of "mostly spoken" language that is used should probably resemble
the language used in public speaking rather than the language used in
casual conversation.   Further, the words used by one person as spacers
or inflectives are not necessarily the common currency of speech for all
of us.  When translated to the screen, they no longer have the context of
inflection, situation, gesture and timing to aid in their interpretation.

Your humorously or innocently placed #$% in the middle of a sentence may
not only offend a number of unknown readers, but may actually obscure
whatever it is you think you are trying to say.