You make the call

[IRISHMAFIA]

The point is what may be profanity to you, may not be profanity to the person standing next to you.

What is outrageous in your mind, may be standard, everyday vocabulary. Like it or not, this country is still full of purists who place a value on words. I place no value on words. Words are nothing more than a method of communication.

Somewhere along the way, the self-proclaimed morally-superior individuals needed to sell people on damnation and part of that is the fear of what they proclaim to be the beliefs of a Supreme Being. Of course, these are the same people that relate financial donations to salvation. For some reason, a group of words, a specific order of letters, were deemed "obscene". The entire thought of this scam being perpetrated upon those who apparently are not to smart (which is a fair amount of people in this country) is obscene in itself.

BTW, if you honestly believe in the injection of one's moral beliefs into the game of softball, stay away from the teams from The Bahamas or Jamaica just to mention two. Their idea of profanity, if there is one, will demoralize you in a heartbeat.

You now know why my name was mentioned when this hit thread hit the board.

[Dakota]

Originally Posted by IRISHMAFIA

Somewhere along the way, the self-proclaimed morally-superior individuals needed to sell people on ... a specific order of letters, {are} deemed "obscene"...

You mean like "ho"?

[Steve M]

Originally Posted by Dakota

You mean like "ho"?

Only if there's something nappy? Didn't somebody just say something along those lines?

[jimpiano]

Originally Posted by IRISHMAFIA

The point is what may be profanity to you, may not be profanity to the person standing next to you.

What is outrageous in your mind, may be standard, everyday vocabulary. Like it or not, this country is still full of purists who place a value on words. I place no value on words. Words are nothing more than a method of communication.

Somewhere along the way, the self-proclaimed morally-superior individuals needed to sell people on damnation and part of that is the fear of what they proclaim to be the beliefs of a Supreme Being. Of course, these are the same people that relate financial donations to salvation. For some reason, a group of words, a specific order of letters, were deemed "obscene". The entire thought of this scam being perpetrated upon those who apparently are not to smart (which is a fair amount of people in this country) is obscene in itself.

BTW, if you honestly believe in the injection of one's moral beliefs into the game of softball, stay away from the teams from The Bahamas or Jamaica just to mention two. Their idea of profanity, if there is one, will demoralize you in a heartbeat.

You now know why my name was mentioned when this hit thread hit the board.

None of the rules I mentioned were based on anyone's "moral beliefs" or religion.

They were adopted with input and suggestions by League officials, players and umpires and are concerned with good manners and respect for others, not on who anyone prays or does not pray to.

These are secular rules.

And, they are rules just the same as rules defining what constitutes interference, the dimensions of the batter's box, or the strike zone.

Any umpire who has a problem with enforcing the rules of the league and the game will have a problem getting assignments here.

[Dakota]

Jim, does your league publish a list of banned words, or is it left to umpire judgment to define "profanity"?

If it is left to umpire judgment, you may find an umpire or two who would consider saying "Christ" as cursing based on their religious sensibilities. That was Mike's point.

And, as the Don Imus ruckus points out, feigned offense can also be an issue.

[jimpiano]

Originally Posted by Dakota

Jim, does your league publish a list of banned words, or is it left to umpire judgment to define "profanity"?

If it is left to umpire judgment, you may find an umpire or two who would consider saying "Christ" as cursing based on their religious sensibilities. That was Mike's point.

And, as the Don Imus ruckus points out, feigned offense can also be an issue.

We have league commissioners and umpire supervisors who monitor all games in the parks. The sportsmanship and profanity rules are a point of emphasis with managers, players and umpires. Words do not have to be profane to be abusing or threatening,,,while a muttered,self-directed, oath audible only on the diamond does not warrant any action.

These rules cause no concern to anyone and are followed without complaint.
Since the "profanity out", if it is invoked, is imposed on the offending team's NEXT batter, peer pressure alone makes the actual calls extremely rare.

Regarding the Imus affair, I have no idea what "feigned offense" means.

[Dakota]

Originally Posted by jimpiano

I have no idea what "feigned offense" means.

feigned
adj.
1 imagined
2 pretended; simulated; sham

[jimpiano]

Originally Posted by Dakota

feigned
adj.
1 imagined
2 pretended; simulated; sham

Who feigned offense?

The remarks were directed at a group of basketball players who were offended.
What did the basketball players do to warrant being called nappy headed ho's?
They did not "feign" offense. They were truly offended.
They also accepted Imus's apology.

[Dakota]

I was talking about all of the other "community leaders". I doubt any one of THEM was offended by the words, only by the idea of who said them.

Here is an exercise for you: do a comparison of all of the things the self-proclaimed "community leaders" have said about other groups with what Imus said and then convince yourself that these "community leaders" were actually offended by anything. They just saw an opportunity.