Swearing. In a face to face situation many people would be hesitant to swear at someone else unless it was to a friend, and they had a habit of such behavior. At most public places I find very few people swearing up a storm, so loud that everyone can hear them. Even in a bar, or tavern. When people do swear at each other it's usually when within a private group, or when tempers are flying. If it's in a private setting, who cares? When angry people are ready to go at it, then it's time to put a stop to it, or take it outside.
The internet is a peculiar place, because we exist behind the ultimate personal 'firewall', free to speak in any manner we feel with no concern for any physical, or financial injury upon ourselves. This environment can tempt someone under the alibi of free speech to be as abusive, peurile, or cruel as they want. For me, this is not balanced, but disruptive, and unsocial. That people would hold up this sort of behavior like a banner is saddening.
What Hitech has done is nothing more than attempt to make these virtual arenas more 'lifelike' by making people accountable for their actions. And in a real, physical environment, excessive, and cruel use of profanity will always have its unfortunate consequences with the offender being led off the premises, or those who are offended leaving, at the very least. Since excessive, loud profanity is not acceptable in real public settings, why should it suddenly be okay here?
I like what Hitech did. It means I don't have to squelch channel 1 all the time now. That swearing in squad channels is open is good, because these are restricted, truly private channels, unlike the private channel.
[This message has been edited by leonid (edited 09-27-2000).]
