I am becoming increasingly conscious of the inappropriate choice of vocabulary I employ on this blog.
This blog started out nearly five years ago as a 'private diary'. I published on the www, because I could, not really believing that people will read it. And now I get a readership of 600-800 per day, from all over the world.
Although this is not always apparent, I possess a very sophisticated grasp of English. I know precisely how to write reports for work, or articles and speeches for political persuasion. I grasp instinctively and can analyse precisely the subtle nuances of vocabulary choice and sentence structure. I regard this blog as a place for informal, colloquial English. Sometimes I swear, using words I would never dream of using in the workplace or in formal communication. I tend to assume that my readers will accept the swearing in the context.
However, I know that I have many readers who are not native English speakers, and many English speakers who are more sensitive to swearing etc than I am. To the former, I want to emphasise very strongly that the English I use here is not always a good example of how to write or talk, and I want to explain to the more sensitive readers that I am not really potty mouthed all of the time and to apologise for any offence caused.
Sometimes I construct sentences that appear horribly convoluted on re-reading. I find it quite difficult to proof-read immediately after writing; 24 hours later, errors leap out of me. Sometimes I want to express how I feel without being constrained by the rules of grammar and syntax. Sometimes I construct new words just for the sake of doing so.
There are certain words I over-use such as twat, tosser, wanker, bitch, which are not friendly words at all and I would never use in a formal meeting at work. I shouldn't use them in informal conversation at work and with family members (and my mother tells me off).
In my opinion, words such as 'bloody' and 'crap' are acceptable - I have seen 'crap' used in a job application for an extremely senior post by the successful applicant. 'Bloody good' is absolutely not swearing. However, neither would be used in newspapers or by the BBC except as direct quotes or in a discussion such as this (or 'bloody massacre').
I occasionally use 'fuck' which is a horrible word, except in the heights of sexual passion, and should never be used by anybody who has any doubt about its appropriateness in any given context. Even where offence is not intended, it can be taken as offensive by people who are not generally sensitive. I (think I) only ever use the word 'cunt' in its correct Anglo-Saxon meaning of genitalia, and I want to reclaim the word as a description of something beautiful. It should never be used as a term of abuse, and never in any conversation unless you are absolutely certain of the reaction of the person you converse with.
