I agree on this one, Catman. IMHO we should all speak to each other on the board, in the same fashion that we plan to speak to each other when we meet in person, which I hope that someday we all will. We form our opinions of each other by the way we conduct ourselves, whether in real life or on-line, and it would be sad to lose a possible friend before we even met them by our use of offensive language.

There are some who use language on this board which, while acceptable perhaps in a locker room or barracks, is unacceptable in polite mixed society and I must admit that their behavior has had a negative influence on the opinion I have formed of them.
I think it is especially important that we maintain acceptable conduct in this forum because we are dealing with people from so many different backgrounds, walks of life and cultures and we have absolutely no idea who is listening when we speak and what they may find offensive.

Does this mean we need to be stuffy? By no means. PremEx, Merry, Rudi, RichG and QuietLion make some of the most clever, pithy and witty posts of anyone on the boards but their language is always above reproach, earning them great admiration and respect.

When people use foul language, I assume that they are either ignoring my presence or have no respect for my presence. Either way, I simply am forced to stop listening to them. Perhaps they are unconcerned whether I listen to them or not, but that is not the point. My ignoring them is not intended to in any way slight them, but instead to remove their racket from my life.

Like Grandma used to say, "If you speak like a gutter snipe, people will assume that you are a gutter snipe, and, if they think you are a gutter snipe, what possible reason would they have to seek you as a friend?"