10/09/2002 - 11:08 p.m.

Theology, Phraseology and a whole lot of other words ending in ology.

You know that George Carlin sketch, ten words you can't say on television or whatever? I think it's outdated. The real question is, how long has it been that way?

I have two theories on vulgarity, one as a dramatist, and Tolkien's. They are busily causing a paradox. A dramatist says that such words are most properly used to show a person's character, not just for shock value. Tolkien says that people who use such words are as orcs: dreary and repetative with hatred and contempt, too long removed from good to retain even verbal vigor, save in the ears to whom only the squalid sounds strong. In such a light, given by a language scholar, vulgar language seems just as it is called. However, from the dramatist's, it says important things about a person, and in this day and age we do not look upon such words to convey the same meanings as Tolkien. It is almost expected of us to use them after age 12. From the dramatist's point of view, not using such language would be more provocative of character than using it.

I feel stupid siding with both of them. I am not shocked by such words, but I have an unbelievable control over them. Perhaps this ability to choose amongst who and when I use such words is good enough.

There is no reason I should be thinking about this, it just came to me. I'm still trying to work out an answer I like.

Speaking of that though, I've been arguing with myself over some of the things about religion we talked about in Humanities. Book of Job mainly- how do people swallow all that stuff? Why on earth did Job put up with all of it? OK, fine, you treat me like garbage, but I still want to be your friend because you'll give me toys later. If that were our kid talking about the neighbor kid, we'd tell our kid not to play with the neighbor kid.

Now, this brings up another fun question. God knew in advance that Job was OK to pick because he already knew what was going to happen. If God knows what's going to happen, what's the point in the first place? If he created the universe, and he also knows just exactly what each of us is going to do and how it's sll going to end, why did he do it? Is he having that much fun getting screwed over?

The Book of Job attempts to explain all this, and I just can't see it. Basically, it's the Jews just saying "OK, screw us over again, it's OK, God. We love you anyway, because you're God."

Yeah, it's the story of the Jews from Biblical times all the way to the present, but they sure didn't just roll over and take the Holocaust.

I still hold that God=Santa Claus. He's a big old man with a long beard who- if you're good -will make sure you get nice things. The thing is, we get told that Santa Claus doesn't exist. When's the God speech coming?

Christianity is just not my bundle of tricks. I do believe that it is good and proper to behave well because or all the karmic things going on there (it all comes back to you times three, same as in all religion), but the God stuff I have problems with. I don't know how we got here, I admit that, but I don't think the old man in the white nighty did it.