{"id":6186,"date":"2014-04-09T14:26:19","date_gmt":"2014-04-09T18:26:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/?p=6186"},"modified":"2014-04-16T17:57:43","modified_gmt":"2014-04-16T21:57:43","slug":"brocks-banter-power-of-words","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/brocks-banter-power-of-words\/","title":{"rendered":"BROCK’S BANTER: Power of Words"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Brock Weir<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sometimes there is nothing better in this world than something a little bit gutteral.
\nWho among us doesn\u2019t get at least a small degree of satisfaction from uttering or typing a well-placed word, often of the four letter variety, more often still containing the sound of at least one hard \u201cK\u201d?
\nI know I am one of these people.
\nPersonally, I don\u2019t think it is something to be ashamed of. In fact, sometimes they are the only words that fit a particular situation. When you get down to it, given the right audience it can be suitable in almost any situation or circumstance.
\nEverybody knows what that word is. Some are proud to let \u2018er rip. Others titter it under their breath in an effort to feign some degree of modesty. Some of these people, still looking for an outlet, might switch it up by exclaiming, \u201cFudge!\u201d, \u201cShoot!\u201d, \u201cFart!\u201d or, even \u201cFuddle-Duddle!\u201d But, let\u2019s be real here. You\u2019re not fooling anyone. Even the kids know what you\u2019re really trying to say.
\nAnd what is wrong with that? Put a swear jar on the kitchen counter \u2013 or at an office desk \u2013 and kids (and the young at heart) really have the potential to make a mint.
\nIt is a wonder that these three consonants and a vowel have the power that they do.
\nAs a kid, I still remember getting a few gasps from my grandparents when I tripped over something in the backyard and said, \u201cDamn!\u201d all the while they used far worse as if it was second nature.
\nI am still told the story of when I was two or three when our family got back from picking up a jug of milk from Becker\u2019s, looked my mother square in the eye and calmly said, \u201cF\u2014k off.\u201d
\nApparently, I picked it up from the teens outside the store in an effort to boost my toddler street cred.
\nDespite a scolding, the word never fully retreated from my vocabulary. It reached a zenith when I was in the younger end of a Grade 3\/4 split in a stifling Newmarket elementary school during an uncharacteristic heat wave.
\nAfter about 10 minutes of being poked, prodded and otherwise harassed by a girl at the elder end of the split, I simply told her exactly what she could do with herself and was promptly packed off to the principal\u2019s office who solemnly tried to make me ashamed of myself. Although I maintain to this day that I was justified in my exclamation, the theatrics around it really drove home the point that a simple word can really drive people around the bend.
\nConsider the fuss that emerged this week when video emerged (videos always seem to \u201cemerge\u201d) of Liberal leader Justin Trudeau speaking after a boxing match.
\nIn the clip, he said, \u201cI will tell you, there is no experience like stepping into this ring and measuring yourself. All that, your name, your fortune, your intelligence, your beauty \u2013 none of that f—ing matters.\u201d
\nNobody seemed to bat an eyelid at the time, but the Prime Minister\u2019s office was quick to pounce on it saying, once again, that it was indicative of his \u201cpoor judgement\u201d and a barometer of his fitness as leader and Prime Minister.
\nThis, while the Prime Minister himself being no stranger to entendres, double or otherwise. After all, he seemed to take great pleasure in re-telling Jean Chretien\u2019s \u201cWhere the fox hat\u201d story at a testimonial to the former Prime Minister, and came up with a very funny, and very quick, retort to the late Jack Layton\u2019s \u201cbig gas\u201d flub.
\nTrudeau then began to play into the storyline, trying a word synonymous with \u201cShoot!\u201d on for size a few days later and then giving a tongue-in-cheek mea culpa, bringing the \u201cscolding\u201d he received from his wife into the equation.
\nNow, speculation is kicking in with pollsters questioning whether this is a deliberate attempt to curry favour with younger voters on Trudeau\u2019s part, with hints there is more profanity to come. I would like to think everyone has a healthy amount of skepticism in their marrow to give any such attempts at \u201chipness\u201d the one-over, but such is the power of a four-letter word.
\nFour letter words are not the only portions of our vocabulary to cause visceral reactions in people.
\nJust last month, Heritage Advisory Committee member Erina Kelly spoke at Council amidst the continuing debate among residents over the merits of a Heritage Conservation District noting, \u201cIt is the word \u2018heritage\u2019 that gets blood pressure rising and that is where the spin begins.\u201d
\nShe is quite correct in that \u201cheritage\u201d is a word that is often treated like a commodity in Aurora which can often mean different things to different groups of people. But, one commonality shared by each side is they are damned if they are going to let their view of heritage go down without a fight.
\nIt is the same with \u201cculture\u201d which can mean wildly different things to different people, and has caused no end of drama and debate within very limited cores of people.
\nAs election campaigns get underway, and they truly are this week with the first challenger in the Mayor\u2019s race coming forward, more words will continue to be added to the list.
\n\u201cAccountability\u201d, is one word which is rearing its way into prominence once again as people begin to take sides.
\nWhat is one man\u2019s accountability is another man\u2019s veil.
\nThe same can be said with \u201ctransparency\u201d.
\nWhat some might see as \u201cprogressive\u201d, others might take as a signpost in a very important fork in the road. Where some might see an \u201caura\u201d as an important barometer in Aurora, others might sense an opportunity to colour one themselves.
\nIt is only the second week of April, the buzzwords are soaring into the atmosphere, but sooner or later they will inevitably come back down to earth for the buzzers to start putting meat on their bones.
\nHow will the power embodied in each of these words be measured? That will be entirely up to you. <\/p>\n

STRIPPING WORDS OF THEIR POWER<\/strong>
\nIt was heartening to visit Devins Drive Public School last week to meet with a very interesting group of Grade 5 and Grade 6 students who have taken a closer and proactive look at the meaning of words within their schools, particularly the word \u201cGay.\u201d
\nAll too often, these kids have heard phrases like \u201cThat\u2019s so gay!\u201d on the playground, often in fun, but, unfortunately, sometimes not, but it prompted them to delve deeper into what this word means and the impact it has both on the individual or the school community.
\nTheir insights into the power the word can have on the individual, whether they are a victim of bullying, the bully themselves, or perhaps an individual with two moms or two dads who sadly might be trying to fly under the radar, were inspiring and, in my view, will have nothing but a positive impact on the school community.
\nTheir efforts are part of a pilot project which could be implemented throughout the York Region District School Board to foster a sense of tolerance, belonging and community, and it has the potential to break down barriers far beyond its mandate of combatting homophobia and transphobia. Kudos for the students and teacher for sticking to their guns for a much grander vision.<\/p>\n\"Facebook\"<\/a>\"twitter\"<\/a>\"mail\"<\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Brock Weir Sometimes there is nothing better in this world than something a little bit gutteral. Who among us doesn\u2019t get at least a small degree of satisfaction from uttering or typing a well-placed word, often of the four letter variety, more often still containing the sound of at least one hard \u201cK\u201d? I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6186","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-archive"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3D2k4-1BM","publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-01 23:15:56","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6186","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6186"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6186\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6186"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6186"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6186"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}