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There is a huge debate about the use of profanity in our media.  I know my mother, who spells b-u-t-t rather than say it, no doubt cringes at the other overly-used B-word so common on television today.  I have myself been accused of including "dirty words" in my playlist songs.  So where do we draw the line between art and potty-mouth?  In the words of some famous pirates, there is not a code so much as guidelines.  Here's my Number One:  Don't use words that offend the people around you.  This covers almost everything, really.  Don't swear at the Thanksgiving table, in front of small children (they won't care, but their parents will), or in a professional situation (hello, Mr. Biden).  Two:  Don't swear if it doesn't bring some greater meaning to what you have to say.  If you throw the f-word around with every other sentence, it loses its sting.  The point of profanity is to add emphasis.  This goes for literature, for television, and for music.  If it doesn't make a point by being there, take it out!  So it is appropriate to swear if you stub your big toe, your boss gives your idiot co-worker a bonus instead of you, or some jerk cuts you off in traffic.  Three:  Teenagers swear.  That's part of being a teenager.  But teens, keep your swearing out of your parents' hearing range, and have some respect for families in public.  If you want to swear, but are afraid that your mom's spies are listening, come up with your own swear code, funny sayings that fill in for curses, and that will become second nature to you.  For example, in the movie Princess and the Frog, the Mardi Gras princess, Charlotte, curses as her bridegroom falls off the float.  Now, this is a Disney movie, and she can't exactly say "Sh*t!" so instead you hear an exasperated "Cheese and Crackers!"  My BFF and I had something similar when we were in high school.  One of us would say "Hector" and the other would finish with "Gonzales."  Now don't ask me where two white-bread midwestern girls came up with that one, but now that I live in California, I expect anyday to come face to face with a real Hector Gonzales, and then what?  My friend's toddler likes to say grace before dinner, but "Jesus" comes out as "Cheez-it" to grown-up ears.  His older brother rolls his eyes as if to say, "Seriously? We're praying to Cheez-it?"  So my new swear is obviously Sweet Cheezit.

Here is my playlist from March 2007.  There might be the odd "bad word" in here, but here's how I explain it to my own kids.  The words musicians use in their songs are socially appropriate for their art form.  That doesn't mean you use those words when talking to your grandma.  :)

1. "These Streets"- Paolo Nutini
2. "Tuff Kid"- Shawn Colvin
3. "Ain't No Reason"- Brett Dennen
4. "Follow"- Brandi Carlile
5. "Nights in White Satin (Notte di Luce)"- Il Divo
6. "Blue Caravan"- Vienna Teng
7. "Modern Romance"- Sasha Dobson
8. "Life"- Keller Williams
9. "God Knows (You Gotta Give to Get)"- El Perro Del Mar
10. "Southern Girl"- Amos Lee
11. "Praise You"- FatBoy Slim
12. "The Party's Crashing Us"- Of Montreal
13. "Loop Duplicate My Heart"- Suburban Kids with Biblical Names
14. "Yellow Sun"- The Raconteurs
15. "Cab"- Train
16. "Gone"- Brandi Carlile
17. "Kiss from a Rose"- Seal
18. "Does Your Mother Know"- ABBA
19. "Hard to Say I'm Sorry/ Get Away"- Chicago