I'll start by stating my opinion clearly: Epithets, obscenities, swear words should be avoided by users at DKos.
I'm all for freedom of speech. I had a knock down, drag out (online) fight with someone who thought it was ok for the Democrats to outlaw peace symbol lapel pins at the Democratic Convention. This person was certain that some diehard Republican sitting in Red State, USA was not certain whether s/he should vote for Bush or Kerry - and seeing a tiny peace symbol on the chest of a conventioneer would make her/him vote for Bush.
In reality, for the number of votes it might have cost, I was not willing to support the suppression of freedom of speech, forcing people to give up their visible display in support of peace.
Now, if the option had been whether Kerry (or other speakers) got up on stage and cussed the Swiftboat Veterans and Rove and Bush up and down - for the number of votes it might have cost, I would have been quite willing to support the suppression of freedom of speech, forcing Kerry (and other speakers) to refrain from swearing.
I've stated my opinion, and the reason why I feel this way at the trail end of comments on two or three diaries - but I feel it gets lost. And the real reason is an important one, so I chose to create (another) diary on the subject.
There are many who feel that we can't risk offending delicate sensibilities of `on the fence' readers. Hey, joke them if they can't take a - after all, they should be used to such language from both our president and vice president.
There are those who feel that it's much more simple to swear, and that getting one's point across strongly without such words is much more difficult and even admirable. I'd be on that boat, thank you. That doesn't mean that every diary must or should be a glorious work of art, sometimes simple is better.
No, those reasons and many others are easy to see two sides of - the Real Reason has only one side.
It has reached the point where anyone working for a corporation must think twice before logging in to any website. Whether while skiving off or during a break or lunch - if someone accesses a website rife with expletives, it will be noticed. If that access is witnessed and offends a coworker, it may lead to corrective action - perhaps termination.
Every person who refrains from logging in to DKos is a potential lost vote for The Cause - for Each Cause put forth on this site.
There have been suggestions to divide the site - a "free to swear" area and a "keep it professional" area. This sounds interesting, but I really don't think we (Democrats, Liberals) need more divisions - we have too many as it is. Maybe there's a way to create an option for each user to have epithets asterisked out.
But I think the best approach is for people writing diaries to consider your broader audience - do you want to write for everyone, from our six year old diarist to our oldest, for those sitting at home and those sitting at work? Or is the `freedom' to lower the tone with epithets important enough to lose that audience - and potential voters?
It's really up to each of us to decide.