Foul language is becoming far too common among young people these days.
Consider the following scene: an impatient-looking teenage girl is using a pay phone. She is calling her boyfriend who has failed to turn up for a date.
The boyfriend answers. He is still at home. A swear word escapes the girl's lips. 'Are you coming out or not? I've been waiting two hours!' She is shouting into the phone and everyone hears her. But she doesn't care.
It is nothing new to hear teens making free use of foul language. What worries parents and teachers is that youngsters are beginning to accept such language in their vocabulary.
They do not realise that the way people speak reflects what they are. Nor do these youngsters appear to feel any shame at using four-letter words.
In fact, swear words come to them so naturally and flow so freely that if they had to leave out all the ugly words from what they say, they would be speechless.