Do you think excessive Cursing and Low intelligence go hand in hand

Apparently most of the posters are having trouble understanding correlation. The TC is polling whether or not excessive swearing is correlated with lower intelligence, meaning- someone who swears often is more likely to have a lower IQ than someone that doesn't swear often. STOP using individual examples to refute an alleged correlation! Correlations allow for exceptions. A mentally challenged person that lacks the ability to speak may have a very low IQ, but since they can't speak they never swear. Similiarly a Harvard Professor may swear all the time and have a very high IQ. Those two examples can coexist with the negative correlation between profanity and intelligence (it is a negative corrrelation because as one variable increases- the number of swears per sentence for instance- is accompanied by a decrease in the other variable- IQ). Hopefully this has been completely cleared up and no one will post ANECDOTES to support their assertions anymore.Jocubus

That's all fine and dandy, but citing individual anecdotes is as important as keeping the big picture in mind, because correlation does not imply causation... especially in a case like this.

Oftentimes yes. But intelligent people are capable of excessive cursing as well. It just isn't as common, because intelligent people tend to understand that cursing is more impactful when it is used sparingly rather than profusely.pianist

Using specific anecdotes is an absurd way to refute a CORRELATION. Of course there are some exceptions- "My mother went to Columbia and she swears"- but what the topic creator is referring to is a correlation, which I'm sure, exists.Jocubus

I don't know a single smart person who curses or a single idiot who doesn't.imsomebody

Then you, I'm sorry to say, must have very, VERY few friends. >.>

Penn and Teller disagree with you http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojEpASQi_7o

More like excessive cursing and rudeness go hand in hand.

Though alot of "Low" intellegent people swear.

Apparently most of the posters are having trouble understanding correlation. The TC is polling whether or not excessive swearing is correlated with lower intelligence, meaning- someone who swears often is more likely to have a lower IQ than someone that doesn't swear often. STOP using individual examples to refute an alleged correlation! Correlations allow for exceptions. A mentally challenged person that lacks the ability to speak may have a very low IQ, but since they can't speak they never swear. Similiarly a Harvard Professor may swear all the time and have a very high IQ. Those two examples can coexist with the negative correlation between profanity and intelligence (it is a negative corrrelation because as one variable increases- the number of swears per sentence for instance- is accompanied by a decrease in the other variable- IQ). Hopefully this has been completely cleared up and no one will post ANECDOTES to support their assertions anymore.Jocubus

what a great post

George Carlin and Bill Hicks cursed all the time, and the people here tend to think that they're the bee's knees as far as the smarts go.

But then again, this was never exactly the smartest place on the internet...

First of all, what's 'excessive'? Secondly, no, not at all. Plenty of brilliant people curse constantly.nick3333

excessive

Main Entry: ex·ces·sive

Pronunciation: ik-ˈse-siv

Function: adjective

Date: 14th century

: exceeding what is usual, proper, necessary, or normal

George Carlin and Bill Hicks cursed all the time, and the people here tend to think that they're the bee's knees as far as the smarts go.

But then again, this was never exactly the smartest place on the internet...

MrGeezer

I think the topic creator is talking about the general rule, otherwise, all-in-all, does not just about almost every rule have some sort of exception?

Also, at least when I think of "excessive," I think of the kind of people who almost always "cannot" go sentence without using f-bomb "every" other word.

By the way, for your information, George Carlin is still the man. If you have not already, if you can, you should check-out his latest special that just made its debut on HBO recently.