Does Referring to a Town in Austria Constitute a Prohibited F-Bomb?

[Gary Freedman]

I left a post on "All Drift All The Time" about the town of Fucking, Austria. It was meant as humorous, and I think it would be viewed as humorous by any reasonable standard. I do not believe that referring to the name of a town in Austria, whether it be Vienna, Linz, or Fucking constitutes the use of offensive language. It does not even constitute an F-bomb by any stretch of the imagination.

Several days later -- I emphasize, several days later -- I was deleted from the group on the grounds that I did not abide by the rules of the group, which expressly prohibits use of the F-bomb. I note, for the record, that the rules of the group don't preclude a member from referring to the names of towns in Austria!

Here is what I wrote that got me deleted from the group by administrator George V. Richards:

"The mayor of an Austrian town named 'Fucking' is pleading with tourists to stop stealing its road signs for souvenirs.

'Fucking has existed for 800 years, probably when a Mr. Fuck or the Fuck family moved into the area,' said Siegfried Hauppl. 'We all know what it means now, but for us, Fucking is Fucking we don’t give it a second thought.'

Two other Austrian towns, Windpassing and Wank-on-the-Lake, have similar problems, he added.

Google Earth and Mapquest confirm that the town Fucking actually exists. It’s a few hundred kilometers north of Salzburg.

This sign carries the hilarity even further: 'Bitte nicht so schnell!' is German for 'Please not so fast!' (Evidently this type of sign is a commonplace reminder in those parts for drivers to keep their speed down to protect children, but the unintended double meaning in this case is particularly amusing.)

In case you were wondering if this is an urban legend, nopes this ain’t."

Well, what's your opinion: Did I use the F-bomb? Am I also prohibited from referring to Dick Cheney or a little boy named Adolf Hitler Campbell?

[Gary Freedman]

You would lose your job. But if you sued, who would win--you or the school board? What's the controlling law? What if you had a student named Lipshitz? Would you get fired if you said his name because the last syllable is "shitz?"

[Lori]

Well, that changes everything if you are hip to the pronunciation! If I handed out the piece for the kids to read, first their laughter would be deafening, then I would lose my job. I wonder how one of those computer generated readers would pronounce it?

[Kittycat]

This is too funny for words.

[Gary Freedman]

By the way, the town is pronounced "Fooking." It's Mr. and Mrs. "Fook." So you wouldn't be saying the prohibited phonics. Is it prohibited in your school district to say the word "Fook?"

[Lori]

If I chose to tell that story in my high school geography class, I'd probably be reprimanded. Regardless of it's merit or truth, it would show poor taste on my part because of the code of ethics I must uphold among educators (my group affiliation). In some school districts, perhaps I would be fired. Technically, you didn't use the "f-bomb," but some folks are just ULTRA sensitive to any use of the word. Mr. and Mrs. Fuck would probably be forced to change their name in the Bible belt!