"No, son, not like us."

This is horrifying. I think NYT went back & published this article on Mexican cussin' circa 1922. I want to believe it's not from Thursday's paper.

"Mexicans, despite their reputation in Latin America for ultrapoliteness and formality, curse like sailors." Hold up. Reputation for what?  I don't think Prop. 187 supporters were aware of this reputation. Chupacabra ain't ultrapolite. Chupacabra ultramean suck your blood evil goat.

"...cursing can be done with creativity and can express emotions that are difficult to express with other words." Right. What exactly is a bad word in Mexico?

"Exactly what is considered a bad word in Mexico can require some interpretation. There are various types of insults, some comparing people to animals (like fatass bitch in English? bull-dyke? when dad calls baby J a goddamned feral child & a beast?), others referring to the dimished mental capacity of the recipient (f-in' 'tard?). Others refer to sex, using that most Mexican of words 'chingar,' which the Royal Spanish Academy of Language (Good. They conferred w/ the Imperialist Oppressors) says is a derivative of the word 'to fight' (2 words) but that in Mexico can be very offensive or very innocuous or virtually anything in between."

Mindblowing. I cry.