That sucks

Babies do it. The pumps draining New Orleans do it, but somehow “sucking” has become an ubiquitous term of disparagement. I’ve always considered “That sucks” as an awful phrase and decided not to use it in my conversation. To me it is a sign of the coarsening of our society. Why use such a harsh, vulgar saying when there are so many alternatives available?

“How awful for you.”
“That’s terrible.”
“I’m so sorry!”
“How could she!”
“That’s going to leave a mark.”

Somehow this whole business about ‘sucking’ conjures up images of, well...how to put this delicately…blow jobs. (That’s another name I’ve never understood, but that’s a topic for another time.) Any reasonable person could understand my confusion about the name for something that is supposed to be pleasurable being applied to an adverse or hurtful condition.

We should resolve to ban that phrase from our vocabulary. Isn’t life rough enough without such rude language assaulting us at every turn? It’s time to reclaim respectful language and not let ourselves sink to expressing our sentiments in such a way. Let’s face it, this whole business of saying “That sucks” all the time really blows.