words that make you grit your teeth

[Mr. Bloom]

Oh boy.
'God' does not belong to Christians and Christianity.

You're right there. Christians, Jews, and Muslims all trace spiritual lineage back to Abraham...and therefore to the same divine "God of Abraham" whom they hold in equally high stature. Where these faiths differ is in other areas.

I'm simply saying that people of these faiths will be offended by the inappropriate use of God's name. As with any group, some will be more offended than others. But I will assure you that if someone repeatedly curses God in my presence, that I will ask them to refrain and/or I will leave their presence...and I have had several occassions to do just that.

Once they become aware of offensive behavior, in my experience, polite people have always been sensitive to it...and maybe all that's coming out of these posts is an awareness, but whether anyone is sensitive to it is their choice...

[7rider]

I just thought of 2 more last night.
Not words so much, but still set my teeth on edge. Thank you, Mrs. Josephs, my high school English teacher.....

"Would have" in "If" phrases: "If I would have gotten home earlier..."

and

What Mrs. J referred to as "Contrary to fact:subjunctive": "If I was President, we'd do things differently."

[mimitabby]

I just thought of 2 more last night.
Not words so much, but still set my teeth on edge. Thank you, Mrs. Josephs, my high school English teacher.....

"Would have" in "If" phrases: "If I would have gotten home earlier..."

and

What Mrs. J referred to as "Contrary to fact:subjunctive": "If I was President, we'd do things differently."

er, ahem. "If I WERE President..." is the correct use of the subjunctive.

and when I say OMG I mean OH MY GOODNESS!!

My personal belief is that religions in general have attempted to impose their own behavior rules on others who are not of their religion, whether by force or by subtle intimidation or by using the implication that non-believers who are behaving in their own way that is not intended to insult are offending and behaving badly and need to adapt. This has been happening all over the world for centuries.

Yes, Lisa, isn't that why most wars were waged?

[7rider]

er, ahem. "If I WERE President..." is the correct use of the subjunctive.

I guess you realized that I was giving an example (in both cases) of the incorrect statement??
I did not provide a corrected version in either.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I'm simply saying that people of these faiths will be offended by the inappropriate use of God's name.

People get offended by all kinds of things. And what one person thinks is inappropriate, another might not at all. Who gets to tell others what to do/say or not do/say when it comes to spiritual beliefs?

But I will assure you that if someone repeatedly curses God in my presence, that I will ask them to refrain and/or I will leave their presence...and I have had several occassions to do just that.

Of course that is your right.
But a thought here- are people actually 'cursing' God, or is that simply your interpretation of what "Oh my God" or "God damn it" means? When I say Oh my God I am not saying anything bad about God. But you may feel I am.

Once they become aware of offensive behavior, in my experience, polite people have always been sensitive to it...and maybe all that's coming out of these posts is an awareness, but whether anyone is sensitive to it is their choice...

Your sentence says it all. You might call my behavior offensive and see me as me impolite and insensitive- when I don't see myself as being offensive or impolite at all if I say Oh my God (or oh my goddess or anything else for that matter). It's your interpretation that what I said is offensive.
The offensive aspect of it is coming from within you, and you feel I should then adjust to your rules.
I ask you- what if my personal religion states that people should be more accepting and tolerant of how others express themselves and of how others view their own God or lack of their own God? Will you then be more "polite" and "sensitive" towards me when I say Oh my God?
Do you consider that perhaps I am an atheist who finds your quoting of scripture on this forum to be disrespectful to MY beliefs? (in reality, though I think it is inappropriate, I know you are not trying to offend me by doing so, thus I don't see you as being impolite or offensive for doing so)
Truly, I do hear and understand what you are saying. I just don't agree with it.
To me it's not a matter of politeness or offensiveness but more a matter of just allowing people to be themselves spiritually instead of trying to enforce behavior on others that have differing beliefs.

My personal belief is that religions in general have attempted to impose their own behavior rules on others who are not of their religion, whether by force or by subtle intimidation or by using the implication that non-believers who are behaving in their own way that is not intended to insult are offending and behaving badly and need to adapt. This has been happening all over the world for centuries.

I have no problem with people of various religions having their own ideas and rules. It's great that there are many varied beliefs (including atheism, Christianity, Judaism, Paganism, Buddhism, etc etc). But people of any particular belief should not request or expect others to follow their behavioral rules as well, and they should not attempt to intimidate others into doing so by implying that not doing so makes them impolite, insensitive, or offensive. This last sentence is my main point. Respect goes both ways. We should not expect others to change their behavior to suit our own religious beliefs.

Well that's MY belief. I don't expect anyone else to follow it, and I am not being insensitive or impolite by behaving true to my own beliefs.
I'll do my best not to continue a debate here though, because it's not really what this thread is about.

Other words that make one cringe?...
How about "fixin's" when talking about dressings, toppings, and condiments. {{cringe cringe}}.