used or even considered amusing -- Scoper is the sniggering insult du jour. This seems to indicate that the conditions warranting abuse or ridicule remain reasonably constant whilst the terminology can shift. A cautionary tale for charities looking to change their image relying on semantics alone if ever there was one. "Is smegma (sp?) not the medical term for a dried discharge around the foreskin" I remembered looking this up when Red Dwarf first came out and was so pleased to note my Longman's described it as: "A cheesy, sebacious, liquid found around the head of the penis", it's the cheesy that makes that description for me. stan said, superburger said, I don't think it is at all nannyish to suggest the people don't want to listen to a stream of four letter words at tea time. I can see a certain set of circumstances where the use of the word mongol to describe a Down's syndrome child in a well made childrens programme might be powerful and educational, but I guess the majority of the UK public would disagree (I can see the screaming mail headlines now.) I guess at the moment the level of censorship on TV is about right. I know I could enjoy a tea time sunday drama with a 5 year old without worrying about having to explain why calling someone a nigger/paki/mongol/flid etc is wrong. That's something I'd rather chose when to do. By the same token, I'm glad the the BBC had a