There’s no reason for children swearing inappropriately to be funny, but it is. South Park has elevated foulmouthed adolescents to an art form, especially in the 2001 episode “It Hits the Fan” where the gang says the word “s—“ uncensored 162 times. Now that’s commitment to your craft.
It’s a good thing McKay Hatch was only 12 when that episode first aired. The 18-year-old Brigham Young University student, who started the No Cussing Club in 2007 because he believes profanity is linked to bullying, would’ve had a conniption. According to the Huffington Post, his club now has 35,000 members, including affiliates in about 36 other countries.
McKay’s feathers were recently ruffled by another crude television toddler: Modern Family’s Lily, the two-year-old daughter of Cam and Mitchell (Eric Stonestreet and Jesse Tyler Ferguson) who dropped the F-bomb a few times on Wednesday’s episode (entitled “Little Bo Bleep”) of the Emmy and Golden Globe-winning series.
"Our main goal is to stop this from happening," said Hatch of Lily’s (Aubrey Anderson-Emmmons) antics. "If we don't, at least ABC knows that people all over the world don't want to have a two-year-old saying the `F-bomb' on TV."
In context, Lily’s profanity was not only hilarious, but served the story. Spoiler Alert* She saw that her use of that naughty word made Cam laugh. When she noticed her dad crying at a wedding, she begins blurting out the word in an attempt to make him happy (awwwwwwww!). It also helped lighten the mood of the entire family, something Phil and Claire (Ty Burrell and Julie Bowen) desperately needed after a tough day.
"We thought it was a very natural story since, as parents, we've all been through this," said Steven Levitan, Modern Fmamily co-creator and executive producer, to EW.com. "We are not a sexually charged show. It has a very warm tone so people accept it more. I'm sure we'll have some detractors."
As opponents go, Hatch is misguided but harmless. He’s not getting ABC to pull any episodes of anything anytime soon no matter how much he tries to ruin everybody else’s fun. I know Hatch didn't try to kiss Zooey Deschenal like Schmidt did on Tuesday's New Girl, but I think his offense is worth at least $30 in the "douchebag jar."
