While I was talking with our longtime contributor Hadley Arkes this month, he quoted a statement that I haven’t been able to get out of my head: “One man’s vulgarity is another’s lyric.” It’s a simple maxim, easy to remember, with balance and brevity plus the air of a schoolmarm’s reminder. You can be discriminating in your taste, but don’t impose it on others. That mass-produced pop song that annoys you is a lovely aria to someone somewhere.
I think of this truism every time a booming, huffing car rolls down the street, windows open and the bass blasting an ominous beat. Or when Bill Maher, Howard Stern, or Madonna appears on a screen. I think they’re vulgar, but that’s just me. Or so the Supreme Court says.