The Challenge Rambles and riff raff about all this and that

We will miss you

I ask my non-argentine readers a concession, I'm going to talk about Roberto Fontanarrosa, Argentine author and cartoonist. He left us today, aged 62.

Fontanarrosa was a very ironic observer of the reality around him. His acute observations were always brilliant and right on spot. This was a guy who, on the 3rd spanish language congress and amongst the most brilliant Hispanic writers, etymologists and philosophers, stood forward and made a defense of curse words:

I don't know who defines what is vulgar from what isn't. I think curse words provide other colours. (...) There are some of the so-called curse words which are irreplaceable, by sound, strength and physical texture. It is not the same to say that someone is silly or dumb than saying "he's an asshole".

No sé quién define lo que es vulgar y lo que no es vulgar. Pienso que las malas palabras brindan otros matices. (...) Hay palabras de las denominadas malas palabras que son irreemplazables, por sonoridad, por fuerza y por contextura física de la palabra. No es lo mismo decir que una persona es tonta o sonsa que 'es un pelotudo'.

I will surely miss him and will forever be in debt with my good friend "Negro Gomez" for borrowing me most of his books.