Very Interesting

And not at all stupid, either. Byron points out another crossword surprise. This one, not so much because it's racy (unless you subscribe to the folk etymology that SCUMBAG is a Shakespearean contraction similar to 'swounds) but rather because it violates the notion that crossword puzzles ought to be unpleasantness-free zones. Some constructors adhere quite strongly to this belief. Stanley Newman has even said he would rather not use ENRON because of its negative connotations. It makes me wonder, though: are we entering a new era of PG-13 puzzles, at least at the Times?