R: Censor the F-word

Even one mention of the F-word in a film shifts its rating from PG to PG-13, and multiple uses of the word often result in the movie being rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America. By these standards, it is clear that society does not treat the F-word as just another term among its 4-letter peers. In many cases, this word is not even used in ways true to its own definition- it is implemented as a universal amplifier. Is it justifiable of society to seek to exclude such a seemingly versatile word from everyday conversation?

What makes language so powerful? Why do we give words such authority over our lives? Should society always refrain from using the F-word? Or is there a time and a place for its uncensored use? Would the desensitization of the F-word lead us down a slippery path which invites more immorality into our public life? Is the F-word only obscene because we treat it as such? What does its use imply, if anything, about the prudence of the user?