Fight the Grammer Nazis

[Urbane Guerrilla]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

Fake language rules can come from respected sources, but that’s no reason to believe them.

For instance, your occasional tries at telling me what is not a valid word. I can't recall any of these instances where a sufficiently complete dictionary did not support my usage, rather than yours. At least of late you've given that game up. Yes, I regard a Collegiate Dictionary as inadequate for college-level writing. I would put the peak of its usefulness somewhere about junior high, and for the writer not frightfully ambitious to grow into a fierce wild Thesaurus spp. at that.

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

Misspelled is not misused. Errors like “faster then a speeding bullet” and “taking a lot of flack” are mistakes in spelling, not comprehension.

I'd take issue with this too. The miscomprehending substitution of homonyms and near-homonyms for the correct terms is a variation of the hobson-jobson, one done within a language rather than between two -- and it can induce an error of comprehension. That this is so very much associated with words of similar if not identical sound suggests the error arrives through the poorly functioning or inattentive ear, aggravated with a lack of reading well-edited material that might steer one to better understanding. It would remove such infelicities as "spitting image" and "one in the same."

TEAL -- plucking away greengrocers' apostrophes... a/k/a prepostrophes.

[squirell nutkin]

Originally Posted by Urbane Guerrilla

It would remove such infelicities as "spitting image" and "one in the same."

"One and the same" but "spitting image" I'd always heard was a corruption of "spirit and image"

What have you heard or read?

[Urbane Guerrilla]

Originally Posted by squirell nutkin

"One and the same" but "spitting image" I'd always heard was a corruption of "spirit and image"

What have you heard or read?

Or "spit and image," which sounds like an intermediate step. See the oldfashioned phrase "the spit of him," i.e., a very strong resemblance.

But the two get regrettably miswritten.

Bruce, how 'bout you give my ass a nice deep baiser? I do not constitute a reason not to be a Grammar Nazi, and you can decide to stop being a putz just any second now. My being blessed with a respect for the English language is not grounds for you giving me a hard time. Had you a full measure of sense, you'd know that much. As it is...

[Gravdigr]

Originally Posted by Urbane Guerrilla

Or "spit and image," which sounds like an intermediate step. See the oldfashioned phrase "the spit of him," i.e., a very strong resemblance.

But the two get regrettably miswritten.

Bruce, how 'bout you give my ass a nice deep baiser? I do not constitute a reason not to be a Grammar Nazi, and you can decide to stop being a putz just any second now. My being blessed with a respect for the English language is not grounds for you giving me a hard time. Had you a full measure of sense, you'd know that much. As it is...

If you have such respect for the English language, why don't you use it, instead of talking like a goddamned frog?

[Urbane Guerrilla]

Originally Posted by Gravdigr

If you have such respect for the English language, why don't you use it, instead of talking like a goddamned frog?

I am using English more fully than you. If I write in the English of an educated man, where's the harm in you reading educated English, hm? I don't imagine there's a downside.

French is only one of my languages. I was sufficiently educated to have some.

In the future, never ask me if I'll let you be a stupe, okay? I always answer "Don't you fucking dare." I don't allow stupid, and I disparage those that do.

[BigV]

Originally Posted by Urbane Guerrilla

I am using English more fully than you. If I write in the English of an educated man, where's the harm in you reading educated English, hm? I don't imagine there's a downside.

French is only one of my languages. I was sufficiently educated to have some.

In the future, never ask me if I'll let you be a stupe, okay? I always answer "Don't you fucking dare." I don't allow stupid, and I disparage those that do.

Using English more fully has very little to do with actual communication. So what. As for harm, the harm is to the success of the communication. Talk or write all you want, if you're unable to get your ideas across and to understand the ideas of those talking and writing to you, your communication has been harmed. That is the downside.

As for your permission for another person's thoughts and actions and behaviors, when you say shit like "I won't allow it", you just crack me up. The complete ridiculousness of such hubris makes most of the rest of what you say equally unbelievable.

[Urbane Guerrilla]

Originally Posted by BigV

Using English more fully has very little to do with actual communication. So what. As for harm, the harm is to the success of the communication. Talk or write all you want, if you're unable to get your ideas across and to understand the ideas of those talking and writing to you, your communication has been harmed. That is the downside.

As for your permission for another person's thoughts and actions and behaviors, when you say shit like "I won't allow it", you just crack me up. The complete ridiculousness of such hubris makes most of the rest of what you say equally unbelievable.

I will not allow you to be stupid. Stupid people cannot function as people should function. V, you are being a shmuck. I do not dumb down for you, for UT, for God Almighty. That is simply too far beneath me. If it is not beneath you, all I can say is your intellectual standards aren't high enough.

Read good writing; think smart thoughts. The man who complains at this has no part with me. Do not beg me to descend to whatever level of mediocrity you find comfortable. It is too cramped for me.