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BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!

Bill D 07 Nov 01 - 09:22 PM
Little Hawk 07 Nov 01 - 08:38 PM
Little Hawk 07 Nov 01 - 08:32 PM
GUEST,Henry W 07 Nov 01 - 08:31 PM
Little Hawk 07 Nov 01 - 08:18 PM
catspaw49 07 Nov 01 - 08:07 PM
katlaughing 07 Nov 01 - 08:04 PM
Murray MacLeod 07 Nov 01 - 07:56 PM
Bat Goddess 07 Nov 01 - 07:18 PM
GUEST,Deda 07 Nov 01 - 06:49 PM
GUEST,Deda 07 Nov 01 - 06:46 PM
Murray MacLeod 07 Nov 01 - 06:26 PM
mousethief 07 Nov 01 - 03:27 PM
Bill D 07 Nov 01 - 03:18 PM
John MacKenzie 07 Nov 01 - 02:39 PM
Little Hawk 07 Nov 01 - 02:10 PM
Little Hawk 07 Nov 01 - 01:46 PM
GUEST 07 Nov 01 - 01:30 PM
lady penelope 07 Nov 01 - 12:04 PM
GUEST,Deda 07 Nov 01 - 11:14 AM
John MacKenzie 07 Nov 01 - 11:03 AM
Amos 07 Nov 01 - 09:51 AM
GUEST 07 Nov 01 - 08:10 AM
GUEST 07 Nov 01 - 06:35 AM
Banjer 07 Nov 01 - 05:52 AM
Wolfgang 07 Nov 01 - 05:45 AM
katlaughing 07 Nov 01 - 03:40 AM
Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull 06 Nov 01 - 11:55 PM
catspaw49 06 Nov 01 - 11:53 PM
Bill D 06 Nov 01 - 11:51 PM
Little Hawk 06 Nov 01 - 11:20 PM
Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull 06 Nov 01 - 11:07 PM
Little Hawk 06 Nov 01 - 10:46 PM
Tyke 06 Nov 01 - 10:43 PM
Amergin 06 Nov 01 - 10:34 PM
Joe Offer 06 Nov 01 - 10:25 PM
Genie 06 Nov 01 - 10:07 PM
GUEST 06 Nov 01 - 09:36 PM
kendall 06 Nov 01 - 09:33 PM
GUEST 06 Nov 01 - 09:32 PM
Amos 06 Nov 01 - 09:26 PM
Bill D 06 Nov 01 - 08:38 PM
GUEST,Al 06 Nov 01 - 08:24 PM
GUEST,Fiver 06 Nov 01 - 08:13 PM
GUEST 06 Nov 01 - 08:13 PM
kendall 06 Nov 01 - 08:11 PM
Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull 06 Nov 01 - 07:19 PM
Gareth 06 Nov 01 - 06:52 PM
GUEST,CLETUS 06 Nov 01 - 06:40 PM
SharonA 06 Nov 01 - 06:22 PM

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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Bill D
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 09:22 PM

umm..Murray..doesn't the verse go (from memory)..."..and it came to pass that whenever he went into his brother's wife, he spilled his seed upon the ground"?

seems to me that is almost spelling it out...why would anyone read anything other into it?..hand? oral?...maybe, but it doesn't say so...

and, "I mean, has anyone on this planet ever practised coitus interruptus? "....you durn tootin' they have! Primitive form of birth control, but LOTS of people used it.(and yes, *grin*, lots intended to, but sorta forgot)


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Little Hawk
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 08:38 PM

Henry, this thread is not about intolerance, it is about humour among a rather bizarre group of old folkies who mostly know each other well enough not to make the mistake of taking any of it that seriously.

- LH


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Little Hawk
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 08:32 PM

You see, the way you worded it before might be misunderstood (specially in the UK) to mean that you have something called a "Murray", and that you are inviting everyone to bite it! We wouldn't want that.

- LH


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: GUEST,Henry W
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 08:31 PM

How soon we forget. Whatever happened to "Please everyone, show tolerance and patience, love and empathy."?


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Little Hawk
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 08:18 PM

You should be careful with that expression, Spaw. There are a lot of weird people out there with literal minds, and one of them might take you seriously.

Oh, BTW, your short memo above should have read: Bite me, Murray."

You left out the comma! :-) (evil grin...) I wouldn't normally bother pointing it out, but I just couldn't resist this time, given the general theme of this thread...

- LH


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: catspaw49
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 08:07 PM

Read this: Bite me Murray.

Spaw


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: katlaughing
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 08:04 PM

Thanks, Alex, I knew that, but forgot.


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 07:56 PM

"where I do get upset is the erosion of language, punctuation, and proofreading (lack of) in print. Believe it or not, even the revered New York Times printed the great apostrophe error (possessive instead of plural) on the front page -- below the fold, but the front page nontheless."

Nonetheless, and The New York Times notwithstanding, we must all be more conscientious about our proofreading. *G*

Murray


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Bat Goddess
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 07:18 PM

A) of all, SpellCheck needs to be run with brain engaged.

B) of all, I certainly don't get upset with the substitution of single and double primes (or double hyphen in lieu of M-dash) in e-mail, posts, etc. because of platform keyboard differences. It's a workable compromise -- and typewriter not typographic rules prevail.

C) of all, where I do get upset is the erosion of language, punctuation, and proofreading (lack of) in print. Believe it or not, even the revered New York Times printed the great apostrophe error (possessive instead of plural) on the front page -- below the fold, but the front page nontheless.

Typos, especially in books, are distracting and interfere with the absorption of knowledge and effective information. In informal correspondence, such as e-mail or posts here or elsewhere, typos are generally the result of trying to type too fast; too late at night; too, ah, "relaxed" thanks to various single malts and other muscle and brain relaxants; and, of course, the possibility (as at this moment) of a cat tush on the keyboard or a paw jealously grabbing my hand.

BTW, I "collect" signs, and my collection includes a big sign above a restaurant at Hampton Beach, NH that reads, "Pizza's" -- of course, it COULD be owned by a family named Pizza . . .

Bat Goddess


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: GUEST,Deda
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 06:49 PM

Thread creep: Dorothy Parker had a parakeet which she named Onan upon observing that it too spilled its seed upon the ground.

Those of us who notice these grammatical details have no trouble communicating with the rest of us, and we are, after all, all here on the 'cat just trying to get along.

I would be happy to provide answers to any grammar questions. Feel free to PM me.


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: GUEST,Deda
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 06:46 PM


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 06:26 PM

Bill D, if I may wax even more pedantic, there is no actual Scriptural evidence that Onan practised coitus interruptus, although most scholars make this assumption .
As you say, he "spilled his seed upon the ground" but IMHO it is much more likely that he was on the receiving end of a hand job or a blow job from his deceased brother's wife. (Who didn't swallow, apparently). I mean, has anyone on this planet ever practised coitus interruptus? Again, IMHO, the term is a figment of some sociologist's imagination.

Whatever, the good Lord terminated him for his refusal to do it normally. Quite right too, he had it coming.

Murray


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: mousethief
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 03:27 PM

Repartee has two e's.

Alex


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Bill D
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 03:18 PM

caution!! Pedantry alert!

Onan "spilled his seed upon the ground"....does this mean that 'guest' has been eating watermelon carelessly? :>0

(what Onan practiced was coitus interruptus)

LH..it never struck me for a minute that you were referring to any one, specific person....I have used the "you know who you are" phrase for 40 years to suggest that LOTS or readers/listeners might identify with the description.........but some folks simply do NOT read between the lines for sarcasm, irony, metaphor, allusion...etc...they see only what they want to see, in the most negative interpretation they can find.....I find this sad, but I do not intend to avoid multi-leveled humor in my attempts to make points, and you, LH, seem to feel the same. *grin*....let the literal minded anons grump, there's no easy cure for that affliction!!


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 02:39 PM

I suspect that this guest suffers from the same affliction as all others who are afraid to post openly. This disease is known biblically as Onanism. Jock


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Little Hawk
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 02:10 PM

Oh, the "G" stood for "grin"...I don't think you got that, according to what you wrote, GUEST. Funnily enough, my first name begins with "G", but I don't know of anyone else I could apply it to around here at the moment...except maybe Gargoyle, and I was not referring to him...or anyone else in particular.

George (LH)


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Little Hawk
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 01:46 PM

I am truly devastated to report that the rubber sword failed miserably. I am still in this world. I am also still trying to figure out if the apparently serious objections to this thread posed by various persons above are, indeed, genuinely serious (hard to believe)...or are examples of very dry wit. If so, there are a number of you out there with a grandly dry sense of humour.

Actually, my original post that started this thread off was directed at no specific person whatsoever, although it did refer to a common error that annoys me a bit at times...but I certainly don't lose any sleep over it! Nor do I expect you to lose any sleep over it either. Feel free to make all the typos and spelling mistakes you want, folks.

Please reread this quote out of the original post:

It's enough to drive a pedant who's paying attention to all the piddly little details of whose language skills are correct and whose aren't absolutely nuts!

So stop it. You know who you are and you have no further excuse now. ("G")

Now...isn't it fairly obvious in that quote that I am making some fun of my own (and others') overly pedantic tendencies? Hmmmm? Calling myself "a pedant who's paying attention to all the piddly little details", and so on...would I do that if I were serious????

Really, people, do you not have any sense of satirical humour at all? Get with it. Whaddya think the "Grin" symbol was in there for, fer Chrissakes!

I make typos too...lots of 'em. It's inevitable, cos working on a computer causes the rapid extinction of braincells. This has been amply proven in tests involving chimpanzees. After 5,000 hours on a computer, the average chimp makes 33% more typos a week than he did back in the first week when he started! Consider the shocking implications of that. We are just gonna have to live with it, I'm afraid, cos we are all too addicted at this point to do the smart thing, turn the bloody machine off, and go out and work in the garden instead.

Spaw - Not to worry. NO ONE gives a shit around here, I can assure you! Unfortunately, not too many give a fuck either...but if I hear of someone who does, I'll have 'em get in touch with you right away.

Wolfgang - Thanks for the German passage. I love the German language.

GUEST - I am beginning to suspect that you are my old nemesis flattop, posting anonymously from the library, screwing around here and creating needless controversy, posturing righteous indignation, and so on. If you are, take a deep breath and walk off the end of the pier. That cold Atlantic water does wonders to clear the head. If not, maybe you should get to know flattop, cos he's actually quite a droll wit, to say the least.

- LH


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: GUEST
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 01:30 PM

And I wish all you grammar and spelling utopians well too.

Which part of "we are all not equally capable spellers and grammarians at all times and in all places" do people not understand?

Thanks again for looking down your noses at us, and insisting on how things should be in YOUR perfect world. A world where the aging, the ill, the absent minded, the dyslexic, the other language speakers, get to be admonished again and again by the superior among you, in OUR most hellish "back to school you go then" nightmares.

Sometimes we forget that this medium doesn't facilitate understanding of other poster's motives and intentions. So when these misunderstandings occur, isn't it better to just apologize for offending, rather than arrogantly continue to offend once you've been informed a good number of folks have been offended by your words?

C'mon, this wasn't a once off remark in the heat of passion, buried deep in a thread. This was a brand new thread started to call attention to one particular guest poster, if we are to "translate" Little Hawk's cryptic finger-pointing with his "you know who you are "G".

Gimmee a break--he meant it, and the rest of you can stop insulting our intelligence by back peddling otherwise, thank you not very much at all.


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: lady penelope
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 12:04 PM

First off I'm British, many may have noticed this already. ;)

Secondly, I'm really crap at spelling. This is because I simply don't write that much since I left school 17 years ago (my hand writing is also terrible unless it's in capitals).

Thirdly, when I attended school our, education 'experts' in the Inner London Education Authority decided that grammar should definitely take a back seat as it wasn't that much of a priority. In some schools it was decreed that anything other than phonetic spelling cramped children's creativity! So I was never 'taught' grammar, I just picked up what I could along the way.

But, I have to ask, isn't it in the interests of communication to keep the English language (at least in a written context) consistent?

In London, it's quite common for someone to ask another if they would borrow them something. Not 'lend me', 'borrow me'. Directly changing such a basic word's meaning can't be helpful in good communications. Parker has, at times, severe attacks of Malapropism (from the character Mrs Malaprop in the play The Rivals), right meaning, wrong word. (e.g. Mrs Malaprop declares at one point, "Yes, basking like an allegory on the banks of the Nile.")

This drives me bananas as, quite often, I could be highly insulted by some of his substitutions if it were not that I generally know what he intends. I still end up having sometimes-tense conversations with him until I finally fathom what it is he's on about.

My point is really, I suppose, while I'm not a fanatic about spelling and grammar, I do feel that some consistency should be maintained. That we should have a common ground where everyone knows what you mean, with the least possible confusion. On Mudcat this can be very important because we don't hear each other's voices nor do we see their faces, therefore much of what we take for granted during verbal communication simply doesn't exist.

For example, "Robin Hood tore his leather jerkin off."

Now depending on where you put your punctuation, you could end up offending someone without meaning to.

"It is said that he had his house made backwards."

Now, a spot of bad spelling there could also get you into trouble.

It's just a thought, but I wouldn't mind the occasional brush up course when it comes to these things. Anyone up to the challenge?

I think I need a lie down now.

TTFN M'lady P.


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: GUEST,Deda
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 11:14 AM

By all means, everyone, continue communicating. And please never say "me" when you mean "I", never say "just between you and I" (which is the grammatical equivalent of "just between we", which for some reason no one ever says) -- and above all, don't forget to use the subjunctive mood in contrafactual conditional clauses! Newsflash: Howard Cosell is in eternal grammar hell.

hohohohohoho.


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 11:03 AM

I thought that Little Hawk's original posting was valid comment and not personalised in any way. What then happened then was that the thread degenerated into a paranoid mud slinging exercise by people,some of whom suffer from delusions of adequacy. Please note this is posted under my own name!!!!! Jock


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Amos
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 09:51 AM

Tweedle and foofara, the whole lot.

Now I want you guys to stop this nonsense. I want you to write exactly as you please, spell as you can, but above all, DON'T STOP COMMUNICATING.

That's it in a nuthouse.

Warm regards,

A


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: GUEST
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 08:10 AM

Little Hawk asks somewhat provocatively:

"My God, where will it all end?"

To which my reply is, he who started it could easily end it gracefully, if he so desired.


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: GUEST
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 06:35 AM

Little Hawk,

A gentle, enlightened spirit might decide to apologize for shaming people publicly, rather than decide to attack a person directly a second time.

Just a thought.


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Banjer
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 05:52 AM

Looking at this subject from both sides of the fence I have mixed emotions. Yes, without a doubt, we should always strive to maintain proper grammar to the very best of our ability and be willing to learn and improve our skills where needed.

On the other hand, we speak often of the 'folk process'. It appears to me that what we accept as that process in song and story is likewise at work in our language as well. Many words that I grew up with are no longer used for the same things. Think of the Christmas Carol, Deck The Halls. At one time 'don we now our gay apparel' prompted a mental picture of people getiing into their 'happy' duds and having a good time. What do today's children think of it?


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Wolfgang
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 05:45 AM

I'm with Genie and there's no need to repost my point of view.

And to those who think people should write here how they use to speak, da wär die Kommunikation mit mir schnell im Eima und die Kacke am Dampfen.

Wolfgang


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: katlaughing
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 03:40 AM

Got it in a nutshell with one left over, Spaw, neatly done!


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 11:55 PM

Well said Spaw!


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: catspaw49
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 11:53 PM

Geeziz, when you put all that together you get a bread pudding.........

This is about some sillyass kinda' shit ain't it? We should be talking about communicating...not grammar and puctuation. It's harder than hell (the surface of hell being able to withstand molten magma, it must be very hard) to get any inflection in the written word so using "illegal" tools can sometimes be an asset. If you're (yeah, one of my peeves--your for you're) a bit less than perfect, that's okay....try to improve maybe. If you're going off the deep end over trivial shit, try to cope. If we are making ourselves understood to each other, who gives a fuck? (For you pedants, if you know someone who "gives" a fuck have them call me, but if they "give" a shit, my number is unlisted)

Spaw


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Bill D
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 11:51 PM

*giggle*..

(BTW, only one 'l' in solipism...You got a rubber dagger handy?)


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Little Hawk
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 11:20 PM

Okay, that's it. Being accused of being "unfriendly" is simply more than my gentle spirit can endure. I am going to ritually disembowel myself with the rubber sword which I keep in the closet for occasions like this. Goodbye, cruel Mudcat! Adieu! I go to meet my destiny.

- LH

p.s. disquisition: a formal, careful, rather heavy treatment (oral or written) of a subject.

slatternly: dirty, untidy, unkempt, sluttish

Put 'em together and you've got the whole meaning.


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 11:07 PM

I agree with Amergin and Tyke as well.
Little Hawk-What's a slatternly disquisition?
I have noticed there is a lot of threads like this recently,=(lower case posts, bad spelling, use of apostophe etc), I think they might just make people who have problems with english for whatever reason fed up.I notice as well that some people are teachers (Mrs Duck, and Les from Hull was a teacher as well etc), and you never see them critisize people, they are both really friendly.john in hull


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Little Hawk
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 10:46 PM

ROTFLMAO!!! I'm beginning to wonder just who's putting on whom around here, and with whose line of balderdash...

Gosh. Where do I start? Let's see...do I ridicule GUEST for his/her obvious mistakes in interpretive analysis of the original intentions behind this thread? No! That would be rude and insensitive, and we most certainly don't want to accumulate nasty karma in that fashion. By "we" I mean...me and my ego. The real me is filled with compassion for any GUEST who has made the mistake of taking this thread deadly seriously, and thus ruined his/her day by fulminating against it and raising her/his blood pressure in a fruitless endeavour.

My ego on the other hand is feckless, undependable, and somewhat lacking in compassion for people with a semi-functional sense of humour, and my ego is convulsed with laughter!

Typo nazis? Yes! It is no longer enough to just have grammar and spelling nazis. Now we need typo nazis as well. And they're coming to get YOU!!!

Keep in mind that we typo nazis are only doing this for your own good, GUEST, to make the world a better, safer, saner, more healthful, loving and enlightened place. A place where people don't say "who's" when they mean "whose". We have all suffered the shame of making unintentional typos, and it is the memory of that shame which drives us on to purify the world of ALL typos!!!

And don't threaten me with your puny "karma violation citations"! I've had peeled bananas waved in my general direction more than once, and I didn't bat an eyelash. I have faced down rabid slugs in the gardens of doom. I laugh in the face of sollipsism and am impervious to slatternly disquisitions of the sort which you embrace conscientiously, while stirring your oatmeal and declaiming on the merits of incontinence to an unheeding world.

My God, where will it all end? Anybody for scrabble?

- LH


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Tyke
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 10:43 PM

Dear Little Hawk, I must apologise on behalf of the Dyslexic population for our bad spelling, punctuation, and bad grammar. About one in ten people are Dyslexic you know so it must be so frustrating for you. Oh dear!

That said it just not a patch on the frustration that we Dyslexic people suffer year in year out by the jumped up pen pushers who look down there noses at our poor writing skills!

You would not believe the antics that I have to resort to get passed those on the front line of bureaucracy. This front line of form fillers and procedure followers are happy with their lot. They do not need to think they just need to put pen to paper and follow the rules. Perhaps because they have fill up the brains with these rules on spelling and punctuation they have little room left for thought. Once passed this front line of pen pushers I then have to get passed their managers. It then depends on how much of an empire these pen pushers have built how far up the managerial ladder I have to go to get some satisfaction.

I have a feeling that you may not be able to grasp the meaning of the little story that I'm about to relate to you. I'll tell you the story anyway just in case the penny drops. A man in Dublin once made a wager with another man that he could get a new word in to the English Dictionary. He put posters up all round the town with just one word written on it in large letters. So now you know how the word QUIZZ got into the English Language.

The point is it is the use of words that make them alive and useful not the suppression of them. So please before you attempt to put people down because of the use of Language. Think of the damage that you are causing.

Oh I'm using a spell checker on this piece of writing I have it set on British Spellings so it is probably upsetting an awful lot of people. Oh and please don't change any of the spellings or grammar in any songs that I may or may not post! If I have made mistake who's to say that I have not done it on purpose like quite a lot of song book publishers do! I'm certain that Cecil Sharp type song collectors changed the songs! Oh and if you hear me singing a song please don't tell me that I'm singing the wrong tune or the wrong words. There is nothing I hate more than being told it should sound like the one on the McDonalds version. A friend of mine is constantly being told that he is singing "The Man Of The Earth" song wrongly. Oh no he isn't he wrote the song it was made famous by Vin Garbut who sings it differently. But Bernie Parry get's the PRS cos he wrote it so there!!


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Amergin
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 10:34 PM

I am with our Guest...this thing pisses me off..why the fuck do you care about spelling or grammar on a message board? No matter how much you bitch and moan about it, it will not change anything...I see folks here who are coming down on those who write the way they talk...not because they are necessarily lazy...but because they see it as correct...fuck it.


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Joe Offer
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 10:25 PM

Hi, Genie - if you see errors in lyrics posted in the Forum, post a message in that same thread. If it's an error in a song in the Digital Tradition, post a message in an existing thread on the song - or start a new thread. If you put the word CORRECTION in the message title, it helps.
-Joe Offer-


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Genie
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 10:07 PM

I think it's Bill Gates's fault.  (Maybe other software providers had a role, too.)  People rely too much on SpellCheck, for one thing, and it won't catch it if you use "who's" instead of "whose."

Also, SpellCheck sometimes has errors, itself, and they become part of the current language almost over night.  ("Sing-a-long," and "canceled," come to mind.  ["Canceled" is not wrong, but neither is "cancelled," which Word's spell checking tool says it is; "cancelled" is more in line with the general rule for adding suffixes.  "Sing-a-long" is just plain wrong and probably reflects the influence of advertising and marketing trends.]
 

Yeah, Kat, I find a lot of errors in my posts, too, because I don't take a lot of time to edit them and my typing gets sloppy after midnight or after a beer or two.   Sometimes I am amazed to see a "to," where there should be a "too" or just a dumb-looking typo like thios.

And, yes, spelling, grammar, and punctuation do matter--not so much in the forum, but in formal publication, e.g., newspapers,  magazines, product labels, etc.   What irks me is that even the journalists and English teachers often make common mistakes.  (Garrison Keillor, an admitted Englished major, has been known on various occasions to say "between you and I," or "to she and me.")

Sharon, my apostrophes show up here as such, via a Mac, but recently they have been turning into strange strings of characters, as though I were cursing on the keyboard, when I email them. Dunno why.

To all you folks who say it doesn't matter here at Mudcat, I agree with you where forum discussions are concerned. It does not really matter a lot here.

But when you post the lyrics to a song or poem, please try to get the spelling and punctuation right. People copy these and print them in songbooks, where they take on the ring of gospel.

Joe, I am glad you didn't find misuse of "who's" and "whose" in the DT, but I have seen it often in lyrics posted in the forum. It would be nice to have a way of pointing out these errors to Max or whoever selects songs for the DT. That way, they can be corrected before they get into the DT.

Genie


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: GUEST
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 09:36 PM

In fact, you've all pissed me off so much I went to the Core Rules of Netiquette website, just to look up this particular violation:

Rule 10: Be forgiving of other people's mistakes Everyone was a network newbie once. And not everyone has had the benefit of reading this book. So when someone makes a mistake -- whether it's a spelling error or a spelling flame, a stupid question or an unnecessarily long answer -- be kind about it. If it's a minor error, you may not need to say anything. Even if you feel strongly about it, think twice before reacting. Having good manners yourself doesn't give you license to correct everyone else.

If you do decide to inform someone of a mistake, point it out politely, and preferably by private email rather than in public. Give people the benefit of the doubt; assume they just don't know any better. And never be arrogant or self-righteous about it. Just as it's a law of nature that spelling flames always contain spelling errors, notes pointing out Netiquette violations are often examples of poor Netiquette.

And if I was in person, I've give you one of my karma violation citations too.

So there.


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: kendall
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 09:33 PM

Guest AL, or maybe they should be thrown INTO jail. hehehe


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: GUEST
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 09:32 PM

I see. Now it isn't enough to just have grammar and spelling nazis. Now we need typo nazis as well.

I suppose next you'll be telling us you are only doing this for our own good. To make the world a better, safer, saner, more healthful, loving and enlightened place.

Bullshit, I sez. Anybody who goes to this length to correct spelling and grammar is in violation of one of the basic rules of netiquette.


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Amos
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 09:26 PM

There's a difference between the colloquialisms peculiar to this half-mad medium *bg* and the typos of those who rattle off messages in haste, and the clumsy or ignorant abuse of language's conventions by those who should know better. I am inclined to support LH's campaign to improve standards of good English. But I see no use in beleaguering or condemning. Educating will carry you further toward your goal.

A


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Bill D
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 08:38 PM

I don't think anyone is 'making fun' of those who can't cope with complex grammar & spelling, or those who use English, in all her convoluted glory, as a 2nd language....At least all I'd like to see is an attempt by supposed native speakers to avoid the worst egregious errors and pay some attention to the really basic rules.

No one has been singled out by name, and I'd never embarrass anyone that way, but perhaps an occasional humorous thread can help something 'click' in the mind ...I know I have learned stuff that helped me here.

(but the ellipses stay, even though I AM using them incorrectly...*grin*)


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: GUEST,Al
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 08:24 PM

Do you want to know what is even worse than "who's"? I have seen many musicians playing at venues with a jar out for spare change and a sign on the jar that says "tip's". They should be arrested by the grammar police and thrown in jail.


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: GUEST,Fiver
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 08:13 PM

Written English and spoken English are two completely different things, andInternet postings are different animals than either one--even the grammar monkeys use incomplete sentences and goofy punctuation--For all the fuss about the English Language going down the tubes(or at least the American Language), the truth is that all those regional dialects are disappearing--they kids all grew up watching TV, and North, South, East, and West, they all sound the same--it's scary--


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: GUEST
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 08:13 PM

Whose computer are you using, Little Hawk? Whose the person that misuses this the most, Little Hawk? Who's fault is that? Whose going to know the difference?


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: kendall
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 08:11 PM

The saddest thing I have seen here is an English teacher being fired for teaching.


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 07:19 PM

I agree with GUEST, I dont know why some people are really bothered about spelling etc, when this is for people that are interested in folk music.If this was a spelling/proper english forum I would understand, but it is'nt.john


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: Gareth
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 06:52 PM

??? Doctor Who's Tardis ????

or

??? Doctor whoses Tardis ????

My Brain hurts

Gareth


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: GUEST,CLETUS
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 06:40 PM

Doan reckon ittel hert nun fer uz ta uze better grammars an tha like cuz wen sumbuddy gos an sez it bothurz em then I kiny holt with not trine ta pleez em an it doan mattur hooz it iz thet izza axkin senz itz sumpin we all needz ta watch out fer I gess. Hooz axkin inna thizzeer kase iz thet Hawk fellur so whut I wanna no iz hooz with me in aholpin ta maik Littel Hawk feel sum bettor?

CLETUS


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Subject: RE: BS: STOP writing 'Who's'! Enough!!!
From: SharonA
Date: 06 Nov 01 - 06:22 PM

Bill D, I love the "Examples of Real-Life Apostrophe Abuse" page on the site you linked! *G*

Funny thing, though: In all their examples of proper apostrophe usage, they used the IMPROPER single-prime (a.k.a. foot-mark) character instead of an apostrophe!!!! Go figure.

BTW, is there a way to type an apostrophe (using Mac) so that it will show up as such, here on the Forum? Is it an HTML character?


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