Active Users:472 Time:01/07/2025 06:04:17 AM
Back to Messageboard Post New Thread Search Help Stats Rules
Bring back the BSG! Joel Send a noteboard - 05/10/2011 08:55:32 PM
1. Does anybody (besides me) use proper grammar when texting, posting on Facebook, etc.?

I always make a conscious effort to use proper grammar. Anything less would be uncivilized.

Henceforth I shall refer to you as "the Right Guard of Grammar." :P
2. Do you correct somebody who uses incorrect grammar while talking? If not, do you at least do it in your head?

Yes. Errors that irritate me most as of late: 1) incorrect use of the subjunctive (e.g., "I wish I was..." ); 2) incorrect use of the nominal case for personal pronouns when the direct object or object of a preposition (e.g., "Between you and I..." ); and 3) misuse of apostrophes (e.g., "The website has an error on it's homepage" ).

While I generally share your feelings here, I am very conflicted on the subjunctive. On the one hand, it is legitimate grammar, and a necessary concept for effective communication; on the other, its usage is becoming almost non-existent and, in practice, when speakers and writers incorrectly use the simple past tense as subjunctive their listeners and readers immediately and fully understand the usage AS subjunctive. It is hard to argue maintaining the subjunctive as a distinct construction still adds anything to the language rather than merely complicating (and thus confusing) it needlessly. The subject came up in my recent norskkurs: Norwegian apparently has no distinct subjunctive mood AT ALL, and does not feel the lack. The comparison reminds me of another reason for me to dislike subjunctive: German, where the difference between simple past tense and the subjunctive mood is no more than a stupid umlaut. O^
3. Do you wince whenever you read a particularly awful Facebook post?

I don't just wince. I usually make a snide remark that points out the error.

There is such a thing as constructive criticism; granted, you did not ask me, but I would wager most of your grammar students would say the same to you. ;)
4. Have you noticed a trend on Facebook where people don't even bother using periods to separate sentences anymore?

Yes. The majority of people are stupid. One must always keep this in mind. A corollary to this is that no one believes himself to be stupid.

Do you include the merely ignorant in that majority? There is a difference between not knowing and not caring.
5. Have you noticed misspelled words that have nothing to do with 140 character length? (Today I saw somebody spell "do" as "dew";)

Of course. On LinkedIn, where one would hope a higher level of perfection is sought since it is primarily a business tool, I saw one person refer to himself as a "principle" of his company. It's refreshing to see people representing abstract ideas again, like in the Greek tragedies.

I recall a commercial where a manager showing a new employee his work station confidently assured him he would be able to figure everything out on his own. The employee responded, "It's OK; I have an MBA," prompting the manager to say, "Oh... you have an MBA... in that case, let me just get you started...." ;)
6. (Off topic) Are people whiny bitches on Facebook or what?

The majority of statements on Facebook are self-absorbed narcissistic bullshit.

Again, one of its primary purposes, if not THE primary purpose.
7. Has anybody ever called you a Grammar Nazi?

All the time. I like to take the analogy another step and say that I'm the Führer of the Grammar Reich, may it last a thousand years.

Seriously, whatever happened to the BSG?
8. Has Twitter and texting eroded proper grammar for today's youths?

Since we're discussing grammar, I would note that you have a plural subject with a singular verb form, and that "youth" is a collective noun better left in the singular (though that last point is really more a stylistic choice). I believe that the failure begins in the educational system, and social media are nothing more than a reflection of this failure.

Refer to my response to Nate. Tell me again why nested threads are better than paged threads. ;) Also: My Cousin Vinny. :P
9. Have you succumbed to the 140 character shortcuts? How often do you text or tweet this way?

I do not use Twitter. I loathe sending SMS messages, but prior to getting a smart phone I did abbreviate out of irritation (e.g., "can i c u b4 2mrw?" ). However, this was the result of having a numeric keypad only.

I hate that.
10. Were there any grammatical mistakes in this survey?

Yes. I just told you.

I dispute that for the reasons elsewhere stated, but am open to correction if shown to be in error. :)
Honorbound and honored to be Bonded to Mahtaliel Sedai
Last First in wotmania Chat
Slightly better than chocolate.

Love still can't be coerced.
Please Don't Eat the Newbies!

LoL. Be well, RAFOlk.
This message last edited by Joel on 05/10/2011 at 08:56:22 PM
Reply to message
Grammar junkies Dark Knight - 05/10/2011 06:46:31 PM 1079 Views
I'm not always sure that I'm correct, but.... nossy - 05/10/2011 07:04:13 PM 773 Views
I didn't see any errors Dark Knight - 05/10/2011 07:24:27 PM 756 Views
Re: I didn't see any errors nossy - 06/10/2011 03:14:07 PM 634 Views
You mean ... Nate - 06/10/2011 03:58:32 PM 686 Views
Must ... have ... grammar. Nate - 05/10/2011 07:53:34 PM 943 Views
For you and Tom as well, the same question about question eight. Joel - 05/10/2011 08:33:39 PM 1207 Views
Tom can probably give you actual terms and correct rules, but here's my take on it. Nate - 05/10/2011 08:43:47 PM 713 Views
Er...yes I meant them as a singular idea... *NM* Dark Knight - 05/10/2011 08:47:34 PM 448 Views
Use them together, and only together, for fifteen years and we can discuss this again. *NM* Tom - 05/10/2011 09:32:30 PM 379 Views
That makes sense as far as it goes. Joel - 05/10/2011 09:02:42 PM 751 Views
But do you actually regard them that way? Nate - 05/10/2011 09:08:36 PM 747 Views
Yeah, pretty much. Joel - 05/10/2011 09:25:18 PM 705 Views
Re: Yeah, pretty much. Nate - 05/10/2011 09:29:33 PM 569 Views
OK then. Joel - 05/10/2011 09:59:50 PM 746 Views
No, Joel. You're just wrong. Again. Get used to it. We have. Tom - 05/10/2011 09:31:21 PM 648 Views
I can live with being wrong, at least in the sense of technical error. Joel - 05/10/2011 10:06:30 PM 742 Views
Let's just pare this down to the bare bones. Tom - 06/10/2011 01:37:30 AM 603 Views
He made a mistake that I did not recognize as a mistake because I read his words as he intended. Joel - 06/10/2011 04:43:39 AM 749 Views
You bring up a point that I was researching the other day Dark Knight - 05/10/2011 08:53:40 PM 796 Views
You guys mean a hyphen, not a dash. Rebekah - 05/10/2011 09:00:25 PM 728 Views
You're right of course! Nate - 05/10/2011 09:13:44 PM 810 Views
I frequently am. Rebekah - 05/10/2011 09:16:38 PM 808 Views
So I've noticed. Nate - 05/10/2011 09:19:38 PM 719 Views
I like telling people, too. Rebekah - 05/10/2011 09:34:50 PM 721 Views
You can use charmap. Joel - 05/10/2011 10:21:32 PM 767 Views
Re: You guys mean a hyphen, not a dash. Stephen - 06/10/2011 01:15:02 PM 688 Views
Mmm, dashing. Nate - 05/10/2011 09:02:53 PM 727 Views
Emdashing is an entirely different form of punctuation. Joel - 05/10/2011 09:07:36 PM 775 Views
Achtung! Grammatik! :insert Nazi-saluting smiley as the Wehrmacht marches by: Tom - 05/10/2011 08:10:45 PM 844 Views
I love this bit. Nate - 05/10/2011 08:26:52 PM 837 Views
Bring back the BSG! Joel - 05/10/2011 08:55:32 PM 751 Views
Re: your 2nd irritating error for question 2 Sareitha Sedai - 06/10/2011 04:12:49 PM 703 Views
Good poll, especially for this site. Joel - 05/10/2011 08:11:10 PM 843 Views
Re: serial comma. Nate - 05/10/2011 08:31:58 PM 718 Views
Maybe I was being a little anal there. Joel - 05/10/2011 08:35:33 PM 687 Views
Same here Dark Knight - 05/10/2011 08:43:34 PM 621 Views
I think it's conventional to use a comma before "etc". Rebekah - 05/10/2011 08:55:11 PM 699 Views
Re: Grammar junkies random thoughts - 05/10/2011 08:33:06 PM 737 Views
Re: Grammar junkies Dark Knight - 05/10/2011 08:49:43 PM 787 Views
People should talk in a way that can be understood, else they are not communicating. Joel - 05/10/2011 09:17:37 PM 784 Views
Re: "everyone's". ~winky~ *NM* Nate - 05/10/2011 09:22:18 PM 365 Views
Is it time for my lecture on superfluous apostrophes again? Joel - 05/10/2011 09:43:47 PM 687 Views
You mean your lecture on "superfluous" apostrophes. Rebekah - 05/10/2011 09:53:31 PM 646 Views
As have I. Multiple times. *NM* Ghavrel - 05/10/2011 09:55:08 PM 352 Views
I am not stubborn, just true to my convictions. Joel - 05/10/2011 09:56:39 PM 896 Views
Unsurprisingly, I don't really agree with you at all on this point. :p Nate - 05/10/2011 10:29:59 PM 770 Views
I do not really think I am "right" on this one so much as "not wrong." Joel - 06/10/2011 12:01:36 AM 676 Views
But contradictions are inherent in the entire English language! Nate - 06/10/2011 01:25:39 AM 694 Views
Ghoti. Also, this is why Rebekah and don't argue this any more. *NM* Ghavrel - 06/10/2011 04:44:42 AM 324 Views
Sure, but not deliberate ones created by grammarians who know better. Joel - 06/10/2011 05:40:58 AM 701 Views
I'm going to listen to the others. Nate - 06/10/2011 06:17:18 AM 717 Views
Like I say, I appreciate exceptions when justified (and again, only claiming to be "not wrong." ) Joel - 06/10/2011 07:26:18 AM 611 Views
But you are wrong Sareitha Sedai - 06/10/2011 02:17:40 PM 742 Views
that is OK he is very good at being wrong *NM* random thoughts - 06/10/2011 03:43:23 PM 387 Views
I disagree. Joel - 07/10/2011 12:15:14 AM 685 Views
How utterly unsurprising Sareitha Sedai - 07/10/2011 02:21:38 PM 638 Views
"We want to be nothing if not persistent." Joel - 07/10/2011 02:39:19 PM 699 Views
Doesn't matter. Sareitha Sedai - 07/10/2011 03:12:14 PM 727 Views
Perhaps not, but it should, and I am not above being a lone voice crying in the wilderness. Joel - 08/10/2011 05:17:35 PM 791 Views
What. Zeeb - 06/10/2011 06:17:41 PM 783 Views
Those cases are not the same, because those words are already possessive in their own right. Joel - 06/10/2011 10:52:06 PM 777 Views
if you have trouble understanding my post it is more likely do to typing skills than grammar random thoughts - 05/10/2011 09:31:42 PM 696 Views
Likely so; I have the same problem, but usually when writing by hand. Joel - 05/10/2011 09:53:08 PM 676 Views
You called? Rebekah - 05/10/2011 08:53:54 PM 745 Views
Grammar schmammar! Avendesora - 05/10/2011 09:01:47 PM 820 Views
Wongy tip #77 Two Wongs - 05/10/2011 11:15:12 PM 682 Views
#1) I do not use NetSpeak while playing games, texting or using social media. TaskmasterJack - 05/10/2011 11:34:12 PM 694 Views
What about NateSpeak? *NM* Nate - 06/10/2011 04:01:08 PM 341 Views
I did use that once to tell the story of you and CNRedDragon going to see Ice Princess. *NM* TaskmasterJack - 07/10/2011 01:46:50 AM 339 Views
A timeless classic. Nate - 07/10/2011 01:53:36 AM 662 Views
Re: Grammar junkies wolfsister - 06/10/2011 01:17:28 AM 707 Views
Yes. Camilla - 06/10/2011 06:53:46 AM 646 Views
I forgot about "of" for "have." Joel - 06/10/2011 07:31:11 AM 685 Views
I try ironclad - 06/10/2011 09:18:29 AM 744 Views
I freebase split infinitives on a regular basis. Stephen - 06/10/2011 01:53:36 PM 621 Views
The split infinitive is not grammatically incorrect. Tom - 06/10/2011 02:04:34 PM 646 Views
I wish more people knew this. Rebekah - 06/10/2011 07:38:46 PM 644 Views
Junky Grammar. Sareitha Sedai - 06/10/2011 04:24:01 PM 637 Views
Back to Messageboard Post New Thread Search Help Stats Rules

Reply to Message

Block Quote Paragraph Quote
Formatting
Smiley Codes