the article said:
...the robber waived the gun...
you don't say...
computers killed the english language.
homophones, people! they're (note which spelling is called for here) not that tough.
teach the kids while they are still young, because that's when it sticks. basic spelling and grammar are soaked up like a sponge by young children. after a certain age (5-10), the expansion of language comprehension is hindered. it's key to lock in those skills early so they remain ingrained throughout adulthood. one can only go so far with limited proficiency in the local language, and the more damage still is caused when this language is one's mother tongue and she has not mastered it.
note: the study of philosophy has produced the reasoning that the ideal pronoun to use is "she" when a hypothetical third person singular of no particular gender is mentioned. examples:
"everyone must do their share." very commonly used, especially in parlance, but incorrect. each one person does not do the whole share for some other group of people (they for their). "their" is the wrong pronoun altogether.
"everyone must do his share." more correct than above, and with male acting as a default by societal convention.
"everyone must do his or her share." most correct, but radically one could argue that the hypothetical person may be born intersexed and be a member of both or possibly neither gender. in any event, "his or her" or even "his/her" is extremely cumbersome.
"everyone must do her share." philosophy recommends this usage. the politically correct version above is particularly annoying for philosophers who often work in hypotheticals. additionally, the "his" version was the norm for so many centuries, that a la affirmative action, we now let the females have the honour of being the default for a time. (in that vein, maybe all vehicles should be called "him" and given men's names too)
anyhow if you read all this, hope you found it interesting. it is one of my pet peeves to see these errors occurring. unbelievable that someone who can't compose a basic sentence or confuses 0.49c with $0.49 can actually make it in this world. computers, spell check, txt and the blogosphere (and rampant portmanteau-izations) are changing that permanently. look at myself even, i've done away with any capitalizations whatsoever. and comma spliced just then. nevertheless, when professionalism must shine through, i have the ability to do it right.
that was a massive post! at least kk will have a laugh at my rantishness. i better go buzz him and alert him to the thread.
shucks, i missed casino matron! glad a screenie was posted of the layout.
adieu, -hGb
**in retrospect, "everyone" was a bad example because it's actually even more complex, in that "everyone leaned against the high side, and their weight brought the heel of the ship back to normal" would be correct, because only the weight of the entire group of a particular set of people defined as everyone in that scenario brought the ship's heel back. "each one" is actually what "everyone" is meant to mean in my examples about doing one's share. language is so bloody interesting. i think so, at least. does that make me a looser? (had to)
