Before The Age Of Spell Checkers

[highfigh]

Agree with y'all. It is due to the dumbing down of schools. And that is due to the misunderstanding of "equal opportunity" to mean "equal result". As long as we believe that any unequal outcome is our fault, we will continue to decline until the lowest common denominator is finally achieved.

When quotas are involved, opportunity is NOT equal for all.

I went to see a friend at his upholstery shop and a customer came in to pick up the canvas for his boat. As it turned out, he had been my friends' son's high school Chemistry teacher. He retired after last year, mainly because of the way they were required to teach and the restrictions on other aspects. No homework, no tests, no diagramming chemical reactions in the traditional way and when testing on the subject at the end of the semesters, the students were allowed to express the answer in any way they felt appropriate (I originally typed 'think', but that's obviously not the case). They could dance, sing, make a sculpture, write a poem about the answer or whatever. WTF?????????????

If this is common, this country is screwed.

I went to a Chinese restaurant for take out and a couple came in a few minutes before a 20-something guy. As they talked, I noticed that he would take a good amount of time to answer every question, always beginning with "I feel". Every.Freaking.Answer! I wanted to ask if he ever thinks, but that would have made him sad.

 

[highfigh]

My favorite is Nucular!

I use it as often as I can, I have to force myself to use it instead of the proper "nuclear".

One problem I have with people saying 'Nucular' is they're usually well-educated and are being asked for their opinions and thoughts on energy, the environment, etc.

Another problem, for me, is when people from one political party dump on someone from another party when they pronounce this word incorrectly, as they did with W. They conveniently forgot that Jimmy Carter does the same and the irony is that during Carter's time in the Navy, he was assigned to the Naval Reactor branch and spent three months in nuclear power school before resigning his commission following his father's passing.

 

[Trell]

My favorite is Nucular!

I use it as often as I can, I have to force myself to use it instead of the proper "nuclear".

That will make you sound Presidential!

 

[Pogre]

Apostrophe abuse is rampant Lose/loose definitely up there on the abuse ladder too.....

I was guilty of apostrophe abuse until recently. I have made it my mission to stop using them for pluralizing abbreviations, numbers and acronyms. VTF--3s instead of VTF-3's for instance...

 

[Pogre]

One problem I have with people saying 'Nucular' is they're usually well-educated and are being asked for their opinions and thoughts on energy, the environment, etc.

I can't stand that. It's not even a little bit spelled that way...

 

[highfigh]

I can't stand that. It's not even a little bit spelled that way...

OK, how about people who say 'relitor' when it's 'realtor' or 'prespiration' when it's 'perspiration'? Trying to think of more, but I'm too pissed off because the remote software I'm using to replace the remote I'm trying to program isn't working and it wasted more than 3 hours of my time.

 

[slipperybidness]

OK, how about people who say 'relitor' when it's 'realtor' or 'prespiration' when it's 'perspiration'? Trying to think of more, but I'm too pissed off because the remote software I'm using to replace the remote I'm trying to program isn't working and it wasted more than 3 hours of my time.

Let me axe you a question!

I tend to use that one in conversation for the amusement value, but it is way too common!

 

[Pogre]

Let me axe you a question!

In Texas it's pronounced "querstion", actually.

 

[davidscott]

Hmm Lessee (on purpose)
Nucular
Las (no t)
Axe
Worsh or Worshington (my dad rest his soul used these terms)
and many others
I'm originally from Pittsburgh and ou was always pronounced as ah like ahtside or dahntahn.

 

[Pogre]

Hmm Lessee (on purpose)
Nucular
Las (no t)
Axe
Worsh or Worshington (my dad rest his soul used these terms)
and many others
I'm originally from Pittsburgh and ou was always pronounced as ah like ahtside or dahntahn.

I grew up in Reynoldsville and went to high school in Dubois. It's 2 hours or less from Pittsburgh. I fly into Pittsburgh when I go back for visits. I have family in Pittsburgh too.

Needless to say I know the accent you speak of! My dad warshes his hands too, lol. When I first moved out here (Az) people would ask me about my accent. I didn't know I had one! It's gone now, but comes back pretty fast when I go to visit.

 

[davidscott]

I grew up in Reynoldsville and went to high school in Dubois. It's 2 hours or less from Pittsburgh. I fly into Pittsburgh when I go back for visits. I have family in Pittsburgh too.

Needless to say I know the accent you speak of! My dad warshes his hands too, lol. When I first moved out here (Az) people would ask me about my accent. I didn't know I had one! It's gone now, but comes back pretty fast when I go to visit.

I hear you man. When I joined the Air Force in the mid 70s I used to tell everyone that I didn't have an accent. They pretty much said yeah sure buddy. After a while when I went back I definitely heard it. Too funny. And I know where Renoldsville is. How big was that Dubois graduating class? I went to Baldwin and we had about 900 seniors.

 

[lovinthehd]

At least we can mostly understand each others' dialect/accent....I had some roommates from the UK who said they'd have a hard time understanding folk from certain districts different from their own! I "had" a midwest accent before I moved to the west coast as a teenager....not sure what I have now.

 

[Pogre]

I hear you man. When I joined the Air Force in the mid 70s I used to tell everyone that I didn't have an accent. They pretty much said yeah sure buddy. After a while when I went back I definitely heard it. Too funny. And I know where Renoldsville is. How big was that Dubois graduating class? I went to Baldwin and we had about 900 seniors.

Oh man, I don't think we had more than 500 seniors, if that. I think there were around a thousand students grade 9 through 12. Small world man. The first 12 years of my life I grew up about 10 miles outside of Reynoldsville in the sticks. Moving there was like moving to the big city for me, lol. And yeah, the last time I went back the accent is so obvious now.

 

[highfigh]

My mom was from Chanute, Kansas, by way of Parsons, KS. She and my dad met when he was in the Army during WWII and she was in the USO- neither had a good life growing up, so that was a good way for them to base their life after the war, living in the Milwaukee area. One day, she was at home when the mail arrived and as she answered the door & chatted with the carrier, he said "Well, Mrs N________- you have an accent!" She calmly over-emphasized it as she asked, "Ah Hayave?". He laughed and after she told him where she came from, he asked if she had known a particular man in Parsons and she said, "I should- he was my uncle".

She could talk to her sister or cousin for ten minutes and she would sound as if she never left.

I called MasterCraft boats to get some technical info and the receptionist answered the phone with her best Tennessee drawl. I began to say why I called at my typical upper Midwest tempo and she started to giggle. I asked why and she said 'Y'all talk so fayast".

 

[GO-NAD!]

Internet news sources and the proliferation of shorthand for texting has killed the proper grasp of how to use the English language in print.

Even respected news outlets online, I constantly find mistakes in grammar, subject/verb agreement, and spelling errors! And the misuse of two/to/too, they're/there/their. A simple spell checker will never catch these errors.

If I were the editor of such publications, I would not tolerate that. Likely, the editors nowadays are not up to the task of even identifying the problems themselves.

On a side note--I constantly have spell checkers mis-identifying scientific words as misspelled, simply because those scientific terms are not in the database.

News organisations used to have copy editors on staff. But, they are going the way of the dodo, due to budget concerns. Plus, there is so much pressure to get content out there, that journalists have little time to proof-read there own pieces.

I have a nephew who is a journalist. He stands out as being very conscientious about his work. I have yet to spot an error in any of his work.

 

[highfigh]

This is a headline from today's Yahoo home page-

"College Tailgating Rankings: Wisconsin Party's Hard".

 

[KEW]

I was guilty of apostrophe abuse until recently. I have made it my mission to stop using them for pluralizing abbreviations, numbers and acronyms. VTF--3s instead of VTF-3's for instance...

Pogre, this is not specifically directed at you, rather your post was the most clear about questioning how apostrophes should be used.
Do you have a reference on that?
I am pretty sure that is an appropriate use of the apostrophe!
If I were to say "I enjoy listening to my VMS-8s", you would have little idea of whether the model number is VMS-8 and I have more than one or if the model number is "VMS-8s".
You would certainly not write "Count how many is there are in Mississippi" vs "Count how many i's there are in Mississippi"!

Okay, I did some research on this and it does seem that there is a trend to reduce the use of the apostrophe where not needed for clarity.
For example CDs is preferred to CD's (although CD's is considered a valid option - IOW, the reference I read was not absolute about NOT using an apostrophe here).
However it does specify that it is preferred to drop the apostrophe when the apostrophe is not needed for clarity. Obviously, for something like CD there is no risk of confusion. However, I would argue that for my PSA XS-15se's the apostrophe provides a useful distinction and would consider it wrong to write "for my PSA XS-15ses the apostrophe provides ..." because it makes it clear that the second s is not part of the model number.
Your VTF-3's are a common enough model for the regulars here to know, and the fact that all other letters are capitalized would help others guess that the s is not part of the model number, but they are guessing. So I would consider that a gray area!

However, I, personally, will continue using apostrophes as I have. I have always considered 60 old, and now that I am over 60, it is my privilege to be an asshole who is stuck in his ways (Wow! no censorship of asshole!),and I fully intend to exercise that privilege!

As a matter of fact, just to show you all what a belligerent curmudgeon I am, I will continue to write 70's instead of '70s, defiantly dropping the required apostrophe before the 7 (based on it being a contraction of 1970) while including the totally unnecessary apostrophe before the s! Ha! Suck it! Now get the f' off of my lawn!

 

[KEW]

This is a headline from today's Yahoo home page-

"College Tailgating Rankings: Wisconsin Party's Hard".

So they were passing out Viagra!
What's your point?

 

[Pogre]

For clarity's sake I think the lower case s at the end of capitalized abbreviations, numbers, etc would be the way to disinguish. Like PSA XS - 15SEs. If the last 2 letters were lower case then I can see room for confusion. Pretty much most of everything abbreviated like that are usually upper case.

 

[KEW]

For clarity's sake I think the lower case s at the end of capitalized abbreviations, numbers, etc would be the way to go. Like PSA XS - 15SEs. If the last 2 letters are lower case then I can see room for confusion. Pretty much most of everything abbreviated like that are usually upper case.

Interesting, PSA used XS15SE at the top of the page, but XS15se throughout the body of the description and elsewhere below it! Just wanted to let you know I was not "manufacturing" the situation with the lower case letters - I'm not THAT belligerent!

https://www.powersoundaudio.com/pages/xs15se
https://www.hometheatershack.com/forums/speaker-subwoofer-reviews/93241-powersound-audio-xs15se-subwoofer-review.html