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Ojedieu -> A new take on the Grammar/Spelling Nazi thing (9/9/2005 11:23:15 PM)
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Ok, I admit it, I'm one of those horrible spelling/grammar Nazis.
I've seen an awful lot of discussion over it encompassing everything from whether or not it's rude to misspell, what spelling says or doesn't say about a person, tolerance of misspellings, English as a second language, and various rants...
What I haven't seen yet is a proactive approach. By that I mean there are some people who just don't know that they're misspelling/using the wrong word as a descriptor or have other problems with the written word that they'd gladly fix if they knew about them -- they just don't. It would be rude to point these out and make corrections directly to the person via either a public post or via email. I wouldn't want to do that and I doubt very many other people would want to either. I know there are probably things I do that are incorrect and I’d love to have the option to learn and correct them.
So what I propose is this: let's use this forum to a) vent a little while b) informing and educating those who wish to read it. I know there are lots of people who misspell or use words incorrectly who have no desire to use a spellchecker and think we're making a big thing out of a very insignificant detail. That's fine, I'm not trying to change them and this forum wouldn't be for them, so if you're one of them, please don't rant about it here -- just ignore this topic.
I want to use this forum as a way to vent our pet peeves without singling anyone out personally, so no posts should be directed at a single person (though just because a gripe is posted that happens to be something you do, doesn’t mean it’s directed at you either – lots of people make the same mistakes). Most of us spelling/grammar Nazis have *many, many* gripes and pet peeves, so I also propose that we get to post *one* gripe over just *one* word, per day per person, explain what the gripe is, then explain the correct usage and give an example. That way we (hopefully) don’t get redundancy and also don’t put out too much to absorb in one sitting. No one wants to read a two-page essay paper on everything one particular person has to say, however, small digestible bits might be ok, and make for a short diversion each day.
A post might look a little like this: (this is just one I remember seeing a gripe about, not mine personally)
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Topic: discrete vs. discreet
Gripe: A lot of people use “discrete” when they mean “discreet”
Explanation: Here’s the difference and you can see why using the right one might be important.
Definitions:
Discrete: dis•crete (d -skr t ) adj.
1. Constituting a separate thing. See Synonyms at distinct.
2. Consisting of unconnected distinct parts.
3. Mathematics. Defined for a finite or countable set of values; not continuous.
Discreet: dis•creet (d -skr t ) adj.
1. Marked by, exercising, or showing prudence and wise self-restraint in speech and behavior; circumspect.
2. Free from ostentation or pretension; modest.
So if you say you’re looking for a “discrete” relationship, you’re actually implying that you want a separate relationship, not necessarily one that is restrained or on the hush-hush.
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Again, this would be a forum for we, the nitpickers, to both vent a bit and elucidate without pointing fingers or embarrassing people, and for those who would like to pick up a thing or two from us, and for us to learn from each other. Any people who think we’re silly buggers with our heads up our butts can just ignore us.
Whatcha think, anyone want to join in and have a go?
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