What a shame that this show is being discarded in favor of endless articles about the same boring topic written to sway the minds of an unreachable and unreasonable audience.
I haven't thought of my Julie Andrews "Firestone" album for decades, somehow lost in my parents' home over time. Then as now, no one is allowed to make an uncomplimentary comment about that amazing entertainer in my presence. So, when at the height of her fame my dad bought one of my favorite albums ever of her singing classic Christmas Carols I had never heard of before, at the gas station, I admit that I was embarrassed for her. How did I know to be such an elitist snob when I was 10? I am learning to forgive myself for my own, such foibles, and thank you Julie Andrews, you will be in my heart forever. Sally Ann Howes, so sorry too that I couldn't give you proper credit for your contributions during this same era. My competitive nature at work again. Thanks for the trip down memory lane.
Like everyone I have these idiosyncrasies. i try not to get too upset about mine or anyone else’s. UNLESS I think that it is not an idiosyncrasy. That somebody is wanting to own language, rather than celebrating it in its beautiful richness. What does OWN mean? It means imposing a single definition. It means using language as a form of coercion.
I feel that this kind of discussion is good if it addresses the social problems we face. If it is just sophistry I think it is on the pointless end of the academic scale. I know that Dr McWhorter has an ear for all of this. Please don’t let this be a platform for in-group frolicking. Linguists need to participate actively and responsibly and stop language being hijacked.
My pet peeve is when people use jealous when they mean envious. Jealous is fear of losing something that is rightfully yours. Envy is a desire for something that is not yours. I think this is an important distinction that I fear will be lost the more people equate these two words.
Nope, you're not alone on this one.I'm also "of a certain age" and I have hated that construction since I was a small child and was taught that folks who didn't speak "correctly" were somehow substandard (not just by my parent's standards, either).
Porsche.
I've always said "porshhh" caused I learned French (second langage) from a very young age.I'm surprised you didn't equate "porsh-uh" to "jag-u-argh" when speaking of the folks that own "porsh-uhs".My personal experience has been those pronunciations are respective to each of those ownership groups; lends to the snobbery appeal, I supposed.
chick (one young bird), chicks (multiple young birds), chicken (one adult bird also meat), chickens (multiple adult birds).
we also have poultry and pullet from the Normans. compare cow (bull, cattle) and beef or swine (pig, hog) and pork where the people who raised animals spoke one language and the nobles who could afford to eat meat spoke another. but poultry does seem at least today to be used on the farm rather than the dining room.
note also child and children with no plural s. perhaps we say chickens to avoid confusion as you can have one chicken but not one children.
What a shame that this show is being discarded in favor of endless articles about the same boring topic written to sway the minds of an unreachable and unreasonable audience.
"Fluffy little fucker" I lost it lmao
I haven't thought of my Julie Andrews "Firestone" album for decades, somehow lost in my parents' home over time. Then as now, no one is allowed to make an uncomplimentary comment about that amazing entertainer in my presence. So, when at the height of her fame my dad bought one of my favorite albums ever of her singing classic Christmas Carols I had never heard of before, at the gas station, I admit that I was embarrassed for her. How did I know to be such an elitist snob when I was 10? I am learning to forgive myself for my own, such foibles, and thank you Julie Andrews, you will be in my heart forever. Sally Ann Howes, so sorry too that I couldn't give you proper credit for your contributions during this same era. My competitive nature at work again. Thanks for the trip down memory lane.
Like everyone I have these idiosyncrasies. i try not to get too upset about mine or anyone else’s. UNLESS I think that it is not an idiosyncrasy. That somebody is wanting to own language, rather than celebrating it in its beautiful richness. What does OWN mean? It means imposing a single definition. It means using language as a form of coercion.
I feel that this kind of discussion is good if it addresses the social problems we face. If it is just sophistry I think it is on the pointless end of the academic scale. I know that Dr McWhorter has an ear for all of this. Please don’t let this be a platform for in-group frolicking. Linguists need to participate actively and responsibly and stop language being hijacked.
My pet peeve is when people use jealous when they mean envious. Jealous is fear of losing something that is rightfully yours. Envy is a desire for something that is not yours. I think this is an important distinction that I fear will be lost the more people equate these two words.
"Can I get a _____"...
Nope, you're not alone on this one.I'm also "of a certain age" and I have hated that construction since I was a small child and was taught that folks who didn't speak "correctly" were somehow substandard (not just by my parent's standards, either).
Porsche.
I've always said "porshhh" caused I learned French (second langage) from a very young age.I'm surprised you didn't equate "porsh-uh" to "jag-u-argh" when speaking of the folks that own "porsh-uhs".My personal experience has been those pronunciations are respective to each of those ownership groups; lends to the snobbery appeal, I supposed.
This one bothers me: "I can help who's next."
It is just such a tacky way of speaking!
As a child of the 80s, my definitive Christmas music collection is Reader's Digest's Christmas Through the Years.
chick (one young bird), chicks (multiple young birds), chicken (one adult bird also meat), chickens (multiple adult birds).
we also have poultry and pullet from the Normans. compare cow (bull, cattle) and beef or swine (pig, hog) and pork where the people who raised animals spoke one language and the nobles who could afford to eat meat spoke another. but poultry does seem at least today to be used on the farm rather than the dining room.
note also child and children with no plural s. perhaps we say chickens to avoid confusion as you can have one chicken but not one children.