Hear him, hear him. Which if course is the more antique (and logical)
version of hear, hear. I understand that fractured and ugly english gets
into dictionaries. That doesn't make it useful, good, or tolerable.
I also write for a living, Or more accurately, lie for a living, though I've
reformed and now I just screw off. The funniest response to this tirade was
from Dave Talbot, but he sent it only to me since it was couched in highly
indelicate though hilarious language. Dave, you really should consider
sharing it.
I'm sitting in a Best Western in Mission BC (race this weekend at Mission
Raceway Park) and I'm still snickering.
>>My favorite little story about "living language" is that slang comes and
goes in most languages, in unpredictable ways. Today, "lounge lizard" is
a bad Vegas lounge act. Eighty years ago, a "lounge lizard" was a man
who loitered in the lobbies of women's apartment hotels, looking to get
lucky.
However, there are neologisms which do damage to understanding. Using
"architect" as a verb is one of those usages which, ultimately, is an
impediment to clear communication, as is the use of "impact" as a verb.
Those of us from another cultural time don't understand that usage well,
as it brings up mental images of aching teeth, due to its normal
adjectival use. "Proactive" is another personal pet peeve. It's a
neologism that is probably here to stay, but its longevity will never
alter its utter emptiness of intrinsic meaning.
Cheers.
--
Michael D. Porter
Roswell, NM
Never let anyone drive you crazy when you know it's within walking
distance....
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