> >I never cease to be amazed at the various uses of decimate.
>
> I have made a practice of clenching my teeth and forcing myself to read
> past such gaffes, but since you've cracked the ice...let me add another
> abomination to linguisitic misuse: substituting "alot" for "a lot,"
> which is swiftly becoming a tocsin for a descent into illiteracy.
a language being used to interact with and describe the world as it is
happening will change. languages are evolving things, especially when in
the hands of the young. while at first these corruptions may be
recognized for what they are, some of them eventually become an accepted
part of the language. i don't think it's part of a descent into illiteracy...
i think it's just evolution.
look at the quadrangle of almost any university campus from above. you'll
see the careful arrangement of sidewalks planned by the designers, and
more than likely any number of pathways worn in the grass as people find
better (or just different) ways to get from one point to another.
some people toy with grammar, some with spelling, others recombine words
in unheard-of ways, and some even have the nerve to write without the
use of capital letters! sometimes i find the use of the english language
to be terrific, and other times i find it to be absolutely grinchy!
(p.s. -- i agree with you on that 'alot' thingie, though.)
--
| Napoleon wore a black hat
joe jackson | Ate lots of chicken
e3ujxj@xxxxxxxxxxxxx | And conquered half Europe
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