*fanfare*

[skreidle]

Even though Brandon doesn't know me, I'm his hero!
(Here's why!. Fair warning, you'll probably find it offensive. On several levels. :)

Yeah, I can be a bitch sometimes, but this was so called for. This girl is 27 and writing to her "boy friend" in misspelled chat-speak. (And has her LJ name set as "*.:~:.*dahling*.:~:.*". Among other things, which I'm sure you can find for yourself.)

Comments

[alacrity.livejournal.com]

Scott, you rock sometimes. :-)

[skreidle.livejournal.com]

But wait, there's more!

I wonder how it feels to be fighting a battle on princple when you're on the wrong side?

..probably "geez, what an Asshole y doesnt he chill????!! LOLOLOLOLOL"

[six2.livejournal.com]

I would have been more impressed if they had used a more intelligent argument. Some freespeling-style argument. But there were more personal attacks going on than actual discussion of the English language and usage.

[skreidle.livejournal.com]

True.

On a Freespeling note, there are more flaws in that argument than I care to consider, most especially--unless you can convince everyone to freespel everything the same (unlikely, since it says not to strive for consistency, and everyone -would- be choosing different phonetics), it will be chaos, with everyone trying to spell things their own way, making dictionaries (among other texts) next to impossible to create. You'll spend half your time trying to figure out what people are trying to say phonetically, before you can actually consider content. Consistency makes communication possible.
I understand that the goal is to add to the English lexicon all of these phonetic spellings, but I still find it basically flawed.

Another false point they mention on that page is that "Shakespeare was a freespeler before writing got fossilized".. no, not really. He was writing in Old or Middle English (I forget which), which was common at the time and has now evolved into modern English.

From my own experience, a) "Unconventional" spelling means "wrong", b) people are resistant to change, and this is trying to change a long-seated establishment that probably can't change. Language reflects culture, and currently culture seems to want the language pretty much how it is.

...he picks on the California state flower, which has a Latin name.

All in all, it seems like an excuse for literacy.

Re:

[six2.livejournal.com]

i am neither picky about usage, nor fanatical about freespeling and changing the establishment.

i do prefer language that is obviously deliberate and intentional - it is one thing to make an intentional mistake for the purposes of personal preference (such as my occational lack of uppercase letters), versus st00pid kRaD spelling.

Either way, i wasn't very impressed with what she wrote, and even if it had been free of errors, i'd have skipped right over it as i do most of the web garbage i see.

[jazzfish]

Not to nitpick, but Shakespeare was actually writing in Modern English, before it got formalized. Middle English is actually a whole 'nother language (Chaucer).

Other than that, I agree with you... phonetics are a hideous way to try and formalize spelling. Try reading anything written in dialect for a good example of why (Faulkner, Joyce, etc...)
Usage does not dictate rules. Rules dictate usage.

[skreidle.livejournal.com]

And while I understand that language evolves, you can't force evolution.

Besides, I -like- the English language as it is. Even if plenty of people can't be bothered to learn it well.

[skiterlady.livejournal.com]

Good for you, Scott. I'm sick of encountering that kind of tripe as well. It's bad enough finding the odd random journal peppered with it, but you'd think there would be a certain amount of shame involved in posting it in a community. I can't believe anyone finds it defensible. Tsk. Sad.

[skreidle.livejournal.com]

There's no shame, remorse, or desire to change in that girl, which isn't anything more or less than I expected.

I have, however, raised quite the ruckus in that thread.. several of my friends, as well as some of their friends, have joined the fray. :)

*grin*

[ezme9.livejournal.com]

*likes to incite the ruckus*

Re: *grin*

[skreidle.livejournal.com]

Let the Wild Rumpus begin!

[ezme9.livejournal.com]

i love you. i love where the wild things are and i love that you reference my favorite bit.

"and when he came to the place where the wild things are they roared their terrible roars and gnashed their terrible teeth and rolled their terrible eyes and showed their terrible claws till max said "be still!" ...and [they] called him the most wild thing of all and made him king of the wild things.

"and now," cried max, "let the wild rumpus start!"

*grin*

[skreidle.livejournal.com]

*big grin* It doesn't surprise me in the slightest that you like that book.. glad I brought it up. =)

[ezme9.livejournal.com]

that was from memory too. my newish copy is in the bookcase next to my desk (my old copy having been given to lily when she learned to read) and i made but two errors. pretty impressive. then again, i did teach kindergarten for two years... ;)