Comments on: TV’s War on “Me” and “I” http://www.dailywritingtips.com/tvs-war-on-me-and-i/ Wed, 08 Feb 2012 18:41:25 +0000 hourly 1 By: Mike http://www.dailywritingtips.com/tvs-war-on-me-and-i/comment-page-1/#comment-395732 Mike Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:12:51 +0000 http://www.dailywritingtips.com/tvs-war-on-me-and-i/#comment-395732 Why do pronouns still have objective and subjective cases? No other nouns have them. If we want language to be "correct" all the time, we need to remove "me", "us", and "him" from the language. Why do pronouns still have objective and subjective cases? No other nouns have them. If we want language to be “correct” all the time, we need to remove “me”, “us”, and “him” from the language.

]]> By: Ray Lance http://www.dailywritingtips.com/tvs-war-on-me-and-i/comment-page-1/#comment-387363 Ray Lance Tue, 17 May 2011 23:53:45 +0000 http://www.dailywritingtips.com/tvs-war-on-me-and-i/#comment-387363 Different from is fine. What is wrong about different than? The recent one that bothers me is different to. What's the logic behind that? But, much as I would prefer unchanging correct grammar rules, language has always evolved. The ones that don't are not spoken anymore (dead languages). Different from is fine. What is wrong about different than?

The recent one that bothers me is different to. What’s the logic behind that?

But, much as I would prefer unchanging correct grammar rules, language has always evolved. The ones that don’t are not spoken anymore (dead languages).

]]> By: Doug http://www.dailywritingtips.com/tvs-war-on-me-and-i/comment-page-1/#comment-357306 Doug Fri, 28 Jan 2011 17:09:43 +0000 http://www.dailywritingtips.com/tvs-war-on-me-and-i/#comment-357306 A previous poster in this thread wrote "We say me too because that’s what is said by everyone. What everyone says is correct. That’s the way language works." By this logic, then, "me and him should of went to the movies" should be considered correct? Most assuredly, that abomination flies regularly out of the mouths of a majority of under-25 people with whom I'm acquainted. But the notion that such endemic (mis) usage somehow makes garbage-speak like that "correct" just boggles the mind. Are we to change all of our textbooks from "he and I [verb]" to "me and him [verb]" and "should have gone" to "should of went" just because the number of ignoramuses who can't be bothered to learn their native language exceeds the number who do learn more or less correct English? I'm sorry, but I have serious issues with the anarchistic "anything people say is correct" approach to language. It seems to me more on the order of a lame excuse for linguistic ignorance and/or laziness. Language without rules is just noise; unintelligible babble. The job of dictionaries and other linguistic authorities should be twofold: to document current usage AND to cite the correct forms when they differ from current usage. Just documenting current usage and calling it "correct" is a cop-out and a disservice to us all. *climbs down off of soap box and wanders aimlessly away, muttering vague imprecations to self and wiping spittle from mustache* :-) A previous poster in this thread wrote “We say me too because that’s what is said by everyone. What everyone says is correct. That’s the way language works.”

By this logic, then, “me and him should of went to the movies” should be considered correct? Most assuredly, that abomination flies regularly out of the mouths of a majority of under-25 people with whom I’m acquainted. But the notion that such endemic (mis) usage somehow makes garbage-speak like that “correct” just boggles the mind.

Are we to change all of our textbooks from “he and I [verb]” to “me and him [verb]” and “should have gone” to “should of went” just because the number of ignoramuses who can’t be bothered to learn their native language exceeds the number who do learn more or less correct English?

I’m sorry, but I have serious issues with the anarchistic “anything people say is correct” approach to language. It seems to me more on the order of a lame excuse for linguistic ignorance and/or laziness.

Language without rules is just noise; unintelligible babble. The job of dictionaries and other linguistic authorities should be twofold: to document current usage AND to cite the correct forms when they differ from current usage.

Just documenting current usage and calling it “correct” is a cop-out and a disservice to us all.

*climbs down off of soap box and wanders aimlessly away, muttering vague imprecations to self and wiping spittle from mustache*

:-)

]]> By: S.Blankstein http://www.dailywritingtips.com/tvs-war-on-me-and-i/comment-page-1/#comment-290097 S.Blankstein Wed, 23 Jun 2010 00:15:03 +0000 http://www.dailywritingtips.com/tvs-war-on-me-and-i/#comment-290097 Somehow I missed this nice article! Loved the "PhD" (last) example. The new president of Ukraine (Yanukovitch) is known to his constituency as "proFFessor": This is how he spelled his occupation in the election campaign forms. Somehow I missed this nice article! Loved the “PhD” (last) example. The new president of Ukraine (Yanukovitch) is known to his constituency as “proFFessor”: This is how he spelled his occupation in the election campaign forms.

]]> By: ekw http://www.dailywritingtips.com/tvs-war-on-me-and-i/comment-page-1/#comment-127051 ekw Fri, 12 Jun 2009 22:35:09 +0000 http://www.dailywritingtips.com/tvs-war-on-me-and-i/#comment-127051 I have noticed that many people use the incorrect "I", and I think that in some cases it's done in order to sound educated. They don't know why there is a difference between the two, they have no idea that there is a grammar rule about subject and object, they just think that "I" sounds classier (a word that I love to hate but here it is apt), more "upscale" (how much do you hate *that* word?). I, also, tell people to eliminate the "and" and then listen to what it sounds like. I tell them, if you would use the word "we" then use the word "I"; if you would use the word, "us", then use the word "me". The same goes for they and them. And I also hate "different than", I can't stand the sound of it or the sight of it. "Different from" calms me down. I have noticed that many people use the incorrect “I”, and I think that in some cases it’s done in order to sound educated. They don’t know why there is a difference between the two, they have no idea that there is a grammar rule about subject and object, they just think that “I” sounds classier (a word that I love to hate but here it is apt), more “upscale” (how much do you hate *that* word?). I, also, tell people to eliminate the “and” and then listen to what it sounds like. I tell them, if you would use the word “we” then use the word “I”; if you would use the word, “us”, then use the word “me”. The same goes for they and them. And I also hate “different than”, I can’t stand the sound of it or the sight of it. “Different from” calms me down.

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