Friday, May 20, 2005 at 17:50
>Rubbish is it????
Yes.
>Mike.... in case you don't know...(which I strongly suspect is
>the case!) most people these days communicate via text
>messaging on their telephones....
It’s one of the many methods of communication however it is a _very_ limited one.
>and MOST people use as few characters per word as possible,
And there is a good reason for that – limited message space, limited display, 3 or 4 letters to a key and a general pain in the bottom to use. Morse code is similar in that regard hence the use of ‘Q’ codes and other abbreviations “SOS” for example. However NONE of those limitations apply in this case.
>You ARE right that it isn't in "any text on English usage. " BUT.... it
>will be one day!
It may make it to a dictionary of slang but it won’t go any further.
>And as much as it irks me.... I got used to it.
Well I won’t. Damned if I’ll sit on my bottom and say nothing.
>>And it isn't "this kind of sloppy thinking which has led to the situation
>>we have in this country today where a significant number of children
>>leave school ill educated in even basic literacy and numeracy."
>it's simply a product of a school system that has had the discipline
>removed, kids don't wish to learn and can't be made to learn....
Can you not see the contradiction in your statement? If we allow children to “express themselves freely” with wild English then what hope is there for them to ever learn to use it properly? Like all skills; one must first become, at least, reasonably competent before one may start to break the rules.
>and it has crept into the lounge room at
home as
well.
It bloody
well hasn’t / didn’t in my lounge room!
>Add to that a great number of parents who simply will not
>take responsibilty for the childrens actions...
I’ll agree with you there.
>and the system is already behind the times. It is hard for me
>to teach my children "proper English", but I do persevere.
Funnily enough my elder son (who is now in his mid twenties) recently said that he was very glad I put the effort into helping him develop his vocabulary and grammar. He feels he can communicate with people from all walks of life with confidence.
>If, after all is said and done, greghud chooses to write his messages
>in text style, whether that's because that's all he knows how to do or
>not, is not for you (or I) to judge.....
It damn
well is! If we allow this kind of sloppy language (and thinking) to go unchallenged then, in time, the language will be damaged and people will be less able to express themselves. A grasp of language is very empowering for many people and I will not stand idly by and watch that be destroyed.
>and it isn't for you to say "RUBBISH" to me for pointing
>out the bleeding obvious!
It certainly is. I though you were the one who was fully in favour of free expression? :)
Mike Harding
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