Q Talk

[PA Mom-mom]

@geezerette  I'm not sure what to call the term for that malady, but it gives me the shivers! I call it "restating the subject." I hear it everywhere but mostly in local broadcast news.

[handygal2]

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@Icegoddess wrote:

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@PA Mom-mom wrote:

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@Icegoddess wrote:

My biggest pet peeve is that nobody seems to know the difference anymore between the proper use of the words fewer vs less.  Maybe the rules have changed and I didn't get the memo, but I also still use that comma that many consider optional before the word "and" in lists.

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@Icegoddess  It's called the Oxford comma. Now, when I'm proofreading a proposal or assessment, I have to ask if the client prefers to use the Oxford, or not. In general, the state and federal agencies we deal with do not use the Oxford comma. I prefer to use it.

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@PA Mom-mom Correct, I couldn't remember the name of it.

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@Icegoddess , @PA Mom-mom : I recall reading about a lawsuit that resulted from omission of the Oxford comma. That simple omission cost a dairy company $5 million!!

Here’s the article, from USA Today, published Feb. 8, 2018:

PORTLAND, Maine — A Maine dairy company has settled a lawsuit over an overtime dispute that was the subject of a ruling hinging on the use of the Oxford comma.

Drivers with Oakhurst Dairy filed the lawsuit in 2014 seeking more than $10 million. Court documents filed Thursday show that they settled for $5 million.

A federal appeals court decided to keep the drivers’ lawsuit alive last year. The suit concerned an exemption from Maine’s overtime law that says it doesn’t apply to “canning, processing, preserving, freezing, drying, marketing, storing, packing for shipment or distribution of” foods.

The disagreement stemmed from the fact there’s no Oxford, or serial, comma in the “packing for shipment or distribution” part. The drivers said the words referred to the activity of packing and shipping, but they don’t do any packing.

[Mama]

Why has it become the norm to begin the answer to a question with the word "So"?  "SO" is what I call a "connection word".  It connects two separate thoughts in the same sentence.  For example:  "I didn't feel like walking SO I took the car".  Not:  "Why did you take the car?"  Answer:  "SO I didn't feel like walking."  WRONG!  Just answer "I didn't feel like walking".  THERE!  I got that off my chest.  I think maybe I'm losing it, allowing such a minor speech offense to bug me so much when I never hear anybody else complain about it.  But, the question was put foward and I've enjoyed the opportunity to vent.  

[PA Mom-mom]

@handygal2  There you go! A strong case for the Oxford comma! Commas are about clarity!

[AussieLuvr]

@jlrbr 

That, and, "That's what I'm talkin' bout!". Ugh.

[hooked on books]

"Licem" plate, should be "License" plate! Ugh!!!

[Carmie]

• Staring a sentence with the pronouns Him or Her instead of he and she.  Him and John went to the playground.

• I and Me...not used correctly.  Carla and I are going to dinner.    Carla invited James and me out to dinner.

• Our and are used incorrectly.

• You are, you're and your

[vsm]

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@AussieLuvr wrote:

@Lisa now in AZ 

I agree! I had a boss (15 years younger than me) who would say "abdominal" instead of "abominable". Oh brother, lol.

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You mean "15 years younger than I"! 

[maximillian]

Our local junior high school has a new principal.  Before she earned her principal's certification she was an English teacher.  However, she misuses nominative and objective cases.  By that I mean she misuses the pronouns I/ME, SHE/HER, WE/US, THEY/THEM...you get the idea.  Really, really cringe-worthy coming from a professional educator.

[Zaimee]

Saying “Walla” instead of “Voila”.   (French for there it is).

Roll, instead of role (models). Two teachers ! at my school emailed this requesting recommendations for club members.

Principal called me “The Grammar Police”. I took it as a compliment.  (Not complement!)