05-23-2010, 10:37 PM
(05-23-2010, 04:58 PM)--Pete Wrote: Hi,Hi,
(05-23-2010, 04:19 PM)King Jim Wrote: This whole debate is about "Artistic license" . . .
Only if by 'artistic license' you mean ignorant usage of your native language and stupidity beyond comprehension.
Oh YAH!!! I may be stupid beyond comprehension today, But you will be Pete tomorrow.
My cut & paste is in reference to your original post. The language I speak now in 2010 is a modified/evolved verson of the English language [UK] used by the first settlers in America. Words have changed over time and will continue to do so. The word "decimate" has not changed by definition, it's just no longer used in the sense of 1 in 10, this meaning is now obsolete. To me decimate means destroy, for me the words are interchangeable.
Pete my dear friend, this web site is for you, please advise when your page is up.
Common Errors in English Usage
Aren’t some of these points awfully picky?
"This is a relative matter. One person’s gaffe is another’s peccadillo. Some common complaints about usage strike me as too persnickety, but I’m just discussing mistakes in English that happen to bother me. Feel free to create your own page listing your own pet peeves, but I welcome suggestions for additions to these pages. First, read the Commonly Made Suggestions page, and if you still want to write me, please do so, after reading the instructions on that page."
http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/index.html
Quote:In this case, the language is not enriched. It is diminished. To use 'decimate' as a synonym for 'eradicate', 'exterminate', and 'extirpate' (and possibly others) makes it redundant and loses a term for severe losses short of annihilation.
Common Errors in English Usage
"People sensitive to the roots of words are uncomfortably reminded of that ten percent figure when they see the word used instead to mean “annihilate,” “obliterate,” etc. You can usually get away with using “decimate” to mean “drastically reduce in numbers,” but you’re taking a bigger risk when you use it to mean “utterly wipe out.”
Quote:Artistic license? Bah! Never attribute to malice what can be explained by stupidity.The END
________________
Have a Great Quest,
Jim...aka King Jim
He can do more for Others, Who has done most with Himself.
Have a Great Quest,
Jim...aka King Jim
He can do more for Others, Who has done most with Himself.