Oh my god, people were saying that about "yeah" in the 60's. And yet we are not destroyed.
"Where" instead of "were" . . . WTF??
- Thread starter scotpens
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Forget that, how are people to tell whether you is for a group or an individual? Those kids eschewing thou for you are making an indecipherable mess of the English language.
Accident or Freudian typo?
It isn't just "sometimes." I see these errors multiple times on a daily basis -- mistakes that, had they been made by a third-grader when I was in school, would have mandated remedial homework at the very least. That is a legitimate reason to be concerned about the downfall of literacy.
At school I used to spell February as Feburary for years, and not one teacher picked me up on it, I spell it right now, but even then my brain can see the logic in that, I'd say Feb-u-rary. I tend to spell how I prenounce, I tend to write how I talk, when I know the words at least.
I was apologising to a customer via email once, I was lucky I spotted the auto correct had changed my attempt at 'sorry about the inconvenience' to 'sorry about the incontinence' in time...
I like to think I can type, and I can spell, just don't ask me to do both at once. But I'm not even sure about that. I have this habit to miss whole words, rather than spell incorrectly. There's hardly a post I don't spot an error and edit. My fingers and brain aren't in sync.
It annoys me more than anyone else, believe me.
Anything I am unsure about I tend to google or run via spellcheck (I'm pleasantly surprised when I find I have spelt some of these correctly!) it's the words I assume I know that tend to let me down. But I can look at a three letter word on occasion and it just looks 'wrong' even though it isn't. Having had a dyslexic co-worker I do see certain tendencies in myself.
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^^ Imagine! Actually checking on the spelling of a word. What's wrong witchoo? 
Yeah, that's what gets me. There's nothing wrong with making a typo, there's nothing wrong with being wrong-- it's the aggressive apathy that's the problem. There's a lot of oxymorons out there.
Indeed. Intellectual laziness and low standards are a big problem in contemporary culture.
I don't remember that. In any case, it's not analogous to what we're talking about.
Yea it is.
I don't think the problem should be just shrugged off. It could be a typo or auto-correction, but some people just can't write correctly and make the same mistake over and over ("where" instead of "were" or "there" instead of "they're", etc.). I know someone who does that all the time. I don't recall her writing any of those correctly even once and each time she writes something containing one or more of these 'tricky' words, I have to read the sentence several times (or out loud to hear myself), because I freaking can't understand it otherwise!
Typos and fast typing is one thing. Ignorance is another. Cherishing that ignorance is horrifying.
Typos and fast typing is one thing. Ignorance is another. Cherishing that ignorance is horrifying.
You seriously think people occasionally making typos is going to cause all of that to happen? If someone genuinely has consistently and noticeably poor spelling and literacy, they're usually not going to be hired for jobs where reading proficiency and proper spelling are a requirement, or will soon be fired when it becomes apparent that their lack of skills are interfering with their ability to do the job.
That being said, again I have to note that in my experience, the people who make mistakes like substituting "where" for "were" or vice versa do so most often not because they genuinely don't understand the difference between the words, but because they simply made an error due to the words being spelled and sounding sort of similar.
If someone makes this mistake on a regular basis where it becomes obvious that it's not just a typo and they actually don't know the difference (which I've very rarely seen happen), then by all means correct them on it. No one is saying that shouldn't be done. What I have a problem with is the ridiculously hyperbolic argument that an occasional typo is the first sign of a coming literary apocalypse that will lead to the elderly dying, pensions not being paid, or economic collapse. That's insane.
It's just another form of the arrogant and delusional assumption that the "younger generations" are lazy, incompetent, morally bankrupt, rude, uneducated, what have you that has been an overused meme since time immemorial.
All the things you're erroneously concerned will come to pass in the future because of a typo have already happened to a degree. Health care has suffered in this country especially and elsewhere. Economies around the world have undergone massive recessions and collapses. Pensions and life savings have been denied to the people who earned them. But not because the "younger generation" screwed things up with their allegedly poor literacy and spelling, when they're not even in a position to have that kind of influence yet. Things were deliberately screwed up because some people in the current and prior generations in power in business and government considered the acquisition of wealth at all costs to be their guiding principle, with no consideration of the long term economic consequences of it and all those who would get hurt along the way by their greed, corruption, and unethical behavior. They also considered empathy to be a weakness and didn't care that providing public assistance to those in need or a living wage, better benefits, and chances for advancement to employees helps everyone, including those at the top of the economic food chain when the lower and middle class spend money on the goods and services they're selling.
You guys really need to get your priorities in order. Typos aren't what's screwing up society, it's unchecked greed, corruption, corporate political influence, and a lack of empathy and sympathy for those who are different.
"Where vs. were" is most likely an unintentional look alike/sound alike typo. Confusing an etymologist with an entomologist is most likely a matter of not being sure what the actual word is. There's a difference.
Unfortunately doctors and nurses have made confusing mistakes like that for as long they've been around as an organized profession. It's hardly a new phenomenon, and I can't recall seeing any evidence that it's drastically more common now than in the past (relative to the number of people needing healthcare that is, which is of course much greater now as the baby boomers hit retirement age). The more likely culprit is not knowing the patient's full medical history or using nigh unintelligible handwriting (as many doctors do) rather than typos, though. Fortunately, computerized record keeping/sharing and prescription printouts or emails can help with that. Genuinely confusing insulin and adrenaline isn't a typo, though, if that's what you think is happening.
That's pretty insulting. You've now reduced most young people to being about as sophisticated as monosyllabic grunting cavemen.
There is absolutely an ever-growing divide between the richest and poorest people in this country and to a lesser extent the world, there is a declining middle class, there is less chance for employment and financial advancement, and there is a population swell of elderly baby boomers hitting retirement age that will be difficult to provide for at the levels we have been accustomed to in the past. But all of those problems have fuck-all to do with typos.
Holy shit. I made a "Hyperbole is worse than Hitler" comment as a joke a few posts up, but you actually went there and Godwinned a friggin' typo thread in total seriousness. Do you have any idea how crazy that sounds? Or how ignorant and dismissive of history and the actual events and societal conditions that gave rise to Nazism/fascism that makes you look?
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First they came for the word "were,"
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a werewolf.
Then they came for the word "where,"
and I didn't speak out because I didn't have the wherewithal.
Then they came for the other typos,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't the type.
Then they came for me,
and there was no one left to speak for me because I Godwinned silly topics about First World Problems and had no sense of priorities.
^^ Imagine! Actually checking on the spelling of a word. What's wrong witchoo?
Spellcheck (as he mentioned) wouldn't highlight a misplaced substitution of "where" for "were" since they're both real words spelled correctly. Which is probably why it's such an allegedly common typo according to the OP, although to be honest, I don't often see it, and not nearly as much as say, substituting "loose" for "lose." Of course, that's why it's always a good idea to proofread your completed post before clicking "submit."
Who are the ones making aggressive remarks, though? I see people predicting the downfall of literacy and society, economic crashes, the elderly dying in droves and losing their life savings, the return of Nazism, calling people morons, and rampant stereotyping by accusing entire generations of intellectual laziness and low standards. All over a rare (IMO) look alike/sound alike substitution typo.Yeah, that's what gets me. There's nothing wrong with making a typo, there's nothing wrong with being wrong-- it's the aggressive apathy that's the problem. There's a lot of oxymorons out there.
Sure, some people don't like their mistakes being corrected publicly and get defensive about it, but I've never seen anyone here display a level of absurdity or aggressiveness over being corrected for a typo that comes remotely close to the things I mentioned above.
Also, the problem isn't about correcting someone on their mistakes courteously and respectfully. I don't think the vast majority of people here would have a problem with that. The problem is how bent out of shape everyone gets about relatively insignificant crap. We have these typo and grammar threads here all the time, and people get genuinely furious and insulting over it. Yet somehow the board hasn't collapsed into a Babel-like mass of gibberish and most people seem to be able to understand each other just fine.
There's nothing more intellectually lazy than stereotyping, especially the age-old "the younger generations are (something negative)" stereotype which refuses to go away no matter how many times its inaccuracy and hypocrisy is pointed out.
You don't need typos to be intellectually lazy, as this thread makes abundantly clear.
Of course it is. It's another example of people erroneously thinking language itself is in danger and giving their minor First World Problems way too much emphasis rather than actual major issues.
Modern English is already an indecipherable mess. We're just making it worse....sorry Where making it worse.
Actually it was a Viennese art school.
English is full of words which sound alike but are spelt differently. But if we read something that uses were instead of where or vice versa, do we always lose the context of what is being said?
Other possible reasons for getting it wrong
English might not be their first language
If we are talking School some pupils simply have more aptitude for one subject or another. For some they can be strong at English at weaker at Maths or Science and vice versa.
Other possible reasons for getting it wrong
English might not be their first language
If we are talking School some pupils simply have more aptitude for one subject or another. For some they can be strong at English at weaker at Maths or Science and vice versa.
where
were
wear
ware
weir
~I love English
I could have gone to a Wedding in Reading, instead I was reading about weeding, I read the red book.
Jarod, from what I was taught at school he then went to Munich and was rejected there as well. That made him start to rebel against the establishment, found his party and start a riot. In consequence he got sentenced to several years of prison, where he used the time to write his infamous propaganda book (which is still forbidden in Germany, btw. You'll get several years of prison for buying it). After he was released he took a slightly more legal political career and the rest -as they say - is history.
As you said he was not such a bad painter at all. A good copyist. Had he been accepted at art school the world would propably be very different nowadays.
I partially agree with your analysis, MacLeod. But it doesn't fully explain why such misspellings occur more often now than they used to do when Scotpens and myself were pupils.
Wouldn't your explanation mean that children nowadays have less of a talent for language? That is something I find difficult to imagine. What might be the reasons for such a lack in language aptitude?
Rarewolf, I love that sentence
Reminds me of those tongue twisters students of Anglistics have to learn (Thrushcross Grange has a gigantic thatched garage)
As you said he was not such a bad painter at all. A good copyist. Had he been accepted at art school the world would propably be very different nowadays.
I partially agree with your analysis, MacLeod. But it doesn't fully explain why such misspellings occur more often now than they used to do when Scotpens and myself were pupils.
Wouldn't your explanation mean that children nowadays have less of a talent for language? That is something I find difficult to imagine. What might be the reasons for such a lack in language aptitude?
Rarewolf, I love that sentence
Reminds me of those tongue twisters students of Anglistics have to learn (Thrushcross Grange has a gigantic thatched garage)
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It's paid. (Sorry.)
Denouncing the use of "yeah" in the Sixties? Maybe in Catholic schools.
At any rate, there are different levels of English usage. "Yeah" is a colloquialism, which makes it perfectly acceptable in informal speech. A misspelled word, OTOH, is just a misspelled word.
"Churchill was a rotten painter! Now, Hitler -- there was a painter. He could paint an entire apartment in one afternoon. Two coats!"
I have no problem making jokes about the Wounded Knee Massacre or slavery. But then, I'm a sick fuck.
You seemed to miss the part about WW1 and the defeat of the German Empire. That probably was much more important (than getting rejected from art school) since he utilized the popular discontent and the backstab myth to blame jews and other groups for Germany's humiliation.
That's a pretty hypocritical request coming from someone who thoughtlessly compared people accidentally posting a typo to the rise of Nazism, which is historically ignorant, insulting to the victims of the 3rd Reich, and in incredibly bad taste considering you were actually serious. Physician, heal thyself.
Look Lokutus. I never compared misspellers to Nazis.
What I DID say was that small causes can lead to big effects. To underline the basic principle of this small cause/big effect connection I gave an example (NOT a comparism!) of how a trivial fact did in the long run lead to one of the biggest catastrophies mankind experienced.
If you comment on other people's posts, then please read them properly, for crying out loud!
I am sick and tired of people turning the words around in my mouth and attacking me for no reason at all, simply because they are unable to read propely (again: small cause, big effect). And a moderator ought to moderate conflicts (hence the name), not to start quarrels.
Ask any German on this board what they think of Nazi jokes and Nazi comparisms. NONE of us will like it. And why? Because they are illegal in our country. You can go to prison for that stuff over here. And that is why we find it disturbing to read them. So would you please simply stop it?
Now can we please get this thread back on topic?
Scotpens, I found in fact both spellings "payed" and "paid" in my dictionary. The internet says payed is a outdated form but it's what I was taught at school - admittedly that was 4 decades ago.
It seems we accidentially stumbled over an interesting example of how language changes. There appears to be a general tendency towards simplifying the spelling.
What I DID say was that small causes can lead to big effects. To underline the basic principle of this small cause/big effect connection I gave an example (NOT a comparism!) of how a trivial fact did in the long run lead to one of the biggest catastrophies mankind experienced.
If you comment on other people's posts, then please read them properly, for crying out loud!
I am sick and tired of people turning the words around in my mouth and attacking me for no reason at all, simply because they are unable to read propely (again: small cause, big effect). And a moderator ought to moderate conflicts (hence the name), not to start quarrels.
Ask any German on this board what they think of Nazi jokes and Nazi comparisms. NONE of us will like it. And why? Because they are illegal in our country. You can go to prison for that stuff over here. And that is why we find it disturbing to read them. So would you please simply stop it?
Now can we please get this thread back on topic?
Scotpens, I found in fact both spellings "payed" and "paid" in my dictionary. The internet says payed is a outdated form but it's what I was taught at school - admittedly that was 4 decades ago.
It seems we accidentially stumbled over an interesting example of how language changes. There appears to be a general tendency towards simplifying the spelling.
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Well, "kids today" tend to be less racist and homophobic so I'll take that even if their writing isn't up to par.
