The person who wrote today's word jumble masquerading as some sort of commentary should not, under any circumstance, criticize people's use of the English language.
It's funny because when you point out how GOP policies harm America, teabaggers couldn't care less.
God, I hope Tinsley crapped out a whole week's worth of NPR HAET MERIKA! strips and sent them in before NPR released e-mails showing the follow-up, overreaching "punk" about NPR accepting donations from a phony Islamofascisterrorist group was yet another pure falsity. (Not that Tinsley could care less...)
Sad/funny: The still-developing nightmare in Japan has led to some debate about nuclear power. Trolls at TPM are screaming that nuclear power is the only answer, because "the only other option is coal" (???) and the occasional accidental radiation leak will "only cause cancer twenty years down the road" (!!!). Christ wept.
As a part-time linguist, I have heard this yarn a dozen times, and the sides seem to fall the same way every time. Pretentious self-important dicks insist that the proper phrasing is "I couldn't care less," and all others should be shot, while the more pragmatic and reasonable realize that "could care less" has evolved into a idiom whose meaning is perfectly understood, and carries with it an air of sarcasm, so it's really not that big of deal that the young people are saying it. Not surprising to see which side Mallard falls on.
Also, I'm pretty sure he fabricated this entire study, because there's no citation, I can find no evidence of a recent survey, and older surveys on this topic show this conclusion to be unlikely (one from two years ago shows "could care less" beating "couldn't care less" by nearly 5 to 1.)
Yeah, I'm more partial to "couldn't care less", but I've always understood the alternative as Kip's reading: I could care less, but it would be hard.
Anyway, languages are constantly changing. Just as Heraclitus said you can't step in the same river twice, you don't really quite use the exact same language twice either; whining too much about it just makes you look like a dickbag (I'm more paraphrasing than quoting Heraclitus here, of course).
But then, fewer people are aware of another saying of Heraclitus': "Beware the reactionary talking duck who splays his crotch at you, for he is a misanthropic sack of crap and dumber than dirt to boot."
12 comments:
Maybe they couldn't care less because they understand how idiomatic language works. D'jever think of that, Tinz?
It's funny because when you point out how GOP policies harm America, teabaggers couldn't care less.
God, I hope Tinsley crapped out a whole week's worth of NPR HAET MERIKA! strips and sent them in before NPR released e-mails showing the follow-up, overreaching "punk" about NPR accepting donations from a phony Islamofascisterrorist group was yet another pure falsity. (Not that Tinsley could care less...)
Sad/funny: The still-developing nightmare in Japan has led to some debate about nuclear power. Trolls at TPM are screaming that nuclear power is the only answer, because "the only other option is coal" (???) and the occasional accidental radiation leak will "only cause cancer twenty years down the road" (!!!). Christ wept.
Argle, I said, and Bargle I meant! You're a rhubarb rhubarb rhubarb communist!
We have just answered the question, what if William Safire drank heavily? And had no writing talent of his own?
I could care less about Mallard, but I don't care to expend the energy that would take.
Should not that read as, "which, of course, makes no sense"?
I don't think his way was outright wrong, it's just clunky the way he wrote it.
As a part-time linguist, I have heard this yarn a dozen times, and the sides seem to fall the same way every time. Pretentious self-important dicks insist that the proper phrasing is "I couldn't care less," and all others should be shot, while the more pragmatic and reasonable realize that "could care less" has evolved into a idiom whose meaning is perfectly understood, and carries with it an air of sarcasm, so it's really not that big of deal that the young people are saying it. Not surprising to see which side Mallard falls on.
Also, I'm pretty sure he fabricated this entire study, because there's no citation, I can find no evidence of a recent survey, and older surveys on this topic show this conclusion to be unlikely (one from two years ago shows "could care less" beating "couldn't care less" by nearly 5 to 1.)
But hey, at least the joke wasn't funny.
Tomorrow's Mallard Fillmore: "Taking a dump?!... It should be leaving a dump!"
Yeah, I'm more partial to "couldn't care less", but I've always understood the alternative as Kip's reading: I could care less, but it would be hard.
Anyway, languages are constantly changing. Just as Heraclitus said you can't step in the same river twice, you don't really quite use the exact same language twice either; whining too much about it just makes you look like a dickbag (I'm more paraphrasing than quoting Heraclitus here, of course).
But then, fewer people are aware of another saying of Heraclitus': "Beware the reactionary talking duck who splays his crotch at you, for he is a misanthropic sack of crap and dumber than dirt to boot."
A wise man, that Heraclitus.
I couldn't care less.
The only thing I find more annoying than people who say "I could care less." is Mallard Fillmore commenting on people who say "I could care less."
GeoX wrote: "Maybe they couldn't care less because they understand how idiomatic language works. D'jever think of that, Tinz?"
Tinsley would probably respond: "A IS A! IT IS NOT B! IT IS A B!! ...Wait. Wait, I have this on a card somewhere... Fucking liberals."
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