Re: describing the minority as literate is a circular argument?

["Gene Kim-Eng" <techwr -at- genek -dot- com>]

Well, I'm afraid I have to point out that you just made it.  I didn't
say that (I said the rules give us something to rebel against;
the only occasions I have ever used the word "ephemera" all 
involved antique shows).

The original quote was this closing passage from a much 
longer post, and it was your "comforting thought."  

Gene





Was there a point here? Well, anybody who defends the 
rules that preserve utility and distinctions of meaning 
**because they know both the rules and the reasons behind 
them** tends to be in the minority. You can assert, all 
you like, that the usage by the unwashed majority is 
what dictates "right and proper" usage, and that the 
defenders of rules and structure are prissy old fudds. 
However, the rules have survived a long time for the 
good reason that they have ongoing utility. Change 
happens, but not every change and fad-of-common-usage 
has staying power. The rules give you something to go 
back to, and they provide a necessary inertia against 
the vagaries and ephemera of popular usage.

Harrumph!  Egad. (*)


Kevin 



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Mailing List" <mlist -at- safenet-inc -dot- com>
> Note that that was Gene's comforting thought, not mine.
> It's not grammar, but it's a rule that the nesting of 
> "> > >" symbols tells you something about who-wrote-what 
> in an ongoing thread. In this case, you broke that rule 
> and effectively misattributed a statement. I'm as prone 
> as anybody to that goof


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