Shouldn’t that headline read “...whom we can talk to...”, being the object of the subject “Nobody...”? Whatever happened to the word “whom”? You never see it used anymore, much less used correctly. Same with the subjective “were”. Everybody just says “was”. It should always be “were” after the word “if”.
Sorry if I sound picky, but I think it is important to use proper English as an example to our children and to new English speakers.
Or, did somebody change the rules while I was raising 4 kids, finishing my degree, and moving around the country?
Whatever happened to the word “whom”? ....Planned Parenthood cut it out.
Correct grammar is dying in America. “I” and “me” seems to cause even college graduates confusion. And commas, well, even worse.
“Or, did somebody change the rules while I was raising 4 kids, finishing my degree, and moving around the country?”
Yes, that’s is precisely what happened. Even a cursory understanding of the history of the English language reveals that it has NO firm fixed rules. There is no Le Academie Franciase of English, with firm rules.
English is fast moving, adaptive, and basically a snowball that rolls over other languages and cultures. It takes what is useful, grows bigger, and rolls on.
English teachers and prigs aside, American English is the main dialect, and when a new common usage is accepted, widely actually becomes English. You can sit there sipping tea and pretending people should speak like Catherine Hepburn, but the snowball rolls on, and leaves you behind.
“Or, did somebody change the rules while I was raising 4 kids, finishing my degree, and moving around the country?”
Yes, that’s is precisely what happened. Even a cursory understanding of the history of the English language reveals that it has NO firm fixed rules. There is no Le Academie Franciase of English, with firm rules.
English is fast moving, adaptive, and basically a snowball that rolls over other languages and cultures. It takes what is useful, grows bigger, and rolls on.
English teachers and prigs aside, American English is the main dialect, and when a new common usage is accepted, widely actually becomes English. You can sit there sipping tea and pretending people should speak like Catherine Hepburn, but the snowball rolls on, and leaves you behind.
We did. Here on FR; we changed the RULES and anybody who
gets too picky is henceforth verbally anally examined for
any and all - even slight - errors.
IF you work with the sentence and look at it differently,
the phrase “we can talk to WHOM” also qualifies and
indicates the proper usage of “who” or “whom”. The trick is
always thinking on the fly. Gnats, camels, you know . . .