Posted on 02/20/2017 1:37:04 PM PST by ColdOne
An “antiracist” poster in a college writing center insists American grammar is “racist” and an “unjust language structure,” promising to prioritize rhetoric over “grammatical ‘correctness.'”
The poster, written by the director, staff, and tutors of the University of Washington, Tacoma’s Writing Center, states “racism is the normal condition of things,” declaring that it permeates rules, systems, expectations, in courses, school and society.
“Linguistic and writing research has shown clearly for many decades that there is no inherent ‘standard’ of English,” proclaims the writing center’s statement. “Language is constantly changing. These two facts make it very difficult to justify placing people in hierarchies or restricting opportunities and privileges because of the way people communicate in particular versions of English.”
In the introduction to its “commitment” section, the Tacoma Writing Center pledges to “listen and look carefully and compassionately for ways we may unintentionally perpetuate racism or social injustice, actively engaging in antiracist practices” before making nine specific promises to students.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailycaller.com ...
A bit of both is better. You need standards to enable people to understand one another. Dialects and variations to the standard will always exist, and in fact they can, over time enrich the language somewhat, but you need a guide to keep the variations from diverging too far and thus impede communications. One of the big strengths of English as a language, IMO is that while it has rules, it's still flexible. Another is that we're not to proud to poach other languages for words when we find one that more accurately describe a given thing than what currently exists. I'm sure you've heard of the lengths the French will go to maintain the "purity" of their language. It's one of the things that will make it forever an also-ran amongst global tongues.
Some would say that we don't so much 'borrow' words, as gleefully beat them into submission.
The study of how languages evolve is fascinating to me, but too many linguists tend to pick weird nits and delve into arcania over things that have little to no significance.
That was excellent.
Some folks with too much time on their hands have taken up the task of translating the Bible into catspeak. It's hilarious, at least I think so. Google: lolcat bible.
Genesis 1
Boreded Ceiling Cat makinkgz Urf n stuffs
1 Oh hai. In teh beginnin Ceiling Cat maded teh skiez An da Urfs, but he did not eated dem.
2 Da Urfs no had shapez An haded dark face, An Ceiling Cat rode invisible bike over teh waterz.
3 At start, no has lyte. An Ceiling Cat sayz, i can haz lite? An lite wuz.4 An Ceiling Cat sawed teh lite, to seez stuffs, An splitted teh lite from dark but taht wuz ok cuz kittehs can see in teh dark An not tripz over nethin.5 An Ceiling Cat sayed light Day An dark no Day. It were FURST!!!1
6 An Ceiling Cat sayed, im in ur waterz makin a ceiling. But he no yet make a ur. An he maded a hole in teh Ceiling.7 An Ceiling Cat doed teh skiez with waterz down An waterz up. It happen.8 An Ceiling Cat sayed, i can has teh firmmint wich iz funny bibel naim 4 ceiling, so wuz teh twoth day.
9 An Ceiling Cat gotted all teh waterz in ur base, An Ceiling Cat hadz dry placez cuz kittehs DO NOT WANT get wet.10 An Ceiling Cat called no waterz urth and waters oshun. Iz good.
11 An Ceiling Cat sayed, DO WANT grass! so tehr wuz seedz An stufs, An fruitzors An vegbatels. An a Corm. It happen.12 An Ceiling Cat sawed that weedz ish good, so, letz there be weedz.13 An so teh threeth day jazzhands.
14 An Ceiling Cat sayed, i can has lightz in the skiez for splittin day An no day.15 It happen, lights everwear, like christmass, srsly.16 An Ceiling Cat doeth two grate lightz, teh most big for day, teh other for no day.17 An Ceiling Cat screw tehm on skiez, with big nails An stuff, to lite teh Urfs.18 An tehy rulez day An night. Ceiling Cat sawed. Iz good.19 An so teh furth day w00t.
20 An Ceiling Cat sayed, waterz bring me phishes, An burds, so kittehs can eat dem. But Ceiling Cat no eated dem.21 An Ceiling Cat maed big fishies An see monstrs, which wuz like big cows, except they no mood, An other stuffs dat mooves, An Ceiling Cat sawed iz good.22 An Ceiling Cat sed O hai, make bebehs kthx. An dont worry i wont watch u secksy, i not that kynd uf kitteh.23 An so teh...fith day. Ceiling Cat taek a wile 2 cawnt.
24 An Ceiling Cat sayed, i can has MOAR living stuff, mooes, An creepie tings, An otehr aminals. It happen so tehre.25 An Ceiling Cat doed moar living stuff, mooes, An creepies, An otehr animuls, An did not eated tehm.
26 An Ceiling Cat sayed, letz us do peeps like uz, becuz we ish teh qte, An let min p0wnz0r becuz tehy has can openers.
27 So Ceiling Cat createded teh peeps taht waz like him, can has can openers he maed tehm, min An womin wuz maeded, but he did not eated tehm.
28 An Ceiling Cat sed them O hai maek bebehs kthx, An p0wn teh waterz, no waterz An teh firmmint, An evry stufs.
29 An Ceiling Cat sayed, Beholdt, the Urfs, I has it, An I has not eated it.30 For evry createded stufs tehre are the fuudz, to the burdies, teh creepiez, An teh mooes, so tehre. It happen. Iz good.
31 An Ceiling Cat sayed, Beholdt, teh good enouf for releaze as version 0.8a. kthxbai.
I’ve switched to Velcro straps.
Easier and faster for my ever-changing fear of gravitational failure.
I doubt that means what you think it means.
That's it. I've had enough. I demand the laws of physics not apply to me. They are clearly a racist construct, dictating what a racist society has proclaimed is the normal condition of things, formed of rules, systems, and expectations, and written down by dead white guys. From now on, I'm going to identify as a physics free person. /S
Commando style?
Adeo quinquaginta anni absque panniculus fundus.
So one day Americans will watch Airplane and wonder why everyone in the movie spoke weird except the few jive talkers.
Actually this can happen. It did in Germanic Switzerland.
Our beautiful language is beautiful because of the rules regarding structure, spelling and punctuation.
No. That is definitely not the reason. Many other languages have much stricter and cohesive rules. The reason English is beautiful is because of the many choices for sentence structure and the huge vocab. Of all the languages I’ve studied, we have the worst spelling and pronouncing “rules.” By far.
French is beautiful because of the descriptiveness, the art of it. German is extraordinarily useful with infinite ways to branch sentences. We combine the best of both.
Sadly, I don’t care any more what Bill Cosby had to say on anything, because as soon as he finished saying it, he found a woman to drug and then played with her comatose body in obscene ways.
"Tru dat.."
Our language is for people who care to learn how to spell. Does that make it the “worst?” I don’t agree with you.
French is for people who care to learn the “gender” of the word. BTW, That is the only correct use of the word gender. We now use it to replace the word “sex.” (:-c)
German is a descriptive language that makes up words, unusually Looooong words.
Our language is the best of all the western languages. I can’t compare it to eastern or other languages.
I agree that certain kinds of brains excel at English spelling and it’s an art and a science. There are great, brilliant people whose minds aren’t good at spelling. I would do pretty well at a spelling bee but I would fail a Put This simple engine together contest.
Would that coincide with 50 years of wearing kilts?
It started long before I got my first kilt.
But my non-bifurcated wardrobe has been steadily growing.
And don’t even THINK about calling those things that are so ultra-dense that not even light can escape them, “black holes” !!!! /s;)
Never?! :-O
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