Curiosities in the public record

[Mmmm, Burger (C.J.)]

Originally posted by dtb
There is an added level of irritation for the "myself" thing -- because the people who do it are trying to sound "smarter" when what they sound is "not smarter".

(But, that's just myself's opinion.)

You and myself are in agreement on this one.

Where did this come from? I don't remember noticing the error 10 years ago. It's like some dumb jock started saying myself in interviews 10 years ago, and it's spread like wildfire.

[Mmmm, Burger (C.J.)]

Originally posted by robustpuppy
Things that irk me:

Overheard at Neuschwanstein: an American tourist

you could stop there and annoyance/irksomeness could be presumed.

Although I'm surprised the typical tourist could haul his lardass up the stairs.

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Mmmm, Burger (C.J.)
some dumb jock......... in interviews

I get bothered when jocks use second person to describe their personal actual experience. "You see the forward coming out to guard you, so you pass inside."

You hear that on the TV and you think why doesn't he use first person.

[Shape Shifter]

Please tell me she didn't.

http://www.thisislondon.com/news/sho...ticles/7255059

(spree: Judge tries to be clever by "rapping" her dismissal of lawsuit against Eminem. Fails miserably: "'Mr Bailey complained his rep is trash, so he's seeking compensation in the form of cash.")

Attending school in Detroit does not automatically confer street cred.

http://www.co.macomb.mi.us/circuitcourt/formsdir/Judges'%20Bios/dasbio.htm

[Sparklehorse]

Originally posted by Mmmm, Burger (C.J.)
You and myself are in agreement on this one.

Where did this come from? I don't remember noticing the error 10 years ago. It's like some dumb jock started saying myself in interviews 10 years ago, and it's spread like wildfire.

AAAGH! It's spreading to actual "authors" on a website I used to respect. From a Salon.com article by Jane Smiley

"(this couple in real life were not myself and my former husband, but two law students I knew)"

Originally posted by Atticus Grinch
I'm a little peeved that CBS's "NCIS" was renamed "Navy NCIS," given that it already stood for Naval Criminal Investigative Service. . . .

Of course, we hear often enough about the "SAT test" or going to the "ATM machine" with our "PIN number." I imagine there are others.

My cringing favorite is the recurring reference in menus and recipes to a French dip sandwich served "with au jus" (or, as if that were not redundant enough, "with au jus broth").

[Bil Mo']

Double Negatives are a no no.

[robustpuppy]

Originally posted by Atticus Grinch
Of course, we hear often enough about the "SAT test" or going to the "ATM machine" with our "PIN number." I imagine there are others.

From this week's Time Mag: Inside the New SAT Test

Although I wonder whether the writer and editors know it, this construction is no longer technically redundant. A few years ago, the College Board decided that the initials no longer stood for anything. This occurred after the A word was changed from "Aptitude" (raised too many self-esteem issues, and critics hated the suggestion that the test measured ability) to "Assessment" (which obviously still suggested that the test measured something). "Admission" would be an obvious choice, a la the LSAT, if not for the problematic S. Some would suggest Shitty, Suxass, or Socioeconomicallybiased, but that doesn't look good on the test booklet covers.

From ESPN.com:

MIAMI -- Florida Marlins manager Jack McKeon hinted Thursday night that he might gamble and bring back ace Josh Beckett on three days' rest Saturday for Game 6 of the World Series. . . . ESPN's Pedro Gomez reported on Friday that Gomez will indeed get the ball for Game 6.

[tmdiva]

Speaking of baseball, they showed a sign on TV during game 4:

"Diffuse the [picture of rocket]."

Argh!!!

tm

[pretermitted_child]

Originally posted by tmdiva
Speaking of baseball, they showed a sign on TV during game 4:

"Diffuse the [picture of rocket]."

Argh!!!

tm

Yeah, that's pretty dense.

[pretermitted_child]

"The plural of virus is neither viri nor virii, nor even vira nor virora. It is quite simply viruses, irrespective of context. Here's why."

Originally posted by Bil Mo'
Double Negatives are a no no.

I received a set of Requests for Admissions recently that were all worded in undecipherable double and triple negatives. I objected to all of them (and then answered them in full sentences instead of just "Denied" for fear of having them all automatically admitted for nonresponsiveness or answering them the wrong way by mistake). I'm not sure if the writing was calculated to trip up my (previously pro-se and uneducated) client or the other attorney is just an idiot, but it sure made answering them a pain in the ass.

-TL

[Greedy,Greedy,Greedy]

Originally posted by pretermitted_child
"The plural of virus is neither viri nor virii, nor even vira nor virora. It is quite simply viruses, irrespective of context. Here's why."

So what is the plural of coitus?

[Mmmm, Burger (C.J.)]

Originally posted by Greedy,Greedy,Greedy
So what is the plural of coitus?

Do try to keep up:

coitüs (well, not an umlaut, but with a long u)

The article is a bit unpersuasive: it seems to say essentially, "we don't know what the latin plural was, so let's just use the english plural. and we don't know the latin plural only because no one ever appears to have used the word in written latin of which we still have a copy."

but why would you ever have a need for plural coitus?