Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site watmum.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!watnot!watmum!mvclase From: mvclase@watmum.UUCP (Michael Clase) Newsgroups: net.jokes Subject: Re: Ambigious newspaper line Message-ID: <248@watmum.UUCP> Date: Fri, 9-Aug-85 10:47:28 EDT Article-I.D.: watmum.248 Posted: Fri Aug 9 10:47:28 1985 Date-Received: Sat, 10-Aug-85 02:45:52 EDT References: <514@scc.UUCP> <2162@hcradm.UUCP> Reply-To: mvclase@watmum.UUCP (Michael Clase) Distribution: net Organization: U of Waterloo, Ontario Lines: 32 Summary: Flame about pedants In article <2162@hcradm.UUCP> steve@hcradm.UUCP (Steve Pozgaj) writes: >In reference to: > >> I was reading the newspaper and I read: > >> ". . . the shadowy Islamic Jihad terrorist group called >> the Associated Press of Beirut, . . ." > >> . . . Hmm, strange name for a terrorist group! > >Let's just point out that *if* there were a comma after the >word "group", then this would be witty, since it would infer a >reflexive participle phrase (I think that's what they're called). >This would come across as "the group, called AP of Beirut, ...". > >However, as it stands, the sentence makes perfect sense: "the >group in question placed some form of call to the AP of Beirut". > > Steve "Grammar Vigilante" Pozgaj > {decvax!watmath!utzoo}!hcr!steve Flames on. Why do people insist on continually posting articles nit-picking about grammar and spelling? I'm sure the poster of the original quote knew what the sentence actually meant but felt that at a quick glance it could be misinterpreted in an amusing way. We don't need an English lesson everytime someone posts an article, at least not in net.jokes. Why doesn't someone create net.highschool-english-teacher so that all those people on the net who delight in posting follow ups with spelling corrections have somewhere to go.