Grammar, Spelling Nazis should just get over themselves

[Brandon237]

Language is a way to communicate an idea, if someone doesn't use proper grammar, english, or spelling yet they communicate their idea clearly enough for someone to understand it is it really necessary to nit pick the little things?

People use spelling and grammar to judge a persons intelligence yet language is a very flexible and fluid thing, using something as petty as spelling and grammar to judge a persons intelligence is just as prejudice as using someones color of skin, religion or sports team preference.

So if your a grammar or spelling nazi just get over it and find something else to be OCD about.

[HEADING=1]Grammar AND Spelling Nazis Should Just Get Over Themselves[/HEADING]

Language is a way to communicate an idea, thus if someone doesn't use proper grammar, English, or spelling yet they communicate their idea clearly enough for someone to understand it, is it really necessary to nit-pick the little things?

People use spelling and grammar to judge a person's intelligence yet language is a very flexible and fluid thing. Using something as petty as spelling and grammar to judge a person's intelligence is just as prejudiced as using someone's color of skin, religion or sports team preference.

So if you're a grammar or spelling Nazi just get over it and find something else to be OCD about.

Fixed that for you.

And it is OCPD: Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder. See, I found something else to be OCPD About

And I only ever do it if someone really asks for it. Like making a post saying that I mustn't be a grammar nazi. That is just tempting me. And mixing up your / you're. That is too far man!

EDIT: How could I forget? Those Nazis needs capital (NOT capitol) letters.

 

[Del-Toro]

As for the idea that profiling somebody based on the fact that they are too lazy to actually type properly being the same as being a racist, the idea's so stupid, it doesn't warrant a comment.

Perhaps not, but I have yet to ignore a crown simply due to it's being in a gutter. What makes the argument that drawing a conclusion regarding a poster's intelligence, sincerity or otherwise based on the quality of their idea's delivery is the same as making a similar conclusion based on their ethnic background fallacious is the simple fact that one's ethnic background is an attribute one has foisted upon them at birth, while the spelling, grammar and diction of any piece of writing put forward are, in fact, completely within their control. Racism is prejudice based on something one simply cannot help, considering an argument invalid because it was poorly presented is judgement based on one's actions in choosing put put forward that argument without refinement.

OT: I am dyslexic so I may be a bit biased but I have to give this speech to my grammar nazi friend once in a while that as long as I am able to express what I meant that it doesn't really matter.

Cases like this being an exception to the rule that spelling is within the poster's full control, the difficulties individuals such as Nuba km face warranting a degree of understanding from those of us who are inclined to corrections.

 

[caribbeanscot]

I think what people are saying is,
'If you can't be bothered to type then don't!'

gnwerdish trollzor rages brek ppl's minds and teh also mek u look like de nubzor feeding at teh towerz11?!?!?!!11111

It's not even a case of being particularly literate or knowledgeable you could just install a spelling and grammar checking program.
The real issue is people are lazy, and they believe they can make people swallow excuses and label anyone that objects a 'Nazi' which rather proves the point, because it's far easier than actually bothering to defend their position

Also, tls14 love your picture it paints nearly a thousand words!

Yeah, I disagree with the use of "spelling Nazi" or "grammar Nazi," just on the basis of it being lazy cliché. That said, just saying "people that don't use correct grammar are idiots," or just correcting the OP, proves his or her point just as much. It shows that the person on the other end is only interested in showing up someone else, and that's exactly what the OP is arguing against.

On the other hand, check this out:

Think of it this way: we all have something we obsess over and we all have something that really annoys us. Our obsession just happens to be the English language. I don't do this to feel superior to people... In fact, I've never once felt superior to a person who doesn't use good English over the computer. It's simply to correct a mistake. Think of it as more of a pet-peeve. For example: I know someone who gets really worked up when people don't sing the lyrics to a song correctly. He doesn't correct people because he wants to feel superior to them, he corrects them because the lyrics they are singing are not the original lyrics intended for the song. The same idea is illustrated in someone using "ewe" instead of "you", which happens a lot because people think it's cute or something.

That is actually a reasoned argument as to why people should correct other people over the Internet. I disagree with it for a number of reasons but it actually works out the basis of this interaction, and I appreciate that.

Here's the thing, though: I don't accept the "pet peeve" theory because pet peeves shouldn't govern one's social interactions. I believe that that's what causes you to correct others, but I don't view that as an excuse. If I'm singing along to a song, and your friend comes along to tell me that I got the lyrics wrong . . . well, quite honestly, why should I care? I didn't care before. The only difference is that now I know that singing the incorrect lyrics annoys someone else enough to take time out of his or her day to tell me about it.

Basically, this argument says "people should indulge us for correcting bad grammar, because we can't help being annoyed by it, but we shouldn't likewise indulge people who use bad grammar." That's normative. Whether you actually feel superior or not, you are saying that assuaging the annoyance your "pet peeve" generates is more valuable than maintaining the peace of mind of the person who made a spelling or grammatical mistake.

Furthermore, whether you feel superior or not, you're correcting someone because you get a payoff from it. It doesn't have to be a reassurance that you're smarter than the other person, but it's certainly not only about how the language works. I know this because there are plenty of people who couldn't give a smaller percentage of a rat's ass about other people's spelling or grammar and yet know their language(s) inside and out.

 

[Canned Spam]

Arocdnicg to rsceearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer are in the rghit pcale. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit pobelrm. Tihs is buseace the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

I'll just leave this here. Clearly spelling is pointless. Okay, not pointless but the way the mind works how you can explain and say that we need grammar and spelling when you can read that sentence above perfectly.

Not true. Of the 67 words in that passage 30 contain three or less letters, so therefore aren't rearranged. Of the remaining 37 letters 13 of them are four letters long, so only have a single letter out of place. The remaining 24 letters can be worked out from context. Also note that several of the larger words only have one or two letters out of place, which are next to their proper location, e.g. "Cmabrigde," "sitll" and "tihng."

I shall prove my point by typing some long, jumbled words without context, 'ponescfiiiesdutc,' 'eassbtlih,' 'pneinmuoa' and 'ettasicc'.

 

[Asuka Soryu]

My only complaint with someone who has horrible spelling/grammar, is when it's a compleate mess. Or when people are to lazy to type a word so they use a letter. ~.~

Oh, and when someone criticises someone's spelling, while compleately mispelling almost every word in their sentence.

 

[Ice Car]

I consider myself a grammar nazi at times, but I don't point out every minor error people have unless I'm trying to piss them off or troll them. I mostly make note of it when someone makes an horrible post that is god damn near impossible to read, or when someone's grammar/spelling becomes to annoying to deal with.

Alright, OP, I have an image for just this sort of occasion. I'll put it in a spoiler tag because it's actually quite big.

Spoiler: Read this and learn its rules. Conform to them. You will become stronger.

This is the fucking best image I have seen, second to this:

Spoiler: Imaaaaaage

I saved it.

 

[Continuity]

Language is a way to communicate an idea, if someone doesn't use proper grammar, english, or spelling yet they communicate their idea clearly enough for someone to understand it is it really necessary to nit pick the little things?

Yes. The alternative is a slippery slope into non-sense and miscommunication.

Really I have to ask though: if someone doesn't use proper grammar and spelling how can you be sure that they are communicating their idea clearly? You really can't because grammar is essentially the rules that allow us to give and receive clear meaning from a sentence... without it there is substantial room for interpretation and misinterpretation.

 

[Smertnik]

It's not like it requires any effort to use proper grammar, unless you're dyslexic or a foreigner who hasn't learned English properly yet. And if everything else fails there're always spellcheckers.

 

[TheRightToArmBears]

Two things:

Lack of good grammar/spelling make it look like you can't be bothered. Obviously, that's not good.

I'm pretty sure there's a correlation between intelligence and grammar/spelling. So no, it's not like being racist, that's the most moronic idea I've heard all week.

 

[Golden Hawk]

Troll thread? Troll thread!
And Grammar Nazis converse in German.

 

[Thaliur]

Language is a way to communicate an idea, if someone doesn't use proper grammar, english, or spelling yet they communicate their idea clearly enough for someone to understand it is it really necessary to nit pick the little things?

People use spelling and grammar to judge a persons intelligence yet language is a very flexible and fluid thing, using something as petty as spelling and grammar to judge a persons intelligence is just as prejudice as using someones color of skin, religion or sports team preference.

So if your a grammar or spelling nazi just get over it and find something else to be OCD about.

Yes, you should definitely point that out to whoever will read your job application/graduate thesis/reports later.

 

[WouldYouKindly]

All I ask is correct spelling and, no abuse, of the comma, key. If you don't know how to use : and ; that's fine, I don't expect the majority of net denizens to know and I'm pretty sure I fuck it up.

All that being said, Heil Spellcheck!

 

[Fetzenfisch]

If you don't want to spent the time you need for a correct, readable post, it's probably not adding anything worthwhile to the topic, so just don't post ( or live with the consequence that people think you are the idiot you are). Simple as that.

 

[Shakomaru]

I am not a grammar nazi (although some claim i am, and i do correct people a lot...) but i would argue that they are doing the right thing. Over time, the english language has degraded to the point where people's vocabularies are so small that they cannot always exlpain their feelings and ideas adequately. This has sped up tenfold since the arrival of the internet, making correcting people even more important.

Basically, it disturbs me that some people have trouble expressing themselves.

that is not true, the average person now a days has a larger vocabulary then Shakespeare, and I am quite sure that Shakespeare was pretty good at expressing ideas. I have also not noticed people having a problem expressing themselves due to a not finding the right words for it and I don't know where you have gotten this idea from.

OT: I am dyslexic so I may be a bit biased but I have to give this speech to my grammar nazi friend once in a while that as long as I am able to express what I meant that it doesn't really matter.

That doesn't mean that they know how to use their vocabulary correctly, or as well as Shakespeare, who was a literary GENIUS that INVENTED many words we still use TODAY.
[/Shakespeare rage]
Dear OP, Grammar NAZI? I know that is the term people use, but it isn't THAT extreme. I prefer the term Grammar Police, since that is a lot more accurate.

 

[nuba km]

I am not a grammar nazi (although some claim i am, and i do correct people a lot...) but i would argue that they are doing the right thing. Over time, the english language has degraded to the point where people's vocabularies are so small that they cannot always exlpain their feelings and ideas adequately. This has sped up tenfold since the arrival of the internet, making correcting people even more important.

Basically, it disturbs me that some people have trouble expressing themselves.

that is not true, the average person now a days has a larger vocabulary then Shakespeare, and I am quite sure that Shakespeare was pretty good at expressing ideas. I have also not noticed people having a problem expressing themselves due to a not finding the right words for it and I don't know where you have gotten this idea from.

OT: I am dyslexic so I may be a bit biased but I have to give this speech to my grammar nazi friend once in a while that as long as I am able to express what I meant that it doesn't really matter.

That doesn't mean that they know how to use their vocabulary correctly, or as well as Shakespeare, who was a literary GENIUS that INVENTED many words we still use TODAY.
[/Shakespeare rage]

yes Shakespeare is a genius and new how to use his vocabulary perfectly, I was just saying that peoples vocabularies aren't decreasing, which the person who I quoted said they were. The quality of today spelling and grammar may be decreasing but not due vocabulary size.

 

[Zarkov]

Language is a way to communicate an idea. If someone doesn't use proper grammar, english, or spelling, yet communicates their idea clearly enough for someone else to understand, is it really necessary to nitpick the little things?

People use spelling and grammar to judge a person's intelligence, yet language is a very flexible and fluid thing. Using something as petty as spelling and grammar to judge a person's intelligence is just as prejudiced as using someone's skin colour, religion or sporting team preference.

So, if you're a grammar or spelling nazi, just get over it and find something else to obsess over.

Here, let me show you what nitpicking is through correcting this guy's grammar:

Language is a way to communicate an idea. If someone doesn't use proper grammar, English, or spelling yet communicates his/her idea clearly enough for someone else to understand, is it really necessary to nitpick the little things?

People use spelling an grammar to judge a person's intelligence, yet language is a very flexible and fluid thing. Using something as petty as spelling an grammar to judge a person's intelligence is just as prejudiced as using someone's skin color(I'm American, so I prefer color rather than colour.), religion or sporting team preference.

So, if you're a grammar or spelling Nazi, just get over it and find something else to obsess over.

Now, to the OP: (not the person I quoted, you're fine - I was just being nit picky to show them what nit picky is.)
In all seriousness, literacy does matter at least in the business/science world. Having literacy means that there won't be ambiguity in what one has said, which could be very important in legal documents. But in everyday conversation and typing, a sturdy grasp of the language isn't necessarily required. However, one needs to know how to correct write and speak, for the sake of formal matters. Formality is important, and the way we show this in English (since we have a lack for words that imply formality) is by speaking and typing in standard English.

For example, if you want to get a job at the Escapist right now, you must be able to write on the college level and you must be able to type standard English. But this isn't needed everywhere, but is needed. And besides, English grammar isn't that hard. Seriously. Go learn German. I dare you. There, their, and they're are different words and then and than are different words. Yes, these simple words MATTER in context. Overuse and under-use of a comma can make your paragraph sound horrible. And if you want to persuade someone, use correct grammar and spelling. You will never persuade anyone if you can't get these simple things correct. (Yes, you're right, it discredits your authority on a matter because you can't accomplish something so simple as English grammar. Oh, and yes, it is a logical fallacy but sadly enough no one knows their fallacies. So there.)

"and", not "an"
"nitpick/y", not "nit pick/y"
"colour", not "color"
"Though this isn't needed in every situation, it is still an important requirement within certain contexts.", not "But this isn't needed everywhere, but is needed." (eew, gross!)

Whoo, you picked out my typos, have a grammatical cookie. Those aren't intentional grammatical errors, however, which was what I was getting at. And uh, an ignorant European? I thought Americans were the were the ignorant ones on alternate spellings, but you my friend have just proved (Oh, and, there's another: Proved is common as the past participle of to prove here in the USA.) me wrong. Colour is an Australian (I think) and European spelling of the word "color". Americans use color, and is just as acceptable as colour. English is a funny language.

Oh, and you missed one: I put "correct ..." instead of "correctly write and speak"

 

[The Rogue Wolf]

It's not that we're full of ourselves or trying to make you look bad. It's that we're trying to save you from the wrath of Angry Zombie Noah Webster, when he rises up from his grave and seeks vengeance upon those who have butchered his beloved language. We're doing it for your own good!

Besides, the amount of effort I'll put into understanding your thoughts is equal to the amount of effort you put into presenting them to me. If you don't feel like writing it so that I can understand it easily, then I don't feel like having to translate it. It's only fair.

(Those whose primary language is not English get some slack from me, so long as they're at least trying.)

 

[Dr.Panties]

Language is a way to communicate an idea. If someone doesn't use proper grammar, english, or spelling, yet communicates their idea clearly enough for someone else to understand, is it really necessary to nitpick the little things?

People use spelling and grammar to judge a person's intelligence, yet language is a very flexible and fluid thing. Using something as petty as spelling and grammar to judge a person's intelligence is just as prejudiced as using someone's skin colour, religion or sporting team preference.

So, if you're a grammar or spelling nazi, just get over it and find something else to obsess over.

Here, let me show you what nitpicking is through correcting this guy's grammar:

Language is a way to communicate an idea. If someone doesn't use proper grammar, English, or spelling yet communicates his/her idea clearly enough for someone else to understand, is it really necessary to nitpick the little things?

People use spelling an grammar to judge a person's intelligence, yet language is a very flexible and fluid thing. Using something as petty as spelling an grammar to judge a person's intelligence is just as prejudiced as using someone's skin color(I'm American, so I prefer color rather than colour.), religion or sporting team preference.

So, if you're a grammar or spelling Nazi, just get over it and find something else to obsess over.

Now, to the OP: (not the person I quoted, you're fine - I was just being nit picky to show them what nit picky is.)
In all seriousness, literacy does matter at least in the business/science world. Having literacy means that there won't be ambiguity in what one has said, which could be very important in legal documents. But in everyday conversation and typing, a sturdy grasp of the language isn't necessarily required. However, one needs to know how to correct write and speak, for the sake of formal matters. Formality is important, and the way we show this in English (since we have a lack for words that imply formality) is by speaking and typing in standard English.

For example, if you want to get a job at the Escapist right now, you must be able to write on the college level and you must be able to type standard English. But this isn't needed everywhere, but is needed. And besides, English grammar isn't that hard. Seriously. Go learn German. I dare you. There, their, and they're are different words and then and than are different words. Yes, these simple words MATTER in context. Overuse and under-use of a comma can make your paragraph sound horrible. And if you want to persuade someone, use correct grammar and spelling. You will never persuade anyone if you can't get these simple things correct. (Yes, you're right, it discredits your authority on a matter because you can't accomplish something so simple as English grammar. Oh, and yes, it is a logical fallacy but sadly enough no one knows their fallacies. So there.)

"and", not "an"
"nitpick/y", not "nit pick/y"
"colour", not "color"
"Though this isn't needed in every situation, it is still an important requirement within certain contexts.", not "But this isn't needed everywhere, but is needed." (eew, gross!)

Whoo, you picked out my typos, have a grammatical cookie. Those aren't intentional grammatical errors, however, which was what I was getting at. And uh, an ignorant European? I thought Americans were the were the ignorant ones on alternate spellings, but you my friend have just proved (Oh, and, there's another: Proved is common as the past participle of to prove here in the USA.) me wrong. Colour is an Australian (I think) and European spelling of the word "color". Americans use color, and is just as acceptable as colour. English is a funny language.

Oh, and you missed one: I put "correct ..." instead of "correctly write and speak"

Yes, I was hoping that you'd pick up on your own adverbial transgression there, as I was still reeling from the "But...but..." travesty.

Also, try some more irony in your diet.

 

[Zarkov]

Yes, I was hoping that you'd pick up on your own adverbial transgression there, as I was still reeling from the "But...but..." travesty.

Also, try some more irony in your diet.

Lol, I'm not even sure if you know what half the words you use mean.

 

[Dr.Panties]

Yes, I was hoping that you'd pick up on your own adverbial transgression there, as I was still reeling from the "But...but..." travesty.

Also, try some more irony in your diet.

Lol, I'm not even sure if you know what half the words you use mean.

"Guffaw! I'm not even sure whether you know the meaning of half of the words that you use."