Dixie - In Memoriam
New member
Dixie's Original Statement:
"You've not said a damn thing, other than to hurl a few pejoratives my way..."
Trog's Asserted Grammar Correction:
Psst- your sentence should be corrected to read "other then"
After several 'pokes-n-prods' from Trog to "man up to the challenge" of proving I am smarter than he, I offer the following from American Heritage....
then
–adverb
1. at that time: Prices were lower then.
2. immediately or soon afterward: The rain stopped and then started again.
3. next in order of time: We ate, then we started home.
4. at the same time: At first the water seemed blue, then gray.
5. next in order of place: Standing beside Charlie is my uncle, then my cousin, then my brother.
6. in addition; besides; also: I love my job, and then it pays so well.
7. in that case; as a consequence; in those circumstances: If you're sick, then you should stay in bed.
8. since that is so; as it appears; therefore: You have, then, found the mistake? You are leaving tonight then.
–adjective
9. being; being such; existing or being at the time indicated: the then prime minister.
–noun
10. that time: We have not been back since then. Till then, farewell.
—Idioms
11. but then, but on the other hand: I found their conversation very dull, but then I have different tastes.
12. then and there, at that precise time and place; at once; on the spot: I started to pack my things right then and there. Also, there and then.
than
–conjunction
1. (used, as after comparative adjectives and adverbs, to introduce the second member of an unequal comparison): She's taller than I am.
2. (used after some adverbs and adjectives expressing choice or diversity, such as other, otherwise, else, anywhere, or different, to introduce an alternative or denote a difference in kind, place, style, identity, etc.): I had no choice other than that. You won't find such freedom anywhere else than in this country.
3. (used to introduce the rejected choice in expressions of preference): I'd rather walk than drive there.
4. except; other than: We had no choice than to return home.
5. when: We had barely arrived than we had to leave again.
–preposition
6. in relation to; by comparison with (usually fol. by a pronoun in the objective case): He is a person than whom I can imagine no one more courteous.
So, as we can see, Trog's assertion that I should have typed "then" instead of "than" is incorrect. I did indeed use the proper gramatical context and word in the sentence in question. This did not stop Trog from continuing to harrass me and antagonize me about it, as if he had won some tough-guy contest of smartness. Even after I politely informed him, I thought he was wrong, he maintained I was 'avoiding' the issue. Never offered any evidence to support his view, but insisted I was a moron and he was brilliant.
In fairness, his misconception of the proper usage of "then" an "than" is common among lesser educated people in America. Although it is seldom misused to prove a point of "intellectual superiority", that is indeed rare. It takes a special kind of stupid to do this, and to continue on with your flawed argument, without even checking your facts. Certainly, the argument can be made, that Trog is not only ignorant, but also stubborn, and stubborn ignorance is the worst kind.
Now, I am not a Grammar Nazi, I often type the way I speak, which is grammatically incorrect, but this is not an English Comp class, it is an Internet Message Forum!!! I do, however, have a minor in journalism, (thank God for spell check!) My contention is, Trog has something else on his mind, and he seeks to inflict insult upon me because of this seething hatred and bitterness from whatever is bothering him. I have been asking him about it, but for some reason, he doesn't want to discuss it with me, he just wants to continue trying to make a fool of me, but keeps making a fool of himself in the process. I would like to encourage you all to have a chat with Trog, and see if you can determine what his problem is, because this sort of pent up bitterness and hate can be dangerous. We need to find out what's eating Trog, and see if we can deal with it, because this sort of thing ends up like Columbine if we ignore it.
"You've not said a damn thing, other than to hurl a few pejoratives my way..."
Trog's Asserted Grammar Correction:
Psst- your sentence should be corrected to read "other then"
After several 'pokes-n-prods' from Trog to "man up to the challenge" of proving I am smarter than he, I offer the following from American Heritage....
then
–adverb
1. at that time: Prices were lower then.
2. immediately or soon afterward: The rain stopped and then started again.
3. next in order of time: We ate, then we started home.
4. at the same time: At first the water seemed blue, then gray.
5. next in order of place: Standing beside Charlie is my uncle, then my cousin, then my brother.
6. in addition; besides; also: I love my job, and then it pays so well.
7. in that case; as a consequence; in those circumstances: If you're sick, then you should stay in bed.
8. since that is so; as it appears; therefore: You have, then, found the mistake? You are leaving tonight then.
–adjective
9. being; being such; existing or being at the time indicated: the then prime minister.
–noun
10. that time: We have not been back since then. Till then, farewell.
—Idioms
11. but then, but on the other hand: I found their conversation very dull, but then I have different tastes.
12. then and there, at that precise time and place; at once; on the spot: I started to pack my things right then and there. Also, there and then.
than
–conjunction
1. (used, as after comparative adjectives and adverbs, to introduce the second member of an unequal comparison): She's taller than I am.
2. (used after some adverbs and adjectives expressing choice or diversity, such as other, otherwise, else, anywhere, or different, to introduce an alternative or denote a difference in kind, place, style, identity, etc.): I had no choice other than that. You won't find such freedom anywhere else than in this country.
3. (used to introduce the rejected choice in expressions of preference): I'd rather walk than drive there.
4. except; other than: We had no choice than to return home.
5. when: We had barely arrived than we had to leave again.
–preposition
6. in relation to; by comparison with (usually fol. by a pronoun in the objective case): He is a person than whom I can imagine no one more courteous.
So, as we can see, Trog's assertion that I should have typed "then" instead of "than" is incorrect. I did indeed use the proper gramatical context and word in the sentence in question. This did not stop Trog from continuing to harrass me and antagonize me about it, as if he had won some tough-guy contest of smartness. Even after I politely informed him, I thought he was wrong, he maintained I was 'avoiding' the issue. Never offered any evidence to support his view, but insisted I was a moron and he was brilliant.
In fairness, his misconception of the proper usage of "then" an "than" is common among lesser educated people in America. Although it is seldom misused to prove a point of "intellectual superiority", that is indeed rare. It takes a special kind of stupid to do this, and to continue on with your flawed argument, without even checking your facts. Certainly, the argument can be made, that Trog is not only ignorant, but also stubborn, and stubborn ignorance is the worst kind.
Now, I am not a Grammar Nazi, I often type the way I speak, which is grammatically incorrect, but this is not an English Comp class, it is an Internet Message Forum!!! I do, however, have a minor in journalism, (thank God for spell check!) My contention is, Trog has something else on his mind, and he seeks to inflict insult upon me because of this seething hatred and bitterness from whatever is bothering him. I have been asking him about it, but for some reason, he doesn't want to discuss it with me, he just wants to continue trying to make a fool of me, but keeps making a fool of himself in the process. I would like to encourage you all to have a chat with Trog, and see if you can determine what his problem is, because this sort of pent up bitterness and hate can be dangerous. We need to find out what's eating Trog, and see if we can deal with it, because this sort of thing ends up like Columbine if we ignore it.
