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Niall Ferguson, May 4th: My disagreements with Keynes’s economic philosophy have never had anything to do with his sexual orientation. It is simply false to suggest, as I did, that his approach to economic policy was inspired by any aspect of his personal life. Niall Ferguson, May 7th: Not for one moment did I mean [...]
Archive for the ‘Language and usage’ Category
May 7th, 2013
February 21st, 2013
Category: Language and usage
Yesterday’s International Herald Tribune included two sentences that might have benefited from one more pass by the editor: 1 To the surprise of no one who has followed the issue, a new report provided evidence that the cyber attacks coming from China are heavily state-sponsored rather than being the work of independent actors. A spokesperson [...]
January 27th, 2013
Category: Language and usage
A pub quiz: You are on your honour not to google. Here are five phrases that are typically quoted today in a way that departs from their original wording. For each misquotation, score 1 point if you can recall the original quote and another point if you can guess the source for the original quote. [...]
December 5th, 2012
Category: Language and usage
I think that the English language must have changed when I wasn’t looking. A recent Gallup Poll question asks: The way my Mom always taught it to me was: who is the subject of a sentence, and whom is an object of a sentence. Thus, shouldn’t this question be: [...]
October 14th, 2012
That would be William of course, who was re-dubbed William the Conqueror after his victory at Hastings 946 years ago today. Alan Massie reflects on how the Norman Conquest changed the law and history of England, as well as its language: So, if you were to begin by asking, in Monty Python style, “what have [...]
September 21st, 2012
Category: Language and usage
I am in Durban, South Africa, staying with friends who are second-generation Indian immigrants. While having no nostalgia for the empire, they keep the British fashion of afternoon tea, at which I am offered a “rusk”. It’s a tasty baked goodie, much harder than a scone, and cut into rectangles. I have never heard this [...]
August 29th, 2012
Category: Language and usage, Woolgathering
I had worked hard on a draft speech about alcohol policy for a member of the UK parliament. She glanced at the text which the putatively learned American professor had produced and immediately said “There’s no zed in breathalyse”. I felt like a fool, or perhaps I should say, a wally. I will spend half [...]