Well, this is disappointing. I had no idea that one of the driving minds behind the Vocabula Review was such an elitist jerk. Does he really think it's the job of lexicographers to "prescribe" what is and is not "proper" English (whatever that means)?

I'm used to seeing such arrogance in other fields, but I'm also an editor, and this level of smug ingorance appalls me. How exactly does he think that a new word enters the language? What determines "standard usage" if not the way people actually speak and write? Once again we see a hardcore conservative insisting that black and white are the only options in an arena full of grays.

Smarter, more savvy lexicographers understand that their job is a balancing act between lawgiver and journalist. They need to provide reliable reference information, but also be flexible enough to accurately reflect the current state and movement of the language. And they scrupulously avoid such sneering terms as "inane, illiterate, and flat-out wrong" in favor of the much more sensible--and objective--"standard" and "nonstandard."

Posted by: Brian Curtis on August 15, 2003 08:05 AM

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Sorry to chase tangets, but does the world hate me? At this moment when I visit Google's front page IE prompts me for a download (containing nothing but gibberish) and I never actually reach the web page. If I visit with Netscape 4, I reach the site fine. IE isn't acting squirrly anywhere else as far as I can tell.

Posted by: Mr. Off-Topic on August 16, 2003 09:09 PM

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Nevermind. I had Proxomotron's web filters turned off. I assume there's something I don't like that Prox has normally been stopping. I notice at other web sites I still get prompted for a download at a Google domain that is somehow tied to advertising.

Posted by: Mr. Nevermind on August 16, 2003 09:14 PM

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