Re: The "prison IS university" metaphor - a review

In article <lagvt3l773uugkm7mo60uu35d3r9u5db2k@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>, tony cooper
<tony_cooper213@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> On Tue, 18 Mar 2008 08:41:06 +0000 (GMT), David
> <nospam@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:

> >//That does not mean that "Yank" and "Yankee" are used the same way
> >today.// is surely more generalised? You did not say that it was
> >your usage, or that of those in your locale. My point was that
> >claiming that the meaning of "Yankee" always differs from that of
> >"Yank" is not sup****ted by fact as witnessed by the number of folk
> >in this thread trying their best to get through to you.

> I understand this, and - if you follow the thread back - you will
> note that what I am saying is that some people use "Yankee" to mean
> "Yank *and* *they* *are* *wrong* in doing so.  My point was to
> encourage understanding of the terms "Yank" and "Yankee" so this
> misuse will stop.  (Not that I think that my comments will have the
> slightest effect)

No, it is not misuse; it is a use that is different to your use (and,
for all I know, to the use by all right-thinking Americans
[left-thinking ones being frowned upon, I understand]) but that does
not make it wrong. Words evolve differently in different locales.

> Your argument here is the same as Jerry's position on "politically
> incorrect":  if you can find misusages of a word or term, the
> misusages become correct usages.

> It is not at all difficult to cast your net in Google and find any
> number of instances of people using words and terms where they should
> be using another word or term.  For all I know, someone - at this
> very moment - is writing "The Democrat Party has a clear record when
> it comes to taxes".  It could even be our President.

You're not clear but I assume you mean that it should be "clean
record"? Correct me if I'm wrong. If so, that's surely a case of using
a similar sounding word to the one that ought to be used. If, purely
for example, we called you lot "Wanks", I'd agree with your comparison.

-- 
New Marmite(TM): Not as thick! Not as dark! Not as te!

David - toro-danyo atcost uku fullstop co fullstop uk
http://www.toro-danyo.uku.co.uk/