When I got my first job after high school, the first thing they handed me was a little book titled “The Elements of Style”. I immediately took to its wonderfully absolute prescriptions and proscriptions; big surprise there. I was always particularly fond of Omit Needless Words. In the same spirit, though not in the book, is the quote, “I apologize that this is so long; I did not have time to make it shorter”. This single sentiment encapsulates everything I know about writing.
I still have my copy of that book, and today marks the 50th anniversary of its original publication. So when I heard about “50 Years of Stupid Grammar Advice”, I was expecting some weak-willed mealy-mouthed multi-culti postmodern tripe…
…but upon actually reading it through, I have to admit he makes some good points.
I bet Dr. Pullum is very popular at dinner parties.
Really glad you had that article pointed out to me.