We talked about Lynne Truss’ Eats, Shoots, And Leaves for January. For February, we’re discussing The Surgeon by Tess Gerritsen on February 24th.
Monthly Archive for January, 2012
Another OkCupid gem.
[Translated from Dutch]
“Do you want to watch me fuck another guy? :$”
What the hell is :$? Should it indicate you have a dollar bill taped across your face?
I actually didn’t even realize there was controversy over this book until this comment popped up on one of my reminders for Book Club. Who knew people could get so upset over grammar? The New Yorker seems to delight in pointing out every single error in the book. There’s heated debated in the Amazon reviews. The author has been referred to as a “grammar fascist” and a “grammar bully.” Of course, in the book, Truss does threaten to kill a great number of grammar offenders. I assumed it was in jest.The book is divided into chapters on different punctuation marks. Truss outlines the rules for usage, notes their history, and discusses why they are important. The tone of the book is humorous, suggesting that grammar snobs deface posters for the movie “Two Weeks Notice” to include the missing apostrophe.
I found the book to be very accessible and light-hearted, despite the threats of violence. The history of punctuation was very interesting and Truss outlines how it has changed over time. I discovered I was really attached to how we punctuate in the English language. Capitalizing every noun, as is done in German, seems crazy to me.
What are your thoughts on the book? Are you a Truss hater? If so, why?
“I balanced all, brought all to mind, the years to come seemed waste of breath, a waste of breath the years behind, in balance with this life, this death.” -William Butler Yeats
Former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno gave one last interview before he died on Sunday, to Sally Jenkins. The interview appears in the January 14th edition of the Washington Post. Jenkins appeared on Slate’s Hang Up and Listen podcast to discuss her final interview with the football coach.
Both the article and the interview make it clear that Paterno wasn’t a monster. He isn’t the incarnation of evil. He did do good things. He demanded academic success of his players in a world where that is often deemed unimportant. Hea donated a large part of his personal wealth to the university. He was supportive of players, especially of those from a disadvantaged background.
In Hang Up and Listen, during the interview with Jenkins, Mike Pesca says:
“Journalists always have to debate where to play the bad stuff in the obituary of a person who has largely done good.”
How, exactly, does one weigh the good against the bad? Paterno may have done a great number of good deeds during his lifetime. Does not properly reporting child rape count as a single blemish? Is it justified by saying “Well this one time he didn’t report his friend raping a ten year old boy, but he did everything else right?”
I don’t think so. I don’t think any of the good things he’s done should be discussed as a counterbalance to his gross inaction in this scandal. I think that nothing “makes up” for his behavior. One singular failure on the magnitude of child rape isn’t negated by a lifetime of personal accomplishments.
I’ve never interacted with this gentlemen before he sent me this message:
“I’m looking forward to friends with benifits. To be honest, sex, it is.”
No, sex it isn’t.
Need More?