David, I've been asked why I didn't email you
privately. Quite simply, I didn't because I wanted
you to have the same experience you bestow on others.
If your intention is simply to help someone by
informing them of their errors, that can be done in a
private email to the poster with a "did you know?"
affixed to it.
The manner you have been using takes actual malice
aforethought. First you have to craft the note, then
you have to approve it. Whatever you may think you're
doing, you're saying more about your own shortcomings
than those of the poster.
May I again infuse that, for five years, I made my
living correcting the works of others? I was paid to
both proofread and edit in a professional setting.
There are many, many brilliant individuals whose
language skills may not be their strongest suit but
whose contributions are priceless nonetheless. In
some ways, I've made plenty an executive and manager.
I recognize there are some here who believe we should
strive for absolute excellence in our written
communication. In some cases, I might concur. But
that assumes we all have the same valuable resources
to dedicate to this cause, the most critical of which
is time.
In that light, I believe I am through addressing this
matter and will respond to any others who might wish
to discuss the subject privately.
--- "David E. Haberstich" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Indigo, I dunno (not an acceptable spelling!), I
> guess I think not forgiving
> when one asks to be forgiven for a correction is
> more rude than having the
> temerity to make the correction. But maybe that's
> just me. It seems to me
> that scolding someone for the kind of messages they
> send is more of a public
> admonishment than merely pointing out an error.
> Notice that I called it
> scolding, which I think is a fair characterization,
> and I'm not trying to
> exaggerate the tenor of your complaint. But I
> disagree that corrections are
> necessarily rude.
>
> I knew I was risking flames when I provided two
> "corrections" within such a
> short span of time, and when I saw a message from
> you, I guessed what it was
> going to say. I thought long and hard before
> sending the mia/mea message.
> But I was sincerely trying to be helpful, because
> these weren't
> run-of-the-mill spelling mistakes. Long ago I
> stopped pointing out ordinary
> spelling errors and incorrect word choice (except
> when it created confusion),
> with one lapse ("Here! Here" for "Hear! Hear!"),
> which I admit may have been
> overdoing it.
>
> I've received corrections on email lists when I've
> made factual errors,
> miscellaneous gaffes, mistakes in dates, etc., and
> spelling inconsistencies
> (I've made my share), and I believe I've been
> appreciative of the information
> and accepted the corrections with grace. I don't
> consider them public
> "admonishment." If I make a public mistake, I
> expect public correction. One
> thing I won't do is attack someone for making a
> correction or say it's petty
> and rude to do so or taking up valuable space and
> time on the list, and I'll
> defend anyone who gets flamed for a tactful
> correction. I've been known to
> ask whether a topic is appropriate for the list, and
> I've joined in the
> discussion after someone got scolded for a
> supposedly inappropriate comment;
> but I don't think I've ever done any scolding per
> se--except for people
> ridiculing others. Some may recall a previous flap
> about Latin when a
> correction (not originally made by me) for a
> translation was ridiculed as
> petty.
>
> Last year in a lecture I misidentified the subject
> of a slide, and a member
> of the audience corrected me privately (with a
> smirk). My reaction was, "I
> wish you had said that when everyone was still
> here", so that all could have
> had the benefit of the correction. And I'd have had
> the opportunity to agree
> with the correction: some who knew I was wrong, but
> didn't speak up, probably
> thought I was addled.
>
> I don't worry about typos--I maek plnety msyefl (and
> people have gleefully
> pointed them out, which doesn't bother me--I
> consider that normal give and
> take). But "Yates" and "mia" clearly weren't typos.
> I agree that it's petty
> to give too many spelling corrections and I try to
> stifle the urge. However,
> you gave a quote and an attribution, and since
> people like to re-quote pithy
> sayings, I think it's useful to get it right rather
> than perpetuate a
> mistake. For all I knew, your source might have
> misspelled Yeats and it
> wasn't your error at all. Of course the error is
> understandable, and
> everyone makes mistakes--no need to be sensitive
> about it. Never having
> heard Yeats's name pronounced, I used to say "YEETS"
> instead of pronouncing
> it "Yates." I still recall with gratitude the
> person who corrected me.
>
> The point of correcting "mia culpa" is similar, plus
> the fact that Latin
> quotations usually connote erudition, which ups the
> ante, so I try to get
> them right and usually look them up to be sure.
> Again, some source might
> have made the original error, not our colleague.
> Since "mia" is a proper
> Italian word, confusion is understandable. I
> appreciated the message from
> William Maurer about taking greater care with e-mail
> messages, but I wish to
> point out that a spell-checker probably wouldn't
> have helped in these
> instances.
>
> I think the appropriate response to a correction is
> "thank you." Indigo,
> thanks for your advice, but I hope you see my point.
> No public admonishment
> was intended, just getting the name and the Latin
> phrase right.
>
> David Haberstich
>
>
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