5 posts tagged “orthography”

This is from the Willis Street site, and I quite like the image and the typeface choice:

   English might be my second language, but I am pretty sure there is no such word as restauranter.
   Unless there’s a new word out there for someone who builds restaurants, and that the 222 Willis Street location is prime for that construction.
   But a website with a non-existent English word, no big deal.
   I mean, it’s not as if there’s a one-storey-high sign in central Wellington with the same mistake. Aw crap.

The writer of this review of District 9, Andrew Ricks Jr, has good phrasing, and seems to know his stuff. However, it reveals that someone did not do any checking at the Examiner, whether it’s the writer (I am the first to admit it is difficult to proof your own stuff on-screen), the proofreader (who should be skilled enough to do this) or an editor (who really should be). And this paragraph is where I stopped reading because I was way too put off by the errors:

With my tongue firmly in my cheek, I must make these nine points.
   1. What are gansters?
   2. Which single African nation is the writer referring to?
   3. Is a prolifigate where pro-lifers gather?
   4. Must be the French spelling of activities.
   5. It is shakiest ground?
   6. What is permissiable?
   7. I haven’t seen the film, but I am pretty sure director Neill Blomkamp will be delighted to know this is how his name is spelt.
   8. I know, sometimes I am insenstive about these things.
   9. Which other is he referring to?
   10. A demonstate must be a pretty evil place to live.
   My worry behind this is that kids will grow up thinking having a dozen errors in a paragraph is OK for communication, when the reality is that it is distracting and does not serve the purpose of communicating.
   Our publications are not perfect but I don’t think we mess up this much.
   I have even been nice here because in print, we would have to mark all the “dumb” apostrophes.

This has got to be one of those bad journalism moments:

Specifically, the report states (sic):

Analysts say its small-car technology can help Chrysler, known for its minivans and Hummer line. In the past five years, Fiat has been able to regain market share in Europe with its economy fuel-saving cars as well as its luxury line, Alpha Romero.

   I’m sure Chrysler would love to know it owns Hummer and have extra headaches about what to do with that brand, and do Alpha Romeros have anything to do with actor Cesar Romero?

Shot last week, when it was still drizzly and miserable here in New Zealand. When the late former British prime minister Ted Heath suffered a pulmonary embolism back in 2003, to think, his family could have called Laytons. As you’ll see from their big Fiat van, looking almost like an ambulance with these colours, these folks specialize in Heathcare. So if your surname is Heath, and if you have a problem, and you can find them, then maybe you can hire Laytons.
   This van driver is unusual as (s)he has allowed a reasonable space between the van and the Porsche 911 in front—I witnessed a terrible incident of tailgating by a Laytons driver in June in Kilbirnie. Maybe the driver was in a rush as someone by the name of Heath had taken ill. ‘Heath emergency!’ they cried at Laytons HQ—and off they went, sliding down the firemen’s pole and dropping their fresh towels on the way.
   ‘We lost Ted Heath, but we won’t lose another Heath! Not on my watch!’ swore the driver.
   ‘Out of my way! I’m a Heathcare specialist!’ said the nurse, pushing aside doctors and British Airways stewards.

Just because I’ve been defending my friend Jen on the SFist blog, I have been accused of working for her boyfriend’s office and now, someone tells me on my main blog that I have spelt defence wrong (the writer thinks it is defense) and, therefore, I must have gone to Stanford University. Can’t quite see the logic there.
   Lesson: when you don’t have a decent argument in return, since mine has still not been countered much in substance, then attack the person on something else that’s personal and off-topic. Clever. Not.
   It’s just too easy to strike back, but it would be like Einstein battling the third-grade science prize winner. Cripes, I wish dumbasses would just keep their mouths shut, go back to picking their noses, watch Survivor and wish that they could be Richard Hatch. Or whatever idiots do.
   And haven’t some folks in California, supposedly a cosmopolitan, progressive state, ever heard of English English—you know, the type used by a billion people in India, 60 million in the UK, and God knows how many in Her Majesty’s former colonies? This is not the first time I have had these so-called “educated” Americans have a go at us. No one in the movie theatre during Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery stood up and accused the American studio of spelling Ministry of Defence with an s. We simply know that there are 300 million people who do, and accept that as a minority usage. America is about celebrating those differences, not slamming someone who uses English in a different way. Ninety-nine point nine per cent of Americans get it (percentage evidently lower on the coasts).
   I’d hate to think how the anti-Jen camp deals with English speakers who have a different accent. God help the ignoramuses.