Hit gravel, broke leg

"the brook" wrote in message
oups.com...

Enough already with this crap! Time to move on to some other subject.

brook my friend, I continue posting on this thread because I'm enjoying the
banter. Please feel free not to read it anymore. If you do, however, I would
certainly advise not posting anything since it will likely get responded to.

Jeff

"Edward Dolan" wrote in message
...

It is causing me great distress. There are right ways of doing things and
wrong ways of doing things. You are doing things the wrong way.


Your Great Distress

Learn to live with it my friend. I see no compelling reason to do things
differently


Right and Wrong ways of doing this

No, Ed, there are not right and wrong ways in this case. There is a way you
prefer and a way you do not prefer. If this message is any example, the ways
can even be combined. I would imagine that you would put that into what you
call "the wrong way"

I think this gets to the core of our discussion. What you label as right and
wrong, I label as preference.

I would say that in order for a method to be wrong there has to be a
negative consequence or outcome of using that method.

You would say that it makes it hard for the reader to make sense of the
message (you have said that in the past).

So far (as I've said before) we've had only one person complain about the
format of my posts and that one person has been you. I seem to recall that
I've also had at least one person support my position.

The only other opinion that we've seen is the opinion that this discussion
has gone on way too long. Maybe so but I am of the opinion that anyone who
feels that way doesn't have to read this thread. It isn't like we have been
leaping into other threads to carry on this conversation.

You and I have very different opinions about right and wrong. Unless I
become convinced that my posting style is really distressing many people and
they just can't figure out what I'm saying then I shall not be changing
anytime soon.

Your friend on wheels,
Jeff

Edward Dolan wrote:
Sentences needn't be complete all the time. Sometimes a sentence fragment
makes the most sense. They are called dependent clauses and should only be
used by intellectuals like me.

Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota



This is very funny Mr Dolan!
Steve

"Jeff Grippe" wrote in message
...

"Edward Dolan" wrote in message
...

I am assuming your father was not Polish; therefore you are not 100%
Polish either. Since you are not 100% Polish, you have no right to enjoy
Polish ethnic jokes. In order to enjoy a Polish ethnic joke with a good
conscience, you should be 100% Polish. I am telling you this so that you
will know how to be politically correct, the most important thing in life
for a liberal.

I believe that I have already expressed my contempt for PC.

You are correct, however, that I am not 100% any nationality other than
American. However, given the way our language and conventions work, since
I have some Polish ancestors, I am permitted to call myself Polish. Once
again you do not get to make the rules about this. They are already made.
They predate even you precious Google usenet rules.

As to what jokes I have a right to tell, once again I am unmoved by your
opinion. I will tell any joke as long as it is funny. Too bad for you if
you are offended.

Don't make me laugh! There are any number of jokes that can no longer be
told, not because they are not funny, but because they are politically
incorrect. We all of us observe certain norms so that we don't end up
killing one another.

Political correctness is something that the major media and the academic
elite have established. Both of those groups are nothing if not bastions of
liberalism. Please, do not try to tell me that being politically correct is
not preeminently a liberal thing.

Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota

"Jeff Grippe" wrote in message
...

"Edward Dolan" wrote in message
...

It is causing me great distress. There are right ways of doing things and
wrong ways of doing things. You are doing things the wrong way.


Your Great Distress

Learn to live with it my friend. I see no compelling reason to do things
differently


Right and Wrong ways of doing this

No, Ed, there are not right and wrong ways in this case. There is a way
you prefer and a way you do not prefer. If this message is any example,
the ways can even be combined. I would imagine that you would put that
into what you call "the wrong way"

I think this gets to the core of our discussion. What you label as right
and wrong, I label as preference.

I would say that in order for a method to be wrong there has to be a
negative consequence or outcome of using that method.

You would say that it makes it hard for the reader to make sense of the
message (you have said that in the past).

So far (as I've said before) we've had only one person complain about the
format of my posts and that one person has been you. I seem to recall that
I've also had at least one person support my position.

Many will visit a newsgroup and read what has been posted with nary a
thought of posting themselves. I want to make it easy for the reader to
follow what is being said. You make it hard for the reader to follow what is
being said. Most readers will never comment either way of course, but the
difference is that I know what I am talking about and you don't. The reason
I know is because I am going with the tried and the true Google rules on
posting. Sometimes it is called netiquette. You are doing things your own
way and consequently you are out in left field by yourself.

The only other opinion that we've seen is the opinion that this discussion
has gone on way too long. Maybe so but I am of the opinion that anyone who
feels that way doesn't have to read this thread. It isn't like we have
been leaping into other threads to carry on this conversation.

Yes, you are certainly right about that. You and I own this thread and the
original subject topic died and went to hell long ago. Still, I want others
to read what we have to say to one another as I believe it is fairly
important. We are primarily discussing a housekeeping chore as it relates to
Usenet. Everyone can learn from our discussion.

By the way, the above is the main reason why I have never considered myself
a troll. I stay on certain threads almost to the excusion of all other
threads. Real trolls insert themselves on many threads and ruin the group
for everyone. I am no more a troll than is Jeff Grippe.

You and I have very different opinions about right and wrong. Unless I
become convinced that my posting style is really distressing many people
and they just can't figure out what I'm saying then I shall not be
changing anytime soon.

I remain convinced that you do not quote me because you fear that others
will kill file you. Nothing else makes any sense to me. It is easier to post
the right way then it is to post the wrong way. Therefore, you must have the
alternative motive that I ascribe to you.

Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota

"Steve" wrote in message
. ..
Edward Dolan wrote:
Sentences needn't be complete all the time. Sometimes a sentence fragment
makes the most sense. They are called dependent clauses and should only
be used by intellectuals like me.

Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota



This is very funny Mr Dolan!
Steve

I remember having pounded into me throughout my school years that only great
writers could ever break the rules. Since I now consider myself a great
writer, I feel I can break the rules with impunity. I also make up words as
I go along. They almost look like they could be real words, but you will not
find them in any dictionary. But only great writers like myself should ever
attempt these audacious things. For everyone else it is the greatest of
follies not to follow the rules of good grammar and composition.

Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota

"Mike Rice" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 20 Jun 2005 02:46:03 -0500, "Edward Dolan"
wrote:

(Snip)

But I was a great reader. I wasted my youth reading books. I was what was
known as a book worm. But I stopped reading novels by the age of 30 for
the
reasons stated above. I do not believe older folks read novels. But more
than that, I do not believe even young people read novels anymore, at
least
not like how I used to.

For someone who likes to tell others their posting preferences are
'wrong', and who also lays claim to being a wonderful writer you
certainly can mangle the language. I am suitably impressed being
mooned three times in one paragraph. But I guess you mispelled butt
every other sentence in the race to flash the few readers this thread
still holds. See how clumsy it felt to read a sentence begining with
'But' just once.

Yes, Mike is right. I used "but" way too much. Here is how I should have
written the above paragraph:

But I was a great reader. I wasted my youth reading books. I was what was
known as a book worm. However, I stopped reading novels by the age of 30
for the
reasons stated above. I do not believe older folks read novels. More
than that, I do not believe even young people read novels anymore, at
least
not like how I used to.

The first "but" is used to tie the paragraph above to the preceding
paragraph which you have snipped.

Ed, Ed, Ed. I am *tempted* to say this usage is wrong.

But I won't.

...at least not like how I used to.'

The above is a kind of local expression and it has the flavor I wanted to
convey.

seems a little confusing as well.

This is beginning to bother me.

I love a careful reader like Mike. He was born to read me.

;-)

In another message that sxame day you wrote:



Even though I do not like what Mike has to
say about the War on Terrorism, I want to be fair to him and to let him
have
his say. This can only be done with the proper quotation. As far as I
know,
no one has ever accused me of being unfair. I can take as well as I can
give, so I let others have their full say in my replies.

Ed Dolan - Minnesota


I guess it's not unfair to insult folks based on their nationality,
nor to call those with other viewpoints 'idiots', so I have to agree.

(Back to your previous message)


Of course we old men still read books, but we do not read novels. You have
to be young and a Romantic in order to enjoy novels. Who ever heard of an
old man being a Romantic? By the way, an old man is anyone over the age of
30. You should be done with Romance by age 30 and have begun
contemplating
your mortality. Here is your epitaph:

"Once I wasn't, Then I was, Now I ain't again."

Good one.


Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota

PS. Now you know why I call myself the Great.

'Ed the Fair' I can accept. 'Ed the Great'? I'm not so sure.

Indiana Mike

"Mike Rice" wrote in message
...
[...]

Damn! I hit "Send" instead of "Spell Check." To continue:

In another message that same day you wrote:



Even though I do not like what Mike has to
say about the War on Terrorism, I want to be fair to him and to let him
have
his say. This can only be done with the proper quotation. As far as I
know,
no one has ever accused me of being unfair. I can take as well as I can
give, so I let others have their full say in my replies.

Ed Dolan - Minnesota


I guess it's not unfair to insult folks based on their nationality,
nor to call those with other viewpoints 'idiots', so I have to agree.

Not all nationalities are equal any more than all persons are intelligent.
Some nationalities are despicable and some persons are idiots.

(Back to your previous message)


Of course we old men still read books, but we do not read novels. You have
to be young and a Romantic in order to enjoy novels. Who ever heard of an
old man being a Romantic? By the way, an old man is anyone over the age of
30. You should be done with Romance by age 30 and have begun
contemplating
your mortality. Here is your epitaph:

"Once I wasn't, Then I was, Now I ain't again."

Good one.


Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota

PS. Now you know why I call myself the Great.

'Ed the Fair' I can accept. 'Ed the Great'? I'm not so sure.

Indiana Mike

"Once I wasn't, Then I was, Now I ain't again."

Isn't that the greatest epitaph ever? It says it all in just ten little
words. I spend a lot of time ruminating in cemeteries these days. It seems I
know more there among the dead than I do in town among the living.

Ed Dolan the Wise - Minnesota

Quoting Style and other readers

Ed, I think anyone reading this thread certainly knows that they are free to
jump in either for or against your rigid quoting style. I think most people
found this topic boring a long time ago. It could be down to you and me, I
don't know.

You say you want to make it easy by liberally quoting but that doesn't make
it easy at all. Each message has some reference to what came before. If they
really want a true feeling for the conversation then they should start at
the beginning. If they don't, then my encapsulation should be enough.



Troll

Generally I would not consider you a troll. I'm not completely sure when the
distinction does and does not apply. You do tend to get a little nasty at
times in expressing your disagreement but as I've said before you usually
begin your part in a thread completely "on topic".




Motives

Ed. you may have all sorts of hidden agendas and wacky reasons why you do
things but not everybody does. I don't care who kill files me and my motives
for what I do are no more complex than I have already explained. Not
everybody thinks like you do. Certainly I don't.

Jeff

"Jeff Grippe" jeff@door7 wrote in message
...
Quoting Style and other readers

Ed, I think anyone reading this thread certainly knows that they are free
to jump in either for or against your rigid quoting style. I think most
people found this topic boring a long time ago. It could be down to you
and me, I don't know.

Most people found this topic confusing because of your manner of posting.
Not only confusing, but uninteresting. You are an ego maniac to think that
only your words are of interest in a response. Your correspondent's words
are equally as interesting and must be quoted to keep the reader focused
and interested. You have failed on both counts.

You say you want to make it easy by liberally quoting but that doesn't
make it easy at all. Each message has some reference to what came before.
If they really want a true feeling for the conversation then they should
start at the beginning. If they don't, then my encapsulation should be
enough.

No one will do what you suggest because it is simply not worth the time and
effort to look up anything on a newsgroup board as there is too much chaff
along with the grain. It would never even occur to me to look up anything,
not even my own messages to see what I had previously said. You are being
disingenuous - and all to avoid the nut cases kill filing you for quoting
me.

Troll

Generally I would not consider you a troll. I'm not completely sure when
the distinction does and does not apply. You do tend to get a little nasty
at times in expressing your disagreement but as I've said before you
usually begin your part in a thread completely "on topic".

Nastiness is in the eye of the beholder and has nothing to do with being a
troll. In order to get off topic, it takes two. Getting off topic also has
nothing to do with being a troll unless it is intentional and persistent.
All conversation tends to wander and it is unnatural not to let the
conversation wander where it will.

Motives

Ed. you may have all sorts of hidden agendas and wacky reasons why you do
things but not everybody does. I don't care who kill files me and my
motives for what I do are no more complex than I have already explained.
Not everybody thinks like you do. Certainly I don't.

You fear being kill filed by the nut cases on this group. That is the only
possible reason why you do not quote me. If I did the same to you, no one on
this group would have the slightest notion what we were talking about. You
consistently confuse email with Usenet. You can go to your grave confused
for all I care. I am right and you are wrong. That is all I know and all I
need to know.

I shall henceforth spend more time on those who post the right way and less
time on those who post the wrong way.

Ed Dolan the Great - Minnesota