Okay, so what the jabbering fuck IS "eprime", anygoddamnway?

[Triple Zero]

Triple Zero mentioned it favorably in his sig at one point.

It was sarcasm/satire.

Really, "please read the above post to be in e-prime (whcih means you cant be offended, neener-neener)"

In hindsight, maybe I shoudl have written out the parenthesized bit.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Triple Zero mentioned it favorably in his sig at one point.

It was sarcasm/satire.

Really, "please read the above post to be in e-prime (whcih means you cant be offended, neener-neener)"

In hindsight, maybe I shoudl have written out the parenthesized bit.

I thought it was pretty funny. But then, I've been on the board for a while, and in the middle of a few e-prime "conversations".

[Template]

Triple Zero mentioned it favorably in his sig at one point.

It was sarcasm/satire.

Really, "please read the above post to be in e-prime (whcih means you cant be offended, neener-neener)"

In hindsight, maybe I shoudl have written out the parenthesized bit.

Oh.  In any case, I hereby disclaim any and all ties to e-prime.  I enjoy the game of using English without any instance of "to be".  Any and all other aspects of e-prime can die in a fire.

And I imagine I could simply introduce the game directly in the future.  "Hey, who wants to play Who needs "to be"? "

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

Triple Zero mentioned it favorably in his sig at one point.

It was sarcasm/satire.

Really, "please read the above post to be in e-prime (whcih means you cant be offended, neener-neener)"

In hindsight, maybe I shoudl have written out the parenthesized bit.

NO WAI, I TOTALLY THOUGHT YOU WERE FOR SIRIUS!

[Cainad (dec.)]

I think over 3/4ths of my posts are in e-prime, or in the spirit of e-prime.

I find that sensitivity towards language helpful in organizing my own thoughts and clearly articulating what I mean. It's a very precise use of language, but like scientific language, it isn't for every situation.


I suspect many people don't actually find the usage of e-prime annoying, so much as they find the word e-prime annoying. (Perhaps due to raw associations?) Reminds me of the word "meme" that gradually became really annoying to some people around here. I probably post more about memetics now than I did before the NO MORE MEME blitz, but have avoided using the word itself. (for memetic reasons  ) It seems like discussion about memetics doesn't bug people, the usage of the word memetics bugs people.

This is why I'm enjoying Malcolm Gladwell's The Tipping Point, actually. It's 103% about memetics, but halfway through the book he has yet to use the word "meme" or any variant thereof. I think it's useful to get the same or very similar ideas filtered through different language.