NWR Silly Little Things That Annoy You

I think the 'pronoun stupidity' is in the phrasing, 'A and B perform their...' which sounds like the traditional use of their. And it says that an orchestra and two people are performing a solo.
And the proms is described by the BBC as a 'classical music festival'.
So I think that one sentence ticks the slttay box at least 3 times!
 
Paul Matthews said:
I think the 'pronoun stupidity' is in the phrasing, 'A and B perform their...' which sounds like the traditional use of their.
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No. He's genuinely mad about singular usages of they - he's posted several times about it before. I don't know why he's annoyed. I mean it was used by such apparently illiterate authors as Dickens, Austen, Shakespeare and Chaucer. I mean what do they know about the English language? I can't help thinking he might have some negative feelings about trans and non-binary people that he might need to work on - preferably somewhere else than on a wine forum.
 
Paul Matthews said:
I think the 'pronoun stupidity' is in the phrasing, 'A and B perform their...' which sounds like the traditional use of their. And it says that an orchestra and two people are performing a solo.
And the proms is described by the BBC as a 'classical music festival'.
So I think that one sentence ticks the slttay box at least 3 times!
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Exactly Paul,

It also gives the reader the impression that Simon Hale was involved in the original album.

The whole piece is a mess.The BBC is still for me a benchmark of what is ‘correct’ and this was a complete mangle.

To a degree though they have my sympathy.

It was the BBC who were instrumental in promoting the early career of this artist thereby introducing me to the wonderful pop talent and voice of Sam Smith, many of whose tracks and collaborations populate my playlists. For me in many ways they (he)* and Will Young have delivered new material of a style that is so sadly no longer going to come from George Michael.

It seems though that Sam Smith has repaid the BBC with threat of proceedings around the issue of pronouns. At the same time the public pronouncements,appearance and questionable wardrobe choices have served to lessen my affection for an artist who I previously looked forward to hearing about with genuine enthusiasm.

That said the write up was a complete mess and whilst it may take time for us, myself included, to adjust and to and accommodate shifting pronoun protocols, it is important that we can look to the likes of the BBC for a lead.

*Whilst respecting the wish of the artist to be referred to as they I bracket he since that was the pronoun applicable at that time to the output I enjoy.
 
Ian Hampsted said:
Or people who overtake you and then pull in front of you - with or without indicating - and then slow down, forcing you to disengage cruise control, or overtake them. Nearly as annoying as slow drivers who drive substantially below the speed limit.
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I had a friend who loved doing circles around people hogging the middle lane - overtake, pull into the middle lane then the left hand lane, slow down to let the other car pass, pull into the middle lane then accelerate into the outside lane, rinse and repeat.
 
Paul J a i n e s said:
Please take off your HUGE backpack when you are on the tube. It is just plain common decency. And dont get angry when I politely say "would you mind taking off your backpack - its rush hour - your hitting people in the face with it"
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In a similar vein, people walking down the aisle on a plane wearing rucksacks who think nothing of smashing those already seated with it all the way to their own seat. Morons.
 
Dan Baillie said:
In a similar vein, people walking down the aisle on a plane wearing rucksacks who think nothing of smashing those already seated with it all the way to their own seat. Morons.
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And
People who enter the plane at the front to seat at the rear, despite the clear signage.
All those carry ons won’t pass each other.
Similar problem in Tesco car park the other day.
 
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Paul J a i n e s said:
Please take off your HUGE backpack when you are on the tube. It is just plain common decency. And dont get angry when I politely say "would you mind taking off your backpack - its rush hour - your hitting people in the face with it"
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I have always assumed that donning a backpack somehow immediately switches off the wearers personal spacial awareness.
Planes and trains are danger zones, though I recall wine shows and fairs as another hazardous persuit. Oddly alcohol consumption did not seem to make things any worse it was just dreadful from the get go.
I should though give an honourable mention as exclusion to @Po-yu Sung who despite often transporting bottles enough to satisfy an online single handed, manages to never hurt anyone.
 
Ian Hampsted said:
Or people who overtake you and then pull in front of you - with or without indicating - and then slow down, forcing you to disengage cruise control, or overtake them. Nearly as annoying as slow drivers who drive substantially below the speed limit.
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...and in many cases pull in about 2 car lengths in front, despite their not being much traffic, so I can no longer see the road ahead properly. And they probably think it's good roadcraft. I sometimes put my full beams on for this.
 
Richard Zambuni said:
That reminds me of British Rail days when the heating was only turned off in July and August. Some trains were literally unbearably hot for most of the year.
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True. I greatly miss the luxury of travelling in an empty train, though, surely the most luxurious of all conveyances. They always seem packed to the rafters now, which is not nice at all.
 
Thom Blach said:
True. I greatly miss the luxury of travelling in an empty train, though, surely the most luxurious of all conveyances. They always seem packed to the rafters now, which is not nice at all.
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When did it become normal for every single travelling member of the public to eat continuously on trains. Doesn't matter the time of day, could be 6 in the morning, could be 10am, seems 8 out of every 10 people need to eat breakfast/lunch NOW.

Never mind quiet coaches, can we have non-eating coaches please. Tea/coffee allowed.

And I agree with you Tom that every single service seems full all of the time now. I suppose we have 15m more people than we did when I was a kid and same number of railway tracks.
 
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