Redneck Tech Support
Friday, May 9, 2008
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Butchering the Language
I recognize that English is a very dynamic, constantly changing language. English adds as many new words in a single decade as some language use altogether.
But, what is the deal with incorrect, improper, erroneous and downright wrong word usage?
My current pet peeve is "infamous" -- It is CONSTANTLY misused! "Infamous is NOT "super famous"!! It is not correct to say that a person is so famous they are really "infamous"! No! No! No! Not even the History Channel is above butchering this word!
Infamous = Having a reputation of the worst kind : notoriously evil; causing or bringing infamy : disgraceful! (Merriam Webster Dictionary)
Thus - Bonnie and Clyde, Hitler, Castro, etc., are "infamous" -- George Washington is NOT!
While I am on the topic -- "Irregardless" is not really a word!
"Irregardless originated in dialectal American speech in the early 20th century. Its fairly widespread use in speech called it to the attention of usage commentators as early as 1927. The most frequently repeated remark about it is that “there is no such word.” There is such a word, however. It is still used primarily in speech, although it can be found from time to time in edited prose. Its reputation has not risen over the years, and it is still a long way from general acceptance. Use regardless instead." (Merriam Webster Dictionary)
Perhaps with sufficient mis-use these words will be added/changed in the dictionary in the future -- but get it right now!
My accent may be thick enough that some people can't understand what I am saying -- but at least I usually use the correct word, and use a word correctly!
But, what is the deal with incorrect, improper, erroneous and downright wrong word usage?
My current pet peeve is "infamous" -- It is CONSTANTLY misused! "Infamous is NOT "super famous"!! It is not correct to say that a person is so famous they are really "infamous"! No! No! No! Not even the History Channel is above butchering this word!
Infamous = Having a reputation of the worst kind : notoriously evil; causing or bringing infamy : disgraceful! (Merriam Webster Dictionary)
Thus - Bonnie and Clyde, Hitler, Castro, etc., are "infamous" -- George Washington is NOT!
While I am on the topic -- "Irregardless" is not really a word!
"Irregardless originated in dialectal American speech in the early 20th century. Its fairly widespread use in speech called it to the attention of usage commentators as early as 1927. The most frequently repeated remark about it is that “there is no such word.” There is such a word, however. It is still used primarily in speech, although it can be found from time to time in edited prose. Its reputation has not risen over the years, and it is still a long way from general acceptance. Use regardless instead." (Merriam Webster Dictionary)
Perhaps with sufficient mis-use these words will be added/changed in the dictionary in the future -- but get it right now!
My accent may be thick enough that some people can't understand what I am saying -- but at least I usually use the correct word, and use a word correctly!
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Age and Skill!
A wealthy old Gentleman decides to go on a hunting safari in Africa , taking his faithful, elderly Jack Russell named Killer, along for the company. One day the old Jack Russell starts chasing rabbits and before long, discovers that he's lost.
Wandering about, he notices a leopard heading rapidly in his direction with the intention of having lunch. The old Jack Russell thinks, "Oh, oh! I'm in deep doo-doo now!" Noticing some bones on the ground close by, he immediately settles down to chew on the bones with his back to the approaching cat. Just as the leopard is about to leap, the old Jack Russell exclaims loudly, "Boy, that was one delicious leopard! I wonder, if there are any more around here?" Hearing this, the young leopard halts his attack in mid-strike, a look of terror comes over him and he slinks away into the trees. "Whew!", says the leopard, "That was close! That old Jack Russell nearly had me!"
Meanwhile, a monkey who had been watching the whole scene from a nearby tree, figures he can put this knowledge to good use and trade it for protection from the leopard. So, off he goes, but the old Jack Russell sees him heading after the leopard with great speed, and figures that something must be up. The monkey soon catches up with the leopard, spills the beans and strikes a deal for himself with the leopard . The young leopard is furious at being made a fool of and says, "Here, monkey, hop on my back and se e what's going to happen to that conniving canine!
Now, the old Jack Russell sees the leopard coming with the monkey on his back and thinks, "What am I going to do now?", but instead of running, the dog sits down with his back to his attackers, pretending he hasn't seen them yet, and just when they get close enough to hear, the old Jack Russell says..."Where's that damn monkey? I sent him off an hour ago to bring me another leopard !
Moral of this story... Don't mess with the old dogs... age and skill will always overcome youth and treachery!
Monday, May 5, 2008
Military Wit & Wisdom
'If the Enemy is in range, so are you.' - Infantry Journal
--------------------------------------------------
'It is generally inadvisable to eject over the area you just bombed' - U.S. Air Force Manual
--------------------------------------------------
'Aim towards the Enemy' - Instructions printed on U.S. Rocket Launcher
--------------------------------------------------
'When the pin is pulled, Mr.Grenade is not our friend.' - U.S. Marine Corps
--------------------------------------------------
'Cluster bombing from B-52s is very, very accurate. The bombs are guaranteed always to hit the ground.' - USAF Ammo Troop
---------------------------------------------------
'Whoever said the pen is mightier than the sword obviously never encountered automatic weapons.' - General MacArthur
---------------------------------------------------
'Try to look unimportant; they may be low on ammo.' - Infantry Journal
---------------------------------------------------
'You, you, and you. Panic. The rest of you come with me.' - U.S. Marine Gunnery Sgt. (Mgysgt5)
----------------------------------------------------
'Tracers work both ways.' - U. S. Army Ordnance
----------------------------------------------------
'Five second fuses only last three seconds' - Infantry Journal
----------------------------------------------------
'Don't ever be the first, don't ever be the last, and don't ever volunteer to do anything.' - U.S. Navy Swabbie (NAVY = Never Again Volunteer Yourself)
----------------------------------------------------
'Bravery is being the only one who knows you're afraid.' - David Hackworth
-----------------------------------------------------
'If your attack is going too well, you're walking into an ambush.' - Infantry Journal
----------------------------------------------------
'No combat-ready unit has ever passed inspection.' - Joe Gay
------------------------------------------------------
'Any ship can be a minesweeper. Once.' - unknown
------------------------------------------------------
'Never tell the Platoon Sergeant you have nothing to do.' - Unknown Marine Recruit
-------------------------------------------------------
'Don't draw fire; it irritates the people around you.'
-----------------------------------------------------
'If you see a bomb technician running, follow him.' - USAF Ammo Troop
-------------------------------------------------------
"Initial success or catastrophic failure" -- US Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit Informal Motto
-------------------------------------------------------
'You've never been lost until you've been lost at Mach 3.' - Paul F. Crickmore (test pilot)
-------------------------------------------------------
'The only time you have too much fuel, is when you're on fire.'
------------------------------------------------------
'Blue water Navy truism: There are more Planes in the Ocean than Submarines in the Sky.' - From an Old Carrier Sailor
-----------------------------------------------------
'If the wings are traveling faster than the fuselage, it's probably a Helicopter -- and therefore,unsafe.'
------------------------------------------------------
'When one engine fails on a twin-engine airplane, you always have enough power left, to get you to the scene of the Crash.'
------------------------------------------------------
'Without ammunition, the USAF would be just another expensive flying club.'
------------------------------------------------------
'What is the similarity between air traffic controllers and pilots? If a Pilot screws up, the Pilot dies; If ATC screws up.... The pilot dies.'
------------------------------------------------------
'Never trade Luck for Skill.'
------------------------------------------------------
The three most common expressions (or famous last words) in aviation are: 'Why is it doing that?', 'Where are We?' And 'Oh SH*T !'
-----------------------------------------------------
'Weather forecasts are horoscopes with numbers.'
------------------------------------------------------
'Airspeed, altitude and brains. Two are always needed to complete the flight successfully.'
-----------------------------------------------------
'Mankind has a perfect record in aviation; we've never left one up there!'
------------------------------------------------------
'Flashlights are tubular metal containers, kept in a flight bag to store dead batteries.'
------------------------------------------------------
'Flying the airplane is more important than radioing your plight to a person on the ground who is incapable of understanding or doing anything about it.'
-------------------------------------------------------
'The Piper Cub is the safest airplane in the world; it can just barely kill you.' - Attributed to Max Stanley (Northrop test pilot)
--------------------------------------------------------
'A pilot who doesn't have any fear, probably isn't flying his plane to its maximum.' - Jon McBride, astronaut
--------------------------------------------------------
'If you're faced with a forced landing, fly the thing, as far into the crash as possible.' - Bob Hoover (renowned aerobatic and test pilot )
--------------------------------------------------
'A slipping gear could let your M203 grenade launcher fire, when you least expect it. That would make you quite unpopular in what's left of your unit.' - Army's magazine of preventive maintenance.
-------------------------------------------------------
'Never fly in the same cockpit with someone braver than you.'
------------------------------------------------------
'There is no reason to fly through a thunderstorm in peacetime.' - Sign over squadron ops desk at Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ, 1970
--------------------------------------------------------
'If something hasn't broken on your helicopter, it's about to.'
-------------------------------------------------------
Basic Flying Rules: 'Try to stay in the middle of the air. Do not go near the edges of it. The edges of the air can be recognized by the appearance of ground, buildings, sea, trees and interstellar space. It is much more difficult to fly there.'
------------------------------------------------------
'You know that your landing gear is up and locked when it takes full power to taxi to the terminal.'
--------------------------------------------------
'It is generally inadvisable to eject over the area you just bombed' - U.S. Air Force Manual
--------------------------------------------------
'Aim towards the Enemy' - Instructions printed on U.S. Rocket Launcher
--------------------------------------------------
'When the pin is pulled, Mr.Grenade is not our friend.' - U.S. Marine Corps
--------------------------------------------------
'Cluster bombing from B-52s is very, very accurate. The bombs are guaranteed always to hit the ground.' - USAF Ammo Troop
---------------------------------------------------
'Whoever said the pen is mightier than the sword obviously never encountered automatic weapons.' - General MacArthur
---------------------------------------------------
'Try to look unimportant; they may be low on ammo.' - Infantry Journal
---------------------------------------------------
'You, you, and you. Panic. The rest of you come with me.' - U.S. Marine Gunnery Sgt. (Mgysgt5)
----------------------------------------------------
'Tracers work both ways.' - U. S. Army Ordnance
----------------------------------------------------
'Five second fuses only last three seconds' - Infantry Journal
----------------------------------------------------
'Don't ever be the first, don't ever be the last, and don't ever volunteer to do anything.' - U.S. Navy Swabbie (NAVY = Never Again Volunteer Yourself)
----------------------------------------------------
'Bravery is being the only one who knows you're afraid.' - David Hackworth
-----------------------------------------------------
'If your attack is going too well, you're walking into an ambush.' - Infantry Journal
----------------------------------------------------
'No combat-ready unit has ever passed inspection.' - Joe Gay
------------------------------------------------------
'Any ship can be a minesweeper. Once.' - unknown
------------------------------------------------------
'Never tell the Platoon Sergeant you have nothing to do.' - Unknown Marine Recruit
-------------------------------------------------------
'Don't draw fire; it irritates the people around you.'
-----------------------------------------------------
'If you see a bomb technician running, follow him.' - USAF Ammo Troop
-------------------------------------------------------
"Initial success or catastrophic failure" -- US Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit Informal Motto
-------------------------------------------------------
'You've never been lost until you've been lost at Mach 3.' - Paul F. Crickmore (test pilot)
-------------------------------------------------------
'The only time you have too much fuel, is when you're on fire.'
------------------------------------------------------
'Blue water Navy truism: There are more Planes in the Ocean than Submarines in the Sky.' - From an Old Carrier Sailor
-----------------------------------------------------
'If the wings are traveling faster than the fuselage, it's probably a Helicopter -- and therefore,unsafe.'
------------------------------------------------------
'When one engine fails on a twin-engine airplane, you always have enough power left, to get you to the scene of the Crash.'
------------------------------------------------------
'Without ammunition, the USAF would be just another expensive flying club.'
------------------------------------------------------
'What is the similarity between air traffic controllers and pilots? If a Pilot screws up, the Pilot dies; If ATC screws up.... The pilot dies.'
------------------------------------------------------
'Never trade Luck for Skill.'
------------------------------------------------------
The three most common expressions (or famous last words) in aviation are: 'Why is it doing that?', 'Where are We?' And 'Oh SH*T !'
-----------------------------------------------------
'Weather forecasts are horoscopes with numbers.'
------------------------------------------------------
'Airspeed, altitude and brains. Two are always needed to complete the flight successfully.'
-----------------------------------------------------
'Mankind has a perfect record in aviation; we've never left one up there!'
------------------------------------------------------
'Flashlights are tubular metal containers, kept in a flight bag to store dead batteries.'
------------------------------------------------------
'Flying the airplane is more important than radioing your plight to a person on the ground who is incapable of understanding or doing anything about it.'
-------------------------------------------------------
'The Piper Cub is the safest airplane in the world; it can just barely kill you.' - Attributed to Max Stanley (Northrop test pilot)
--------------------------------------------------------
'A pilot who doesn't have any fear, probably isn't flying his plane to its maximum.' - Jon McBride, astronaut
--------------------------------------------------------
'If you're faced with a forced landing, fly the thing, as far into the crash as possible.' - Bob Hoover (renowned aerobatic and test pilot )
--------------------------------------------------
'A slipping gear could let your M203 grenade launcher fire, when you least expect it. That would make you quite unpopular in what's left of your unit.' - Army's magazine of preventive maintenance.
-------------------------------------------------------
'Never fly in the same cockpit with someone braver than you.'
------------------------------------------------------
'There is no reason to fly through a thunderstorm in peacetime.' - Sign over squadron ops desk at Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ, 1970
--------------------------------------------------------
'If something hasn't broken on your helicopter, it's about to.'
-------------------------------------------------------
Basic Flying Rules: 'Try to stay in the middle of the air. Do not go near the edges of it. The edges of the air can be recognized by the appearance of ground, buildings, sea, trees and interstellar space. It is much more difficult to fly there.'
------------------------------------------------------
'You know that your landing gear is up and locked when it takes full power to taxi to the terminal.'
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