Comments on: Grammatical Jeopardy – Couldn’t Care Less or Could Care Less

By: Alysson

Alysson — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 17:36:50 +0000

I don’t disagree that one’s audience is likely to be able to decipher the meaning of a statement even when the wrong word is used. However, I find that when it comes to the spoken word, mispronunciation is typically, but not always, indicative of two things: 1) ignorance; and/or 2) lack of attention to detail.

As for the written word, I completely understand. Many people don’t seem to understand that one of the purposes of punctuation is to help convey the tone that is lost when not communicating verbally. I believe this article from About.com helps to illustrate your point and the importance of proper punctuation: http://grammar.about.com/od/punctuationandmechanics/a/punctmatters07.htm

By: Alysson

Alysson — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 17:26:39 +0000

Believe me, Hunter…I’ve got a long list of pet peeves, as well. That’s probably the reason my “Grammatical Jeopardy” category only contains one post thus far. I fear that if I let myself get started and on a roll, I’ll never get anything else accomplished! This post gets a surprising about of traffic, so you’re certainly not the only one who wondered whether it was “could” or “couldn’t”.

By the way, “Neanderthal swag”…hilarious! Well, it’s hilarious now. The humor may be lost when your prediction comes true.

By: Alysson

Alysson — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 17:18:36 +0000

Hi, Hunter. I’m glad you found the post both useful and easy to find. Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment!

By: Hunter Workman

Hunter Workman — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 17:09:14 +0000

I disagree, to a certain extent. Although misused and neglected words are frequent, I find that misplaced and forgotten punctuation is much more common, most noticeably when writing, of course. Commas are especially troublesome. When they are neglected, the meaning of what is being said can almost not be determined, since the tone of speech has a lot to do with its meaning. When someone uses a word that they feel is “close enough”, it is usually still pretty easy to figure out what they’re saying. I wish I could think of an example to illustrate my point, but, unfortunately, I’m drawing blanks. I’m sure someone knows what I’m trying to say and can make it easier to understand. There are times when the proper words escape me.

By: Hunter Workman

Hunter Workman — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:54:04 +0000

Also, since we’re all stating our grievances with how other people speak, a few of my biggest pet peeves are people thinking “lay” and “lie” are interchangeable and that “allusion” only exists to make the dictionary a little bit longer. I’m actually really glad that I was doubtful enough in my own knowledge (a rare occurrence, I assure you) to look this “could/couldn’t care less” issue up. I never knew there were so many other people who felt the same way about spoken and written language as I do. I’ve always strongly believed that humans will eventually return to communicating through a series of grunts and whistles. They’ll call it “Neanderthal swag”, and it will be the next “big fad”. There really should be some sort of society for people like us. It would make everything much easier.

By: Hunter Workman

Hunter Workman — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:30:29 +0000

I’m a bit of a grammar buff myself, so I like to say things correctly whenever possible. This was one of those phrases I was on the fence about. I knew that “I could care less” made no sense, but I thought it may be one of those things that has a history behind it, giving it meaning. It’s nice to see I’ve been saying it correctly. It’s also very convenient that this post was so easy to find. Saved me time asking around.

By: Alysson

Alysson — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 04:56:44 +0000

I see what you’re saying, Hal, but I have to disagree. Based on the meaning of the words in context, it simply does not make sense to say “I could care less” for the reasons I’ve detailed above. Colloquialism or not, words are either used accurately or inaccurately based on their meanings. I’ve not heard “Astigmatism” in place of “stigma” – though I’m pretty sure I’d literally laugh out loud. At least “Astigmatism” is actually a word…unlike “irregardless”. Thanks for stopping by!

By: Hal

Hal — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 02:55:32 +0000

Great post! I never say “could care less” because I don’t want people to think I’m an idiot. However, while I am not a fan of its use, I’d argue that it is not technically incorrect to say it. It is an American colloquialism and has become generally accepted over time. BTW – my favorite is when people use “Astigmatism” when they mean “stigma”. I swear I have heard this at least 3 times.

By: Alysson

Alysson — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 23:28:04 +0000

Thanks, Jackie. I’m glad you enjoyed the post. And welcome to my Twitterverse!

By: Jackie

Jackie — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:41:45 +0000

Loved it and it’s amazing to me that people are so angry about it. Wow. I’ll be following you on twitter now. Love love the witty banter! Good job!

By: Alysson

Alysson — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 17:52:07 +0000

I’ll chip in on that box of tissues.

By: Kyle

Kyle — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 16:59:08 +0000

Bro chill out. Don’t catch feelings over a website. Call them a bunch of “jerks”. This was just to clarify to either those who weren’t sure which one was correct, or to settle a “grammatical dispute”, if you will. No need in tearing up because you used the wrong one. Using the correct one helps in communicating to those who over analyze a phrase or saying they don’t often hear, and eliminate the chance of a miscommunication. If you “pride yourself” in grammatical correctness then just fix it and get over it. If you stop replying to anything ever, I will personally purchase you a box of tissues to wipe your tears over this.

By: Alysson

Alysson — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 22:47:39 +0000

My problem is not with those who believe differently. I have plenty of conservative friends with whom I engage in spirited, fact-based, respectful debates (many on Twitter) on a regular basis. My problem is with those who base their beliefs and opinions on the lies spoon fed to them by the Fox News propaganda machine without actually caring about accuracy or bothering to research the facts for themselves. We’re all entitled to our own opinions. But facts are facts. And until we agree to operate based on facts, logic and reason, we will all continue to suffer the consequences of a legislature that is embarrassingly incapable of governing or even carrying on a substantive debate of the issues.

This is not about conservative ideology vs. liberal ideology. Liberals and Conservatives have always disagreed about how to govern this nation, but they haven’t always operated on two different planes of existence. They may not have seen eye-to-eye about how to get there, but like the bleeding-heart liberals of the world, most in the Republican party of generations past actually cared about the average American citizen. Today, that’s not the case. The modern day GOP is controlled entirely by the wealthiest and most unapologetically avarice-driven forces on the planet. Notice I said “on the planet”, not “in America”.

The extreme right has taken Congress, and by extension all of us, hostage. It is not Bush’s mispronunciation of the word “nuclear” that is the problem. It is merely an illustration of the GOP’s allegiance to that which is false. Combine that with a remarkable ability distort and, in some cases, completely rewrite history, as well as unrepentant loyalty to the party leadership no matter how inaccurate, absurd, malicious, manipulative or purposefully misleading their message may be and you have today’s GOP.

Believe differently. Please. The best solutions never come from one side or the other, but from a combination of ideas that come from a diverse pool of perspectives. But base those opinions and the resulting arguments on facts, reason and rational thinking…not the grammatically incorrect and misspelled signs from Tea Party protests.

By: Alysson

Alysson — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 22:12:27 +0000

You are entitled to your opinion. Thanks for stopping by.

By: Justin

Justin — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 00:44:31 +0000

You guys are a bunch of jerks. I pride myself on being gramatically correct whenever possible, but I would never demean another person based on such a trivial aspect of life. As long as I’m able to easily understand what they’re trying to communicate (which is the entire purpose of grammar in the first place), then I could/couldn’t care less if the minor details are perfect. You should all be ashamed of yourselves, take a good step back and a long look in the mirror at who you should really be condescending towards and looking down your noses at.

By: Debbie Bryant

Debbie Bryant — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 22:10:59 +0000

Well Alysson, let’s not forget the now famous Obama pronunciation of the word ‘corpsman’ over and over and over. Sorry. There is no audible P sound as it’s quite silent. I will just chalk that up to his lack of attention to what he’s saying (much like you referenced W’s mispronunciation of the word ‘nuclear.’) The only difference in us here is that, unlike you, I will not attribute Obama’s mispronunciation of the word (and subsequent words) to the ‘nonsensical left-wing’s approach to manufacturing facts.’ I’ll just blame Obama, and it would be nice if you would just blame Bush rather than everyone who believes differently from you.

By: Alysson

Alysson — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 02:55:09 +0000

Good call. You’re absolutely right. It does seem to have more impact if the voice in your head has a British accent. I’ll bet that many will now scroll back up just to read that comment again in a British accent. And most will agree with you.

By: Bryant

Bryant — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 02:43:22 +0000

I don’t know why but I HAD to read your previous reply in an angry British accent. It was the only way it sounded proper.

By: Alysson

Alysson — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 02:30:37 +0000

Don’t look now, but your geographical arrogance is showing. If you took a moment to look it up, you’d find that placing punctuation within quotation marks is unique to American English. Even so, logic suggests that in many circumstances placing punctuation after a closing quotation mark simply makes sense based on the context of the sentence. Placing a comma outside quotation marks is no more incorrect than the use of an “s” rather than a “z” in words like “realise” or “standardise”, which – like punctuation positioned outside quotation marks – you’ll find in British English.

If you care to learn more, here’s an easy to absorb article from Slate.com on this very topic: http://www.slate.com/articles/life/the_good_word/2011/05/the_rise_of_logical_punctuation.single.html

It is also important to note that grammar and punctuation are two decidedly different things. A misplaced comma, unlike a misused or omitted word, does not change the fundamental meaning of a sentence or phrase.

By: Bob

Bob — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 22:37:53 +0000

People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones. Commas and periods belong inside quotation marks. Look it up.