I've stopped responding to people who can't use real sentences

[ripcord]

I was watching a traffic stop that turned into an arrest and some guy asks me "Why they do that?' and that was ignored so he tries again "Dude I asks you what for them cops doing that?" I just refuse to deal with people who are too lazy to form a correct sentence.

[tblue37]

1. That's not laziness, it's dialect difference.

[femmedem]

25. +1. n/t

[AncientAndy]

39. Which schools teach this dialect?

In my school we were taught Standard American English.

[LuckyCharms]

41. I was taught metric.

[tblue37]

44. I spent 45 years teaching college English, but when I am with my Sicilian-American

relatives, I often use Northeastern PA dialect expressions that they use. Different parts of the country have different dialects, and when not in a relatively "formal" situation, most people revert to the dialect spoken in their home and community.

Standard English is itself a dialect, you know.

[Progressive Jones]

135. In the Chicago dialect, the "family room" is called a front room, but it's pronounced...

Frunch-Room. Say it a few times. You'll hear it. "Where's Dad at?". 'Ee's in da frunch room."

Remember those "Super Fans" on SNL? The BEARS fans? They spoke in an only slightly exagerrated form of "Chicahga-Speak."

[Effete Snob]

65. I was taught how to dial a telephone

And how to interpolate trig function tables.

You know how often I use those skills?

[Iggo]

97. .

[Iggo]

95. I figure any college with a decent linguistics program.

Note: Depending upon how high one’s horse is, the subject line of this post may be seen as grammatically incorrect.

[radius777]

124. Language is far more complex than

what is taught in school. Language as people actually use it is part of one's expression of culture, identity, generation, ethnic background etc.

The generations that came after the Boomers (X,Y and Z) were influenced by hip-hop and the dialect the OP mocks is a fairly common way of speaking.

[Act_of_Reparation]

133. The legitimacy of a dialect doesn't depend on it being taught in classroom.

[Lancero]

86. Lot more charitable than my thoughts.

I was thinking ESL (English as a second language), shouldn't be to hard to see what I was writing this rant off as.

[greenjar_01]

2. ...

[demmiblue]

16. ...

[leftstreet]

3. OMG n/t

[vanlassie]

4. Are you sure English is his first language?

[The Magistrate]

5. I Fail To See Your Problem, Sir

Perfectly understandable, I had no difficulty taking the meaning conveyed.

[USALiberal]

12. +1000!!! Nt

[WhiskeyGrinder]

20. .

[TheBlackAdder]

80. Linguistics is successful if the message conveyed can be understood by the recipient.

.

No matter how garbled or structured, if the message is understood the linguistical aspect is achieved.

.

[ibegurpard]

90. Indeed

[LuckyCharms]

6. .

[demmiblue]

7. ...

[MustLoveBeagles]

8. Huh

[Kali]

9. are you serious?

[KS Toronado]

10. Was the person autistic?

If so I would have been super nice to him.

[ripcord]

13. He was 20 something skateboarder

I just choose not to interact with people who can't be bothered to speak properly.

[LuckyCharms]

26. Really? On Christmas Day even?

[MineralMan]

28. Irony is a funny thing, isn't it?

Your reply title is in incorrect English.

[Dial H For Hero]

35. Ouch.

Irony is indeed a harsh mistress.

[wellst0nev0ter]

38. I'll admit, that's a nice dunk

[KS Toronado]

30. Autistic people can skate board.

and even

Slurry I'm hop I'd spoke god enuf 4 u to undermine.

[BlackSkimmer]

54. My first job out of college, I worked outreach for the elderly way up in the Appalachian mountains.

I would have missed out on knowing some fantastic people if I’d had that particular prejudice.

[USALiberal]

105. +1000!

[Hortensis]

118. Reminds that I once drove with a friend to visit her

grandparents who'd lived all their lives in rural Appalachia. They felt she needed to be home and were unimpressed her nice city job and income. One evening he confessed to me his worry that she wasn't married with children and explained matter of factly in his gentle Appalachian cadance that, thinking about her recently, "I was so afeared for her that I commenced to cryin."

I loved the way they spoke, especially him, and never forgot it. They're gone now.

[BlackSkimmer]

122. Yes. Beautiful people I met in those days.

I’ll never forget a man named Ollie Ward. He met me on his property with a pistol when I drove up in my little Ford Escort. Truly, one of those “I’m from the governments and I’m here to help you” scenes lol.

I’d been in the military, so I was no child, but still in my 20s. We became great friends, and he taught me a lot. Here I am in my 60s and I still remember him, along with so many others I met back in those days.

Another man, named Battle Norris…shock of white hair. Deaf. He wasn’t deaf from being old, his hearing was blasted while he served on a ship in WW1. He told me his hair turned white during that same time.

I still visit those hills, and I’ve never forgotten those people I met up there.

[Mariana]

87. "He was 20 something skateboarder"

[USALiberal]

104. Lol, is this a parody???? Nt

[USALiberal]

11. Lol, geez, lighten up! Nt

[PTWB]

14. Is it possible that he has learning difficulties or received a subpar education?

[ripcord]

22. He speaks just fine at City Council and school board meetings

He is one of the local pro Trump people who show up at local gatherings to speak and his sentence structure and diction are just fine then.

[Dial H For Hero]

37. Your OP refers to him as "some guy", normally indicative of your not knowing him.

Now it seems he's a pro Trump activist, and you know this because you've heard him speak on multiple occasions in public.

Hm....

[Maru Kitteh]

106. Hmmm indeed. One wonders what bridges may be missing their

Subterranean residents today, no?

[BlackSkimmer]

42. A trumpie skateboarder?

And he just happened to be at the same traffic stop?

Small town?

[Celerity]

49. A 20 something Trumpy skateboarder, who also shows up at school board and city council meetings

and whilst at those gatherings, somehow magically code switches to the most delightfully proper diction.

All that detail gradually and defensively backfilled in downthread.

Roflmaoooooo

[BlackSkimmer]

53. I know, right?

I love threads like this!

[XanaDUer2]

63. It's an odd one for sure

Merry Christmas, btw!

[BlackSkimmer]

64. Hey, and back atcha!

Oh, wait. That was NOT proper English lol.

Hope you’re having a merry one.

[Effete Snob]

66. I overheard him talking with friends at a hipster coffee shop

[Iggo]

89. .

[CrackityJones75]

119. This is fascinating!

[USALiberal]

15. I am upset about people use the wrong double quote!!! Nt

[MustLoveBeagles]

17. ...

[Alpeduez21]

18. You think you made a point

Instead you kind of looked like a jerk

[LuckyCharms]

19. Question for you...

If I told you "Gonna go to the store. Want anything"?

Would you respond?

Serious question.

[MineralMan]

21. Have you, now? Well, that's a pretty rude thing to do.

What that guy asked you in both cases was perfectly understandable. Apparently you don't know him, so you have no idea whether his primary language is English or not.

The polite thing to do would be to answer his question, if you know the answer, or to say, "I don't know," if you don't.

Why be rude to strangers?

P.S. I hope my English is correct. I think it is.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

23. Way to take a stand, Ripcord. Says a lot about you.

[old as dirt]

24. I don't have any difficulty understanding it in written form.

Did he say it with an accent that was unfamiliar to you?

I'm assuming not, since you did manage to transcribe it into written form.

[Crunchy Frog]

27. Have you ever heard of dialects? Are you familiar with the

concept of vernacular?

With due respect, it sounds like kind of dickish behavior on your part.

[edhopper]

29. Why you do that?

Dude just asking. You being all uptight. Cool out.

[Iggo]

98. Oh my god yes!

[Dial H For Hero]

31. You know nothing about the gentleman in question beyond his appearance and two poorly constructed

sentences. He may simply be speaking in the same manner as those that raised him. Perhaps English is not his first language. He may be developmentally disabled. He might even be, as you assumed, lazy.

Regardless, he wasn't impolite or disrespectful towards you in any way. Frankly, your actions seem rather churlish.

[BlackSkimmer]

56. Nah, read the other posts.

Apparently he knows this “guy” quite well.

I hope the OP never spends any time in Ireland. His head will spin.

[Jedi Guy]

69. Or Newfoundland...

My wife's family are Newfies, and with the older generation I'm lucky if I can pick up the gist of what they're saying. For the first few years, there were plenty of times when one of them would say something to me and all I could do was look helplessly at my wife and await the translation. This was, of course, uproariously funny. I suspect after the first time it happened they deliberately laid the accent on as thick as they could, LOL.

[BlackSkimmer]

103. Ha!

Yes!

[Stinky The Clown]

32. I'm sure your verbal interaction with people will be greatly missed

[LuckyCharms]

33. Smokes. Let's go.

[Dr. Strange]

84. Wait!

Does Randy have a shirt on at 0:22 in that video?

[LuckyCharms]

91. Good catch!

[DiamondShark]

94. yes

Spoiler, Randy stole Ricky's new shirt and tried to infiltrate the group. Hijinks ensue. Season 2 Episode 6, Never Trust a Man with No Shirt On.

[Tomconroy]

34. Probably a Gen Z bartender.

Best not to respond. If you did he would start calling you 'Bro'.

[Celerity]

43. Nice ageism. So sick and tired of the endless Millennial and Gen Z bashing on this board.

[ismnotwasm]

45. I say bro, brah, dude

I also stay culturally aware.

[LuckyCharms]

47. Me too.

I don't know why, I like the way those words convey kindness. And I'm 63 years old.

I have a relative who is in her 20's. I always call her bruh. She tells me to "STFU, Boomer".

[Celerity]

51. bruv (in the UK)

[ismnotwasm]

62. I love slang and real time linguistic changes. I don't always use it, but I stay aware

As much as can be seen in one lifetime there’s an ebb and flow. “Dope” is hanging in there as something good, it’s ostensible replacement “sick” has kind of plateaued except in specific communities. Gamer culture is sending us a lot of slang, which I find interesting.

Language and expression is part of the human condition and expresses itself differently in different communities and cultures. There really isn’t a “right” way. Especially now, in our interconnected, on-line world

[Iggo]

100. I stream a ton of Brit tv shows, and bruv and fam are my new words this year.

I think fam has broken through here in the states. Bruv is right on the edge, I think.

[tishaLA]

140. Fam has been prevalent here for years

(at least in African American culture). I'll never forget maybe 7 years ago when former Deadspin writer Greg Howard disagreed with something I tweeted to him and he quote tweeted "Don't do this, fam." It was hilarious

[radius777]

121. +1. 'Dope' was to the 90s what 'rad' was to the 80s

and what 'groovy' was to the 70s...

The gamers in the '00s gave us 'pwned' and alot of other ones...

Every generation introduces a new style and language as people use it is constantly evolving.

[Jedi Guy]

71. Me old China. ;) N/T

[BlackSkimmer]

123. My dad grew up in Fulham, way before it was posh.

The OP would have had great difficulty understanding the people there.

OP seems a bit of a berk.

[Jedi Guy]

70. I use "dude" a lot. I only use "bro" or "brah" ironically 99% of the time.

My female friends found it odd the first couple times I referred to them as "dude," but they got used to it as a term of endearment. If any of them had asked not to be called that, I would have stopped, of course. Back in my teenage years in the 90s, everyone was "dude."

[ismnotwasm]

77. I've noticed this

It was the 90’s when I picked it up. It’s seeing a big of resurgence.
Remember calling something “the bomb” I’ve been seeing that around a bit and thought it’s days were long past. I too only use “bro” or “brah” as an emphasis.

“Knarly” is seeing a bit of a comeback as well. Lots of intergenerational slang going around, and cultural mixed modes of expression.

[Jedi Guy]

78. Oh yeah, "gnarly" is back.

My wife and I use that term to describe particularly awful messes left behind by our cats, most of the time. And really, "the bomb" is making a comeback? I remember in the 90s when things were "the bomb" and if they were really awesome, "the bomb-diggity." It's weird how those things come and go. Here's hoping "totally tubular" remains in the dustbin of language where it belongs...

[ismnotwasm]

83. Hahaha! Agreed. I hope tubular was a one-off

[Iggo]

99. I know! And then what would you do?

[femmedem]

36. He spoke to you using the same casual language he would have used with a friend--a friendly gesture.

And you understood his meaning. The purpose of language is communication. He did fine.

The next time it happens, I hope you'll think about which is worse, using sentence structure you don't approve of or snubbing a fellow human who is reaching out to you without malice.

I remember reading once that one measure of happiness is the number of small interactions you have with acquaintances--just a hello or a wave, not necessarily anything deep. You denied both him and yourself this small pleasure. Did you feel happier after this interaction? Did he?

[iemanja]

40. bah, humbug

[48656c6c6f20]

46. Please provide sample sentences

So we may respond appropriately to your outrage.

[billh58]

48. Rush Limbaugh

used the same argument repeatedly, and his pet peeve was "axe" for asked. I live in Hawaii where many people use pidgin English in order to communicate, so you would be ignoring a large number of us. Your stance on using perfect English is akin to racism, and in reality, is just plain boorish and reeks of snobbery.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

50. Really? NT

[TexasBushwhacker]

52. Language is communication

If you truly did not understand what he meant, then the proper response is "Excuse me?" or "I don't understand."

If you don't respond at all, they may think you're deaf or a snob. They would be right on one assumption.

[MuseRider]

55. It grinds on me too BUT

people learn to speak where they are as has been said much better above than I could ever say it.

I cringe and hate it but language evolves and dialects exist and I am only me and not any more important than that. If I was hiring someone for a job that required the ability to speak the language in its "formal" way that would be a different story. One day that will not even be necessary.

Evolution of all things, not always comfortable.

I understand the cringe but that is my problem and should not become theirs.

[MineralMan]

57. I ran into a situation once with someone who behaved like you.

I was standing in the teller line in my bank. The couple in front of me were trying to cash some American Express traveler's checks. They spoke very poor English, with a French accent. Quite obviously they were tourists. The teller refused to even try to communicate with them, and was quite rude in insisting that they speak English. They were trying to do that, but the teller didn't even try to understand.

So, I dug my mind back into my high school French and asked if I could help. They showed me their US$ American Express traveler's checks and told me they wanted to exchange them for some US Dollars. I understood what they said just fine.

So, I spoke to the teller and told her what the couple wanted to do. She said, "Why don't they ask me in English?" I said, "Because they are French tourists and don't speak English very well. It's obvious what they want, though." I explained to the teller that they wanted some cash they could spend. The teller said, "OK." and then told them, in English, to sign and countersign the checks. I explained what was needed to the couple in French. They signed and countersigned, as one does with American Express traveler's checks. The teller gave them their money. They thanked me for my help and left.

I was the teller's next customer. I explained to her that she should have been perfectly able to understand what a couple of tourists wanted when they presented their traveler's checks at a bank. I told her she could have just pointed at the places that needed signatures and made signing motions with her hand and they would have signed those checks just fine. She grumped at me, tersely
saying that I should mind my own business. I motioned to the bank manager, a man I knew from my 15 years doing business in that bank. He came over. I explained what had happened and suggested that some further training be done to assist his tellers in figuring out why someone would present traveler's checks at the teller's window. He thanked me and said, "I'll take care of this right way." I completed my transaction and left.

Rudeness about language is ridiculous. It's one of the reasons Americans have a poor reputation outside of this country. The only thing that is important is communication. Being rude to someone for not using proper English is just flat rudeness. Instead, every attempt should be made to communicate and help the other person. To do otherwise reflects poorly on you.

[The Magistrate]

59. When I Travelled In France, Sir

The first thing I learned was how to say I speak French very badly. With that as an opening, people didn't cop an attitude but gave me impromptu lessons....

[MineralMan]

61. Absolutely. I always apologize for speaking any of the languages I speak poorly.

That always works to make the situation easier. Most often, people will bend over backwards to help you then. And, as you say, they'll also help you with some language lessons you can use later. Most people want to be friendly, I've found.

I've learned basic conversational skills in several languages during my lifetime. Being polite, counting, asking directions, that sort of thing. But I've always learned to say, "Please forgive me for speaking [language] so poorly." That works a treat anywhere you go.

[SWBTATTReg]

75. It is too bad that this teller was so unhelpful w/ these people/tourists. It is a good...

thing that you mentioned something to the mgr., but (1) I hope that the teller doesn't get fired and (2) perhaps the Bank will spring for a course in better interpersonal relationships (tellers and/or customers), but I kind of don't know if this will happen or not, being that everyone in the banking business seems hell bent on cutting costs to the bone, providing the most minimum of service that's required, etc.

[MineralMan]

76. That was many years ago. The teller was not fired.

We have a real problem in this country with strangers and tourists. Unlike in Europe, for example, where there is always someone around who speaks English or just about any other European language, we don't learn languages here, and many people are very suspicious of anyone who doesn't speak English.

You see it in people telling someone who is speaking Spanish to someone else here. Very often some idiot will chime in and say, "Speak English! We speak English here!" It's very strange.

[misanthrope]

82. I see it as an effect of the American Exceptionalism philosophy

It breeds arrogance.

[old as dirt]

96. Remember umbrella man?

[ShazzieB]

129. These videos were completely new to me!

I got really confused when I started watching the second video, because it wasn't immediately apparent how it related to the first one. Of course, that was eventually made pellucidly clear (as our dear malaise would say).

Thanks for these. That was infuriatingly fascinating!

[old as dirt]

131. It's just another excuse...

...for a latin dance party,

Latin Dance Party At House of Racist Lawyer Who Did Viral Video 5/18/18

[BlackSkimmer]

116. This had to be years ago, assuming it ever happened.

Travelers checks?

Not sure the last year these were used, but it’s been a while.

[ShazzieB]

132. Mineral Man said it was "many years ago."

See comment no. 76.

[CTyankee]

92. Traveling/doing art research in Italy I used "mi dispiace" a lot. The Italians loved that I was at

least trying to speak their language. The French, however, were a different story...

[ChazII]

81. I did the same thing when I visited France in 1977. n/t

[Iggo]

110. I did the same thing with Spanish.

I’ve gotten way better at it over the last 40-plus years since my last high school Spanish class. I’ve moved up the list from “Can speak Spanish to save his life” to “Can hold a decent conversation if people don’t speak too fast and don’t use a ton of slang.” But I’ll never forget ”Yo hablo solamente un poco de Español. Necesita(n) que hablar despacio, por favor.” That was a life saver.

[Dial H For Hero]

79. The one time my high school French came in handy was in a similar situation.

I was a window clerk at the post office, and a couple came in who spoke virtually no English, but they spoke to each other in French. They needed to mail a small package back home, and my four years of classes taken decades beforehand were (barely) sufficient to be able to help them fill out the necessary forms.

The hostility some feel when hearing a foreign language baffles me.

[multigraincracker]

58. I can't say anything because, I'm sure

I've been put on ignore a long time ago.

[dpibel]

60. You got ya some tense problems

In addition to the fact that you seem a little tightly wound.

Check yourself on this:

"I was watching...some guy asks me."

I guess you must refuse to deal with yourself.

Or, more likely, your vernacular is good, all others are bad.

Also possible that you don't even know what's wrong with your sentence.

Then again, it could be that your wife will catch more fish than you.

[OilemFirchen]

68. Bet yo life.

[Elessar Zappa]

67. Sounds like dialect to me.

Nothing wrong with it, especially in informal situations.

[marie999]

72. One of my VA disabilities is Expressive Aphasia so if we ever meet you wouldn't want to talk with me

My main problem is I forget everyday words and is partially corrected by my using an internal scroll thing like people on TV use to read what they are going to say. My writing is not affected as much as my speaking, but I will reread my writing at least 3 times before I post. Aphasia can be caused by a stroke or being too close to a blast.

[Enoki33]

73. It's X'Mas, so thought I'd offer this bit of

advice from Max Ehrmann who wrote Desiderata: "Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story".

[Tetrachloride]

74. I haven't heard a native English speaker in person for 2 months

My friend told me how much they appreciate my listening and clarity.

[Texasgal]

85. Hope you are enjoying that rarified air

up on that high horse.

[Iggo]

88. I shall stop responding to people who think they are better than others...

…just because they speak in more complete sentences than others.

Right…about…now

[old as dirt]

93. My wife gets english pronouns wrong all the time.

She seemingly uses "he" and "she" at random.

I guess I've gotten used to it over the years.

[Iggo]

101. That's odd....and awesome.

[gldstwmn]

102. You do you.

🙄

[Sunsky]

107. Ok

Do you want an award for that?

E Pluribus Unum - out of many, one. There are numerous reasons someone may not use the proper grammar. Sometimes if we look beyond our differences, we can learn from each other. One should strive to be more culturally aware.

[Bettie]

108. Language is a living thing

especially spoken language.

I used to get all upset about people using grammar incorrectly, now I can look past that and accept that others express themselves in ways that are different than I do.

You understood what he was asking, didn't you? In that case, why not just let it go and answer the question?

[EYESORE 9001]

109. Here's hoping you received all the admiration you were expecting this Christmas

[MustLoveBeagles]

111. This thread turned out like I thought it would

[EYESORE 9001]

113. Here's my suggestion

[MustLoveBeagles]

115. I'm with you

And why post it on Christmas?

[BlackSkimmer]

125. Surprised he's not deleted it yet lol.

[MustLoveBeagles]

127. So am I

[Hortensis]

112. These be mean, intolerant times. Go widit. Or not.

[nolabear]

114. And they may be all the better for not having to deal with you.

My God. People speak English in many, many wonderful, colorful ways. You’d never make it in New Orleans.

Be careful on that high horse. It’s a long fall.

[CrackityJones75]

117. Wow. You actually wrote this?

I mean you seem like kind if a jerk in this instance.

[Emile]

120. I try hard not to judge people,

but sometimes I'm tested.

[634-5789]

126. I need to relate this here...

It was the summer of 1997, I was picking up litter in my neighborhood, and there was a morbidly obese muumuu wearing jerk who was throwing beer bottle into an already growing pile of broken glass and bottles out on the sidewalk i n front of her house. This seriously pissed me off, since that entire block had been cleaned 3 days before, and here was this enormous, dangerous beer bottle nd broken booze bottle mess. I asked her why she would be doing such a heinous act, and she KNEW we had litter clean ups ongoing, trying to clean up the 6 block areas. She looked at me, shifted her loaded frame and said.."Who be do you think you is". I know that's exactly what she muttered, because I stopped to write it down in a little notebook we all carried. I'll never forget it.

[ShazzieB]

130. I've stopped responding to a certain kind of people, too.

What kind, you ask? The kind whose noses are stuck so high up in the air that they can't see where they're going. That kind.

They have a bad habit of stepping on short people like me, because the tops of our heads are below their artificially elevated line of vision. As a result, I try to stay out of their way.

[Act_of_Reparation]

134. I've stopped responding to people who refuse to use the Oxford comma.

So I'll be blocking you now.

[Skittles]

136. that's a bit harsh

I like listening to different dialects.

[Kali]

137. reminds me of an old classic DU trolling thread

I don't speak with you.

[Iggo]

139. Beer and many experiences.

[Roisin Ni Fiachra]

138. "And now a word from our sponsor: the Evelyn Woodhead Speed Reading Course.

Ever since I took this Evelyn Woodhead Sped Riddin' course, my riddin' has im-provved one hunert percent and also "comprenshun" has increased "won-der-full-lee". I recommend the Evelyn Woodhead Sped Riddin' course to all mah friends out there, and you tell 'em that you heard it here first on Roller Derby."
Tommy Chong