Grammar fail, or do Texas Republicans believe most Texans are gay?

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

Politics | Thu May 19, 2016 4:11pm EDT

Grammar fail, or do Texas Republicans believe most Texans are gay?

A Texas-based LGBT advocacy helped spark a grammar debate this week over whether an errant comma in the stridently anti-homosexual Republican Party of Texas platform can be read as saying the majority of Texans are gay.

The plank that was approved by delegates at the party's convention this month reads: "Homosexuality is a chosen behavior that is contrary to the fundamental unchanging truths that has been ordained by God in the Bible, recognized by our nations founders, and shared by the majority of Texans."

Lone Star Q, which describes itself as the state's No. 1 source for LGBT news, asked on Twitter on Wednesday to have a "grammar debate" over the wording.

In response, grammarians pointed out that placement of the final comma in the plank could lead to understanding it to mean that homosexuality is a chosen behavior shared by the majority of Texans. They also noted that "nations" should have an apostrophe and that by using "has been," the plank gives the impression that homosexuality has been ordained by God.

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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-texas-lgbt-idUSKCN0YA2RQ

[LostOne4Ever]

1. The stupid from the republicans in my state...it burns

[valerief]

2. The nitwits that wrote this probably have bumper stickers that read,

"English is the official language of the U.S. of A. Learn it!"

[Bernardo de La Paz]

3. Because it IS natural it truly has been ordained by god, if there is a god. There isn't a god.

But it is natural. Of course it is not something people choose or can choose. Unlike what some believe it is not a lifestyle choice.

Therefore if you believe in gods or even if you have rejected all gods except one then you must believe it is ordained by gods or a god or god.

[Ilsa]

4. Wow. Just wow. And these are their party's leaders

in Texas. I guess the consequences of their disdain for education is taking root in their public documents.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

5. Let's hope that only Republicans could have 3 grammar errors in one platform sentence. . . nt

[Bohemianwriter]

6. Talk about living in oposite land...

Bigotry and religious delusions is a choice.

[Augiedog]

7. When Texas gets stupid, it gets BIG stupid. Time to build that wall around Texas.

[Dustlawyer]

9. Don't lock us all in! We are not all nut jobs, just 2/3rds of us!

We actually have a huge, untapped reservoir of what would be mostly Democratic voters in different areas of the state. If the DNC was more interested in winning Texas they could fund registration drives and get Texas to turn blue despite Hot Tub Tom Delay's gerrymandering. Houston elected a gay mayor, Austin is very liberal, and there are still lots of people like me living in conservative areas fighting the good fight! South Texas has so many unregistered Hispanics that they could turn Texas blue by themselves!

[mainer]

8. There's so much grammar fail in that one sentence

Three errors in one sentence.

But hey, football!

[Gman]

10. As illiterate as ever.

[mnhtnbb]

11. Ignorance and bigotry are chosen by Texas Republicans.

[muriel_volestrangler]

12. The comma is irrelevant; the 'has' makes the rest of the sentence refer to 'homosexuality'

If they had got 'has'/'have' right, the sentence would be ambiguous with or without the last comma. With 'have', you'd know that "ordained' refers to 'truths', but you still wouldn't know if it is:

Homosexuality is a chosen behavior that is :
1) contrary to the fundamental unchanging truths that have been ordained by God in the Bible
2) recognized by our nations founders
and 3) shared by the majority of Texans.

or:
Homosexuality is a chosen behavior that is contrary to the fundamental unchanging truths that have been:
1) ordained by God in the Bible
2) recognized by our nations founders
and 3) shared by the majority of Texans.

Either way, you're listing 3 things, in which 'shared' describes the same thing as 'recognized' does. Changing a comma doesn't help distinguish between the 2. If you want to be unambiguous, you'll have to change the word order, or the words themselves.