Anyone else totally floored by the lack of literacy in these forums?

Question

I'm not just talking about typos, for which I'm guilty, but the overall inability to to put a sentences together, use proper words and reasonable grammar, and communicate a clear thought. I understand this is an international forum and I'm more forgiving for the efforts, but the "English" speakers whine about being judged when all they do is demonstrate they're borderline morons in both attitude and expression. That says a lot about their character when they don't know how to write or refuse to try to write clearly when they're asking strangers for help. Am I alone in my dismay?

(I'm noticing some reading comprehension issues in some of the answers as well. It all seems so hopeless.)

To the self-appointed grammar police, disagreement with word choice is not a grammar issue, it's a style issue. Just because you would say something differently doesn't mean another version is incorrect. There's a ton of stuff wrong with your post, too.

Answer 1

No, you are not alone. I hate to be judgemental. But people like that seem very uneducated. Makes me wonder what is going on in our schools nowadays. For those who's first language is not English, I admire them for trying. English is a hard language to learn. But I dont think its them. The guilty ones sound like children.

Answer 2

Yeah it is getting bad, but there are people who don't understand English on here for example someone who naturally speaks Spanish trying to ask a question in English. That I can understand. They honestly don't know because they aren't fluent in English. Now the people who know English and do nothing but talk in Ebonics it is disturbing in the fact that some of them have done it for so long that they don't know how to make a proper sentence. Don't get me wrong I have nothing against it. I myself use some of the terms, but not all the time. You really can't blame the education system for it if society speaks a whole different way. People will speak how the people around them speak. Unless society changes, we are going to be stuck with it.

Answer 3

Did you mean, "...of which I'm guilty?" OK, I'm only kidding!
I used to be floored by it. However, over time I realized there was a large contingent of extremely young people. I think they account for some goodly percentage of the unsophisticated writing.

Some of the sections also lend themselves to a great deal of ranting. The subject matter in these forums can ignite great passion, which often results in sputtering, incoherent, staccato, “blurbs.” I think the most dramatic examples of this can be found in the "Religion & Spirituality" section.

Answer 4

You're not alone. It annoys me to no end. I just saw this as an answer to the question "Do you have a boyfriend?": "do you want one what do you look like how old are you". It took me a few seconds to understand what this person was talking about. I want to tell these people how stupid they are, but I don't want to get suspended or kicked off the site.

Answer 5

i agree totally. i am forgiving of bungling up puncuation, but not if it makes your question/ thought completely unreadable! theres a spell check button right to the upper right of this text box, and grammar encyclopedias everywhere! use them for goodness sakes people!

how can i answer your question if i cannot understand your thought?

i must also admit that i deplore the spelling that is becoming so common. youre right, it does look ignorant.

thank you for mentioning this, i thought i was the only one who was annoyed.

Answer 6

Let me apologize ahead of time for any ill-will this post may create. I want to correct the atrocious grammar in this user's question. Please keep in mind, these corrections and comments are meant to be facetious.

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Anyone else totally floored by the lack of literacy in these forums?

Is anyone else surprised with the poor grammatical skill exhibited by contributors to these forums?
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No, I am not suprised at the quantity of solecisms in the questions and comments posted. What does surprise me is your knowledge of everyone's reading proficiency which is implied by your use of the word "literacy".

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I'm not just talking about typos, for which I'm guilty, but the overall inability to to put a sentences together, use proper words and reasonable grammar, and communicate a clear thought.

I am not only commenting about typos, of which I am guilty. I refer to the inability of contributors to form coherent sentences.
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The product of putting sentences together is called a "run-on sentence"; which is eschewed by grammarians. If it is possible, you should keep differing statements in separate sentences.

There are more errors in your comment but I want to keep this post short.

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I understand this is an international forum and I'm more forgiving for the efforts, but the "English" speakers whine about being judged when all they do is demonstrate they're borderline morons in both attitude and expression.

I understand this is an international forum. This post is not directed at English-as-a-Second-Language contributors; whom I applaud for attempting to write in a language foreign to them. This post concerns those native English language speakers who whine about negative comments directed at their poor grammatical skill and inability to convey a coherent statement.
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It is assinine to judge what people write about online. Online forums are largely informal and the language used in posts tend to reflect that. In a formal context, these same people you rally against are probably capable of eloquent and sophisticated speech.

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That says a lot about their character when they don't know how to write or refuse to try to write clearly when they're asking strangers for help. Am I alone in my dismay?

It reflects poorly on an individual when they do not ask for help in a respectful manner. Do any of you feel the same?
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If it bothers you so much then don't help them; also, feel free to refrain from commenting about their poor grammatical skills. It is, afterall, the internet.

On a parting note, if you are still reading this, blah blah blah blah BLAH whobody blah and you can quote me on that. :)

Answer 7

Yes Petunia, So many of we Amer-Kans slaughter the kings English..... You ought to hear the folk from SW LA. (The Cajuns.) It is badddd English, but, is beautiful as music,, AND I hope we never change it.

Answer 8

I agree but since many people aren't willing to take the time to be literate with this forum, perhaps it is just not important to them. Perhaps they are right as this is rather mundane.

Answer 9

You think this is bad, try going into a high school English class.

Answer 10

No, you are not alone. I can't read a question that is poorly written. I know this is informal, but you are right. It just looks ignorant.