Coalition of the Confused

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A bit of French Culture   The U.K and Europe

Started 6/20/19 by Di (amina046); 31350 views.
In reply toRe: msg 34
Jenifer (Zarknorph)
Host

From: Jenifer (Zarknorph)

12/22/19

I wondered why everything was repeated in French...


RGoss99

From: RGoss99

12/22/19

The obvious answer to your question "I wonder ... why everything was repeated in French" is not only simple, but a stupid question.

The question might be "why was everything repeated in English", considered that it was written, published, given, in France originally,

and its author was French. So it was not repeated in French, it was repeatd in English, in honor of the most common language of

the world´s non French speakers. 

Jenifer (Zarknorph)
Host

From: Jenifer (Zarknorph)

12/25/19

RGoss99 said:

The obvious answer to your question "I wonder ... why everything was repeated in French" is not only simple, but a stupid question.

That was unnecessarily mean.

RGoss99

From: RGoss99

12/25/19

No "mean" would be if I called the person stupid, not the question, especially when the obvious answer is in the attached URL regarding that it was written in French by a Frenchman, involved in the establishment of the Olymic games. Why would anyone expect him to have written the document in English.

Jenifer (Zarknorph)
Host

From: Jenifer (Zarknorph)

12/29/19

So... by your logic, the question was stupid, not me, so I am wrong to be offended by your words?

RGoss99

From: RGoss99

12/29/19

Being offended is a personal choice, nothing to do with me. But my personal feeling is, since the post and its attached URL contains the answers to our question, I would say it is rather embarrasing to ask a question when you have already posted the answer which says in effect, that a Frenchman, one of the founders of the current Olympic Games, gave a speech in French to French people,why would any intelligent person question the fact that it was in French.

Jenifer (Zarknorph)
Host

From: Jenifer (Zarknorph)

12/30/19

RGoss99 said:

Being offended is a personal choice, nothing to do with me.

This statement lacks empathy and self awareness that words have consequences.

RGoss99 said:

I would say it is rather embarrasing to ask a question when you have already posted the answer which says in effect, that a Frenchman, one of the founders of the current Olympic Games, gave a speech in French to French people,why would any intelligent person question the fact that it was in French.

The problem with this analysis is the small detail that I did not, actually, ask a question.

I made a statement.

The difference between a statement and a question can be seen in many ways.

The most obvious, being the sentence ends with question mark.  Like this: "?"

The statement I made was just me musing aloud about the fact that everything at the Olympics is said in English and French.

I recall it went something along the lines of "Huh... I always wondered why they repeated everything in French..."

There was no question, stupid, or otherwise.  Because there was no question mark.  It was just a thought I wrote down.

I expect a G=G+1 in response to your error.

RGoss99

From: RGoss99

12/31/19

In no particular order...

Your "I wonder why" is a question for two reasons:

1. When a person says "I wonder" to another person, it is an implied request for assistance to solve a problem, in this case "why in French" which is so obvious from your own post, I can´t imagin why you are wondering. On the other hand it could one of your passive-aggressive crits, for which you do not want to be held responsible.

2. root unit in the word "question" is "que" [Latin for "what"] If you know anything about the English language or general linguistice,you would know that the "wh." in "why" as in when, who, what implies a question of some sort - it does not matter if you used a question mark or not,  statement is a question. Parallel example, that got King Henry II, excommunicated, even though he did not order Thomas Becket assassinated. All he had to say was<WH>>o will rid me of this troublesome priest" no question mark, but was taken as a question which was responded to by killing Becket. Then again your English teachers were probably before the days when semantics wa a required course, and thought, and taught you, that questions (implying all questions) should end with a question mark, which is false. Not only that, all statements ending in a question mark are not necessarily questions.

As to "This statement lacks empathy and self awareness that words have consequences"

Two issues, it is true that all words carry the possibility of consequence. Unfortunately what causes those consequences are not necessarily the responsibility of the one who uses them. What you are saying is that, unlike absolutists, "this statement lacks empathy <<to you>> which makes it at least 50% your problem, but not mine in this context.

The other issue, is if your post was not a crit for the French person writing in French in a French context, why did you post this if not a question which the contest and grammar implies.

A person,who did not get caught up in one´s own personal issues, would say, "Sorry, I did not notice in my post that the response to "why" was already included in my initial post, and moved on with one´s personal life instead of changing the subject, e.g. hijacking one´s own thread.

G=G+2

Note that extending his diversion without a reasonable answer to my question, if not a quetion why did you post it.

Di (amina046)

From: Di (amina046)

12/31/19

Good god man! Don’t you have a party to go to? Or at least have a drink at the local Fonda with a friend?

RGoss99

From: RGoss99

12/31/19

off course, with my students, beginning at 11:45, here in Turkey, went and just got back after 02:00. We had a long day, with me giving lectures in Hierapolis and Ephisus, and one in Troy today, so, as we have already been partying since last Saturday night, and will continue until Saturday in Istanbul, plus Vespers of the Epiphany (12th day of Christmas, as in the carol) in Barcelona Sunday, I am about partied out. The only free time I have is around dinner when I answer my e-mail, document my research and prepare for the next lecture. But since, uninvited, and off topic,I might wel ask you the same question. Note that you are responding to an off topic thread diversion started by a person who asked a supid question for which I provided the answer from a URL she provided in the post where she says she did not ask the question she asked. Sowhat is your problem¿

G=G+1

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