Take a Stand for Language Standards

Take a Stand for Language Standards Take a Stand for Language Standards Take a Stand for Language Standards By Mark Nichol English usage is always evolving, but the rate of evolution seems to accelerate all the time, and careful observers will note in a wide variety of content pervasive examples of the relaxation of standards for written English. This post discusses several categories in which it appears that even professional writers often seem unaware of basic precepts of good writing. As discussed in previous posts, the velocity of change in what is considered acceptable written English has sped up thanks to the proliferation of media resources available to the average person and the dynamics of the publishing industry. Because of the explosive increase in content produced by poorly trained writers (amateurs and professionals alike) and the decrease in rigorous editing, substandard writing spreads unchecked, with the following results. Writers often, out of ignorance and/or apathy, close compound words that are treated as open and hyphenated in dictionaries and other writer resources, so that, for instance, we increasingly see â€Å"life span† styled as lifespan and â€Å"time frame† written as timeframe, and mind-set and light-year appear, respectively, as mindset and lightyear. This process has occurred for hundreds of years as a natural progression, but we appear to be in the midst of multiple evolutions occurring simultaneously. In a similar case, â€Å"all right† frequently appears as alright. It has done so since the mid-nineteenth century, but what’s new is that it is now creeping over from lay writing such as personal blogs to professionally produced content such as online newspapers. Amateur and professional writers alike are also increasingly failing to observe two types of distinctions between essential and nonessential phrases. First, for example, is the error seen in identifications of people such as the one in â€Å"Company president, John Smith, was also named in the suit.† The mistaken use of internal punctuation, due to the confusion of the simple job description â€Å"company president† with the appositive â€Å"the company president,† which would require the name to be set off from the descriptor because that phrase and the name are interchangeable (while â€Å"company president† and â€Å"John Smith† are not), is nothing new but is becoming commonplace in professionally produced content. As an example of the second type of essential/nonessential confusion, the following sentence is flawed because it implies that more than one Emergency Alerts system exists, and the one in question, unlike one or more others, can send alerts about catastrophic events: â€Å"The agency sent the alert through the national Emergency Alerts system that can send alerts about catastrophic events.† The following revision correctly observes that â€Å"can send alerts about catastrophic events† describes the system’s function rather than explains the specific function of one type of system (which is the point of the sentence): â€Å"The agency sent the alert through the national Emergency Alerts system, which can send alerts about catastrophic events.† That type of error, published on the website of a metropolitan newspaper, unlike the others noted above, is a cardinal sin rather than a venial one because it doesn’t just â€Å"look wrong†; it affects clarity and comprehension. I’m well aware that observations such as these can make me sound like a get-off-my-lawn geezer, but this is my point: Such shifts in our language are inevitable, but as a treasure hunter tells intrepid teenage Indiana Jones when the latter fails to prevent an artifact from being sold on the black market, â€Å"You lost today, kid, but that doesn’t mean you have to like it.† That is not to say I don’t â€Å"like it,† that I don’t approve of language evolution (which is just as futile as not approving the sun going down or the tide coming in), but what I don’t like is a failure to respect and observe current standards. Just as we agree that certain letters, numbers, and other symbols represent various sounds, quantities, and functions, we should agree on precepts of grammar, syntax, usage, and punctuation. As a professional editor and writer, it is my responsibility to help preserve the language as it is now, according to standards codified in numerous writing and editing guides and other resources, and not anticipate revisions that will appear in future editions, and I recommend that you do so, too. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Writing Basics category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Cost-Effective vs. Cost-Efficient10 Techniques for More Precise Writing15 Idioms for Periods of Time

David Beatty - World War I - Royal Navy - Battle of Jutland

David Beatty - World War I - Royal Navy - Battle of Jutland David Beatty - Early Career: Born on January 17, 1871, at Howbeck Lodge in Cheshire, David Beatty joined the Royal Navy at age thirteen. Warranted as a midshipman in January 1884, he was assigned to the flagship of the Mediterranean Fleet, HMS Alexandria two years later. An average midshipman, Beatty did little to stand out and was transferred to HMS Cruiser in 1888. Following a two-year assignment at the HMS Excellent gunnery school at Portsmouth, Beatty was commissioned as a lieutenant and placed in the corvette HMS Ruby for a year. After serving aboard the battleships HMS Camperdown and Trafalgar, Beatty received his first command, the destroyer HMS Ranger in 1897. Beattys big break came the following year when he was selected as second-in-command of the river gunboats that would accompany Lord Kitcheners Khartoum Expedition against the Mahdists in Sudan. Serving under Commander Cecil Colville, Beatty commanded the gunboat Fatah and gained notice as a daring and skillful officer. When Colville was wounded, Beatty took over leadership of the expeditions naval elements. David Beatty - In Africa: During the campaign, Beattys gunboats shelled the enemy capital and provided fire support during the Battle of Omdurman on September 2, 1898. While taking part in the expedition, met and befriended Winston Churchill, then a junior officer in the 21st Lancers. For his role in the Sudan, Beatty was mentioned in dispatches, awarded a Distinguished Service Order, and promoted to commander. This promotion came at the young age of 27 after Beatty had only served half the typical term for a lieutenant. Posted to the China Station, Beatty was named executive officer of the battleship HMS Barfleur. David Beatty - Boxer Rebellion: In this role, he served as a member of the Naval Brigade that fought in China during the 1900 Boxer Rebellion. Again serving with distinction, Beatty was wounded twice in the arm and sent back to England. For his heroism, he was promoted to captain. Age 29, Beatty was fourteen years younger than the average newly-promoted captain in the Royal Navy. As he recovered, he met and married Ethel Tree in 1901. The wealthy heiress to the Marshall Fields fortune, this union provided Beatty with an independence not typical of most naval officers and offered access to the highest social circles. While his marriage to Ethel Tree provided extensive benefits, he soon learned that she was highly neurotic. This led her to cause him extreme mental discomfort on several occasions. Though a daring and skilled commander, the access that the union provided to a lifestyle of sporting leisure led him to become increasingly high-strung and he never developed into a calculated leader similar to his future commander Admiral John Jellicoe. Moving through a series of cruiser commands in the early years of the 20th century, Beattys personality manifested itself in the wearing of non-regulation uniforms. David Beatty - The Young Admiral: After a two-year stint as naval advisor to the Army Council, he was given command of the battleship HMS Queen in 1908. Ably captaining the ship, he was promoted to rear admiral on January 1, 1910, becoming the youngest (age 39) admiral (Royal Family members excluded) in the Royal Navy since Lord Horatio Nelson. Appointed as second-in-command of the Atlantic Fleet, Beatty declined stating the position had no prospects for advancement. Unimpressed the Admiralty placed him on half-pay without a command for over a year. Beattys luck changed in 1911, when Churchill became First Lord of the Admiralty and made him Naval Secretary. Utilizing his connection to the First Lord, Beatty was promoted to vice admiral in 1913, and given command of the Home Fleets prestigious 1st Battlecruiser Squadron. A dashing command, it suited Beatty who by this point was known for wearing his cap at a jaunty angle. As commander of the battlecruisers, Beatty reported to the commander of the Grand (Home) Fleet which was based at Scapa Flow in the Orkneys. David Beatty - World War I: With the outbreak of World War I in the summer of 1914, Beattys battlecruisers were called upon to support a British raid on the coast of Germany. In the resulting Battle of the Heligoland Bight, Beattys ships entered a confused fray and sank two German light cruisers before British forces withdrew west. An aggressive leader, Beatty expected similar behavior from his officers and expected them to seize the initiative whenever possible. Beatty returned to action on January 24, 1915, when his battlecruisers met their German counterparts at the Battle of Dogger Bank. Intercepting Admiral Franz von Hippers battlecruisers returning from a raid on the English coast, Beattys ships succeeded in sinking the armored cruiser SMS Blà ¼cher and inflicting damage on the other German vessels. Beatty was furious after the battle as a signaling error had allowed the majority of von Hippers ships to escape. After a year of inaction, Beatty led the Battlecruiser Fleet at the Battle of Jutland on May 31-June 1, 1916. Encountering von Hippers battlecruisers, Beatty opened the fight but was drawn towards the main body of the German High Seas Fleet by his adversary. David Beatty - Battle of Jutland: Realizing that he was entering a trap, Beatty reversed course with the goal of luring the Germans towards Jellicoes approaching Grand Fleet. In the fight, two of Beattys battlecruisers, HMS Indefatigable and HMS Queen Mary exploded and sank leading him to comment, There seems to be something wrong with our bloody ships today. Successfully bringing the Germans to Jellicoe, Beattys battered ships took a secondary role as the main battleship engagement began. Fighting until after dark, Jellicoe unsuccessfully attempted to block the Germans from returning to their base with the goal of re-opening the battle in the morning. Following the battle, Beatty was criticized for mismanaging the initial engagement with the Germans, not concentrating his forces, and failing to keep Jellicoe fully informed of German movements. Despite this, the workman-like Jellicoe received the brunt of the criticism from the government and public for failing to achieve a Trafalgar-like victory. In November of that year, Jellicoe was removed from command of the Grand Fleet and made First Sea Lord. To replace him, the showman Beatty was promoted to admiral and given command of the fleet. David Beatty - Later Career: Taking command, Beatty issued a new set of battle instructions emphasizing aggressive tactics and pursuing the enemy. He also continually worked to defend his actions at the Jutland. Though the fleet did not fight again during the war, he was able to maintain a high level of readiness and morale. On November 21, 1918, he formally received the surrender of the High Seas Fleet. For his service during the war, he was made Admiral of the Fleet on April 2, 1919. Appointed First Sea Lord that year, he served until 1927, and actively opposed postwar naval cuts. Also made the first chairman of the Chief of Staff, Beatty strenuously argued that the fleet was the first line of Imperial defense and that Japan would be the next great threat. Retiring in 1927, he was created 1st Earl Beatty, Viscount Borodale, and Baron Beatty of the North Sea and Brooksby and continued to advocate for the Royal Navy until his death on March 11, 1936. He was interred at St. Pauls Cathedral in London. Selected Sources First World War: Admiral Sir David BeattyDavid Beatty