Saturday, May 8, 2010

Is there such a thing as too much grammar snobbery?

So I'm a self-proclaimed grammar snob. At times I make mistakes, as do most people; however, I am frequently appalled by the failure to master even the most basic of principles of grammar. Recently, one of my biggest pet peeves has been noticing the correlation between people who discuss how ignorant others are, and the lack of grammatical correctness of those people. This slays me.

Frequently it takes place in the form of hatred of one minority group or another. One week it could be immigrants. The next week it is black people. Essentially anyone who could challenge the status quo and voices an opinion that is different than what is seen as the norm is labeled as, "uneducated."

The labelers, on the other hand, aren't making much of a case for themselves. I recently participated in a Facebook dialogue in which people were disparaging the poor, based on a misrepresentation of what poverty in America looks like. The folks railing about the poor made the following types of statements:
This is what's wrong with are nation. . . (our)
There is way more people like that then you think. . . (are, than)
When you vote for people you should have to fill out a survey that your educated. . . (you're)
(About a black woman) They should send her back to Mexico. . .
I am your sister, so you no where I stand. . . (know)

Okay, so am I a total snob, or is it safe to generalize here and say that most people who are discriminatory and hateful are just plain ignorant? Anyone else see this correlation in their lives?

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