Proofreader wanted

The abysmally low level of discourse on the internet, newspapers, and such can be laid squarely upon the doorstep of the American educational system. Kids are no longer required to diagram sentences, use proper grammar and punctuation, and spell check has made even cursory spelling acuity a thing of the past. Hell, they don't even have to know how to hold pen in hand, keyboards rule the day.

Nowadaze (yes, I know, I'm using it for effect), it's all about how the little darlings feel and letting their souls speak to us. After all, when every kid now gets a trophy for simply showing up to the soccer game, how can one expect them to honor real work and achievement?

And I believe this all got started when every other automobile, SUV, etc. on the road sported a "Baby on board" placard.

The horror, the horror...

-RW-

It has always amazed me that diagramming sentences went by the boards. Oh well, now we have Twitter! How's that for progress? LOL

PS. In my case though I must admit that diagramming sentences went hand in hand with nuns, which was a truly fearsome combination :-)

Here's an actual reply I received right here on Audiogon when I asked a seller to pack a heavy amp with thick heavy foam (not packing peanuts) all around the amplifier:

"Hire those guys pack and ship I can ship this I will trow it in outher box off mcintosh c2300 I buy one shit pink panter starafon and be ok I ship krell kas200s it is much more hevier amp"

I actually Googled the word "starafon" because it threw me, but I couldn't find an appropriate answer. Then I read it to my wife, and she said that the seller probably meant "Styrofoam," and I realized she was right.

Needless to say, I did not pursue the deal any further.

Plato, I could be wrong, but I suspect English is not the first language of the seller in the example you cite. There are lots of people on Audiogon for whom English is not the first language. That's a different issue than the decline and fall of the English language amongst the U.S. populace, which I think is the point of the OP.

Trelja

Personally, I find plagiarism (one symptom of the outright dishonesty in this industry as a whole) a far more egregious sin. Multiple episodes on this site, where the general forum had no issue with it, caused my participation and overall faith to plummet to almost nothing.

I agree on plagiarism and for me, this carries over to design, style and function. I've been tempted dozens to times to start a rant over stolen automobile styling. Certain automobile companies set high standards of style by spending money and putting in hard work, only to have knock off appear in as little as a year.

I think most people are unaware of this or don't care. For some reason it drives me crazy.