Reading for Comprehension | Debbie's Caribbean Resort Reviews Forums

Once upon a time, schools used to teach this subject. Perhaps they still do. However, on the internet forums I frequent, I find a distinct lack of ability to read and understand what is being said, unless of course people are only scanning for "sound bites" and responding to phrases taken out of context. What can be done to correct an obviously misinterpreted remark without being rude or patronizing? What do you do when someone misquotes you or quotes you out of context, adding "spin" to your words?

Lots of times a PM works wonders. My sense of humour loses me too, sometimes.

That is, unless 150 guests show up at 11PM without reservations expecting 5 Star service, LOL.

That is, unless 150 guests show up at 11PM without reservations expecting 5 Star service, LOL.
Well, those are exceptional circumstances.

Seriously, sometimes words are misinterpreted and sometimes words are just poorly understood. I’m no Rex Murphy (thank Goddess), but writing is my sometime profession, and I do enjoy using words for maximum enjoyment and effect. How to tell someone they obviously don’t understand the meaning of a word without referring them to google or the dictionary? (worse when the person has misused a word themselves)But I’m not on about a specific post or incident here. Just wondering generally what people think is the best way to handle an inadvertent (or sometimes deliberate) misinterpretation of what was said.

I find the whole concept of “sound-bites” to be terribly frustrating; it is almost possible to see someone formulating a response to a question before the question is completed. That often indicates poor listening skills, and that the receiver is more interested in what they have to say rather than responding to the query. Depending on who it is and the circumstances, I would probably choose to discuss language “misinterpretations” by pm. I try to be particularly lenient to people who I perceive may have English as a second language (although some ESL members have better English language skills than I do!).It is my belief that people display no respect for others when they continually post on a forum using text-speak, or are misspelling so many words that the post is meaningless. I once diplomatically sent a pm to a poster from the UK (on TA) noting the difference between “accept” and “except” as she constantly misused one for the other. She flippantly responded that in the UK those two words are completely interchangeable and have exactly the same meaning. Yeah, right.

Anyway … when I make a mistake I do appreciate when someone takes the time to make me aware of it by pm. I love words and enjoy sharing their nuances with others.

Wow! Love that site! Thanks, I’m going to have to bookmark that somehow… I’m quite a stickler when it comes to using the correct word for what is meant, or downright misspelling.
A couple "Pet Peeves" on TA that physically make me cringe are "Persay" and "Chow"
Plus, "Definately" can be grating as well Not to mention the loosely misused "Loose" vs "Lose" or "Peak", "Peek" and "Pique"

Haha… although I do have to say, I’m not perfect either, and I still have to check myself when "not" to have the extra "u" in words like curiosity and glamorous and proper use of punctuation (read: unnecessary overuse!!!)

Then, of course, as eeeefarm asks, what is to be done when someone misinterprets remarks? I’m more of an "ostrich" that way ~ I’d rather not get into anything unpleasant. So, I ususally do nothing.There was one time, I believe on TA, where a poster had queried both the Cuban & Dominican forums about comparisons between the two. There was one questionable response on the Dominican thread by someone so I quoted him (cut & pasted) onto the Cuban thread, and questioned whether or not what he said about Cuba was true. Well, that was definitely misinterpreted by someone to whom English was a second language, and I was berated for those remarks, as if I had made them personally.

Fortunately, a couple other posters (CubaJack and Spunky?) realized what had happened and publicly informed him of his mistake. He ended up deleting his number of tirades, and apologized immediately. If it had been up to me, I’m not sure what I would have done. Would I have corrected him myself? Perhaps… I really don’t know

Years ago, here on Debbie’s, SteveYYZ posted a humorous site:

www.flamewarriorsguide.com/

Ever since, I’ve tried to curb my natural tendencies to "not" become any one of those stereotypical personalities.Hopeless, I know!

I have also had people assume a quote is an original statement by me. Not always an easy mistake to correct! (I do love Debbie’s for the ability to quote others and to use fonts and colour to clarify meaning!)

If we are going to go into grammatical errors, as opposed to misinterpretation, my personal pet peeve is "your" used when the person meant "you’re" (and vice versa). Texting likely has a lot of influence on how people use the language these days. Oh, yes!When we bought our first computer, the big "rage" on the internet was MSG (???don’t quote me… ???) and my children were "messaging" and "chatting" daily with their friends. This was way before FaceBook. I insisted that if they were going to use the computer, they "had" to use proper spelling and punctuation, or their computer priviledges would be suspended. They didn’t like it one bit at the time, and we fought about it constantly, but now they are very proud of their typing abilities!

Haha… I recalled something from a few years back… I made a mistake on it:

debbiesreviews.proboards.com/thread/18693/sunnybud?page=1&scrollTo=96588

	Then there’s the subject of posting from a hand-held device with Auto-Correct. Or Auto-Incorrect as mine was known until I turned it off. Debbie’s Edit feature sure is handy when viewing from a larger screen later.

Then there’s the subject of posting from a hand-held device with Auto-Correct. Or Auto-Incorrect as mine was known until I turned it off.
Debbie’s Edit feature sure is handy when viewing from a larger screen later. OMGoodness ~ Right on!!!That drives me crazy, too!!!

At the risk of taking my "off topic" thread off topic, Debbie’s edit feature is one of the nicest things available for those of us who are tortured by having to view an inadvertent spelling or grammatical error in one of our previous posts. The brief window available on Trip Advisor just doesn’t cut it, and then you are left with the choice of deleting your own post, or leaving your mistake out there in full view of the masses. Horrors!

(of course, the ability to come back later and edit can also be used for evil!)

(of course, the ability to come back later and edit can also be used for evil!)

LOL!!!And at the risk of going "off topic", as well, I must say I love Debbie’s "Photo Attachment" feature!

Back to being on topic….

Attachments:

A few musings on a snowy Monday in Calgary:As I was reading a few posts on another forum, it occurred to me that maybe one of the reasons people have difficulty comprehending what is written is that so much of what is written on the internet is unintelligible. Then they get uesd to that, and when it is written correctly, they can’t understand it.Also, I couldn’t help but notice one of my pet peeves with the misuse of the language. That is the misuse of the apostrophe. Apostrophes are not intended to be used to form plurals. They are used for words that are contractions, or to indicate the possessive case. One post asks about Caesar’s at Memories. I want to ask what is it that belongs to Ceasar that you are asking about? But then I know that they are really asking about Caesars, the drinks.The misuse of the apostrophe is so prevalent now, that it has been used in a word that simply ends in s. The place is called Matanzas, not Matanza’s. I know how that happens. As pedantic as I am, I am so used to seeing apostrophes all over the place that I sometimes have to stop myself from hitting the apostrophe key at the wrong time.Then there is the misuse where an apostrophe should be used, but isn’t. There is another question on that forum, asking about Lennys Lobster Shack. That should be Lenny’s.So, I know I can’t educate the whole world, and I know the language is evolving, but it still annoys me. Interestingly, Paul Brians explains how the existence of the apostrophe in possessives is itself an example of the evolution of the language:

public.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/apostrophes1.html

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