|
|
Post by peterba on Aug 28, 2023 6:36:07 GMT
No need to apologise, David. We're used to that, on here.  
We're all guilty of it, at times (I hasten to add).  |
|
|
|
Post by peterba on Aug 28, 2023 6:47:36 GMT
The newspaper example is rubbish. He said it was a surprise. He [the neighbour] said it [the birthday party] was a surprise. The neighbour reported that the birthday party was a surprise.
I'm not sure what point you're making here, Pete. Why do you say that the newspaper example is rubbish? |
|
|
|
Post by peterob on Aug 28, 2023 7:18:14 GMT
The newspaper example is rubbish. He said it was a surprise. He [the neighbour] said it [the birthday party] was a surprise. The neighbour reported that the birthday party was a surprise.
I'm not sure what point you're making here, Pete. Why do you say that the newspaper example is rubbish? I had the same reaction about the quote as Nigel when I first read the post, reading it again now I take the [home secretary] comment back - it makes sense taking [home secretary] to mean [ the office of the home secretary] which of course it does. Sorry about that. In the second example given there is a word missing before the [] as it has nothing to qualify. |
|
|
|
Post by geoffr on Aug 28, 2023 7:44:05 GMT
Might I suggest that the original comment, which was less than abundantly clear, was edited for clarity. Later the whole piece was edited and in so doing the second editor completely destroyed the clarification replacing it with confusion. The result is that the clarification has remained but the text to which it refers has been deleted.
I haven’t a clue what the original said nor do I understand what the final, published, paragraph means. I can only assume that it means something to someone.
|
|
|
|
Post by Kath on Aug 28, 2023 17:36:52 GMT
I'm quite sure the correct answer has already been supplied, but the way I read it was informed by the carousel of Prime Ministers we enjoyed not so long ago. I was thinking that the original text perhaps gave her name, but the journo felt that replacing it with the position/title might be more prudent in case she didn't last until the paper went to print. ;-)
|
|
|
|
Post by JohnY on Aug 28, 2023 19:51:38 GMT
Although I attended a grammar school many years ago I don't care a s**t about square brackets. They might be a publishing convention but have nothing to do with correct English.
|
|
|
|
Post by gezza on Aug 29, 2023 22:47:25 GMT
They [normally] contained the authors clarification or explanation,
|
|
