English Language & Usage: Multi-Layered Discourse Room

Cerberus

12:14 AM

Uhh...

To think that you are almost twice my age!

Or thereabouts.

@simchona Here is another RSS, which updates immediately.

I'm going to use these on my phone.

SunnyBoyNY

1:58 AM

@all Hi, I am not certain of one phrase my wife likes to use :: students did not have many chances to be accepted. Is it okay to say that? Something tells me that I would change to "Students did not have a chance to be accepted". Thanks, SunnyBoy

Robusto

2:09 AM

It's fine to say "many chances" or "a chance" or "any chance" ... it all depends on what you mean.

SunnyBoyNY

2:22 AM

Thanks, Robusto. I have simply never seen that phrase used either in a book/textbook or in spoken language

Robusto

If there were some chances, but not a lot, it would be fine to say "many"; if there was only a single chance, then "a chance" would work.

SunnyBoyNY

I see. Could we compound, say, college acceptance to "a chance"?

For example : There are many colleges that I have applied to, however, I do not stand many chances of being accepted.

Of course I did not compound the number of applications into one as I suggested... hopefully my statement makes senses

*sense

Robusto

2:43 AM

Sounds like what you want to way is something like: "I applied to many colleges, but I do not stand much of a chance of being accepted."

Cerberus

Yes, much of a chance is no doubt what Sunny meant.

cornbread ninja

sunny / yesterday my life was filled with rain

sunny / you smiled at me and really really eased the pain

►

cornbread ninja

3:12 AM

fires last round into chat's corpse

Mitch

4:03 AM

@cornbreadninja rolls body over. pokes maggoty sores with stick. roll body back

@JasperLoy: Dude...you're back!

user19161

@Mitch I was about to say hey dude!

cornbread ninja

hey dudes!

@Mitch nice imagery.

user19161

@mitch But Ashton and Demi divorced!

Gigili

Dude... I am forward!

Does this sentence make sense to you?

> Study of properties of plans and exercises for women

Robusto

►

Gigili

4:15 AM

3 mins ago, by Gigili

> Study of properties of plans and exercises for women

user19161

@Gigili One needs patience.

Gigili

27 secs ago, by Gigili

3 mins ago, by Gigili

> Study of properties of plans and exercises for women

user19161

@Gigili It is not clear what is meant by that.

Gigili

Is that correct @Mitch?

cornbread ninja

@Robusto grooves

user19161

4:16 AM

There are different ways to parse it, and even if one decides on a way, the meanig is still not clear.

user19161

Oh I see you don't like my answer @gigili

user19161

So I think I won't answer you anymore.

cornbread ninja

Is that the whole sentence?

Gigili

It is.

user19161

OK @gigili I will never answer you again because you don't trust me.

Robusto

4:17 AM

@Gigili That is a phrase, not a sentence.

user19161

I was about to go into the different interpretations of it.

Gigili

@JasperLoy You didn't answer, you just asked a whole bunch of questions.

user19161

2 mins ago, by Jasper Loy

@Gigili It is not clear what is meant by that.

user19161

But I think I will save my breath now...

Gigili

@Robusto Whatever it is, does it make sense to you?

Mitch

4:18 AM

_poking the maggots started the oozing_
_more images on the way_

Robusto

@Gigili It makes sense as far as it goes, bu t it needs something more.

Mitch

@JasperLoy so it didn't work out...maybe age made a difference, maybe not.

user19161

@Mitch Hmm, OK. I have been reading online about success stories where the age gap is 20 years...

user19161

I was about to give gigili a fantastic answer, but now she will never hear it.

Mitch

@JasperLoy works mostly for older men and younger women simply by numbers. (number of examples)

Robusto

4:21 AM

And yet cougars have helped many a young man ...

Mitch

@Gigili It is grammatical (with two parsings, so possibly ambiguous). But as to meaning, some of those don't go together naturally.

Gigili

@Robusto Study of plans and exercises which are specific to women, to find out what's special about them or something.

Is this better:

Mitch

"Study of (properties of plans) and (exercises for women)"

or

Robusto

Is this a title?

Mitch

"Study of properties of ((plans and exercises) for women)"

Gigili

4:23 AM

> Study of properties of exercises and sports activities for women

Robusto

►

More grooving.

user19161

@Mitch Actually, more than two, so many...

Mitch

yeah

Gigili

@Mitch This one.

Mitch

@Gigili That makes much more sense: "Study of properties of ((exercises and sports activities) for women)"

Gigili

4:24 AM

Yay!

Thank you @Mitch.

user19161

I am pissed.

Gigili

Thanks @JasperLoy.

Mitch

It parses naturally as I parenthesized it.

@JasperLoy drunk or angry?

user19161

@Gigili OK, I will still try to answer you next time. But great minds give great answers that take long to type and long to understand.

Mitch

Shit. @Gigili left before we could tell her that phrase is also a terrible not-so-secret code that is an epithet against the people who will most likely read it.

user19161

4:27 AM

@Mitch No shitting in this chat!

Robusto

@JasperLoy But great writers say in a few words what is immediately apprehended and enlightening.

user19161

@Robusto Exactly, so before I gave the details I already gave the summary which was too deep to fathom.

user19161

@corn Are your new year resolutions to be less gassy and sweeter, like pepsi is to coke?

cornbread ninja

@JasperLoy you bet!

user19161

@Mitch I enjoyed watching Desperate Housewives.

user19161

4:38 AM

But like I mentioned 9000 times, my favourite drama series is ...

user19161

The Wonder Years

Cerberus

5:01 AM

►

What is she saying exactly?

"Helper's [something]"?

simchona

When she's enumerating?

Cerberus

Yeah, the second thing.

By the way, what do you think, are pronunciation questions on topic?

It is very localised, but I couldn't look it up anywhere.

Of course I could probably Google-fu it myself, but not everyone can. (I ask here because it is more enjoyable.)

simchona

She says "helper's high, and it's the feeling you have.."

Cerberus

Hmm yeah really think so? I was thinking it should be that, but what she said sounded nothing like that!

listening again

I seem to hear "Helper's thoa".

Robusto

@JasperLoy Too deep to fathom or scarcely deep enough to wet my feet?

Cerberus

5:11 AM

Perhaps the "t" sound is part of the background music.

Robusto

@simchona This.

@Cerberus Nah, "helper's high" ... "and it makes you feel really good."

Cerberus

Do you clearly hear this, or do you think it just has to be this because it can't be anything else?

I suppose it is the only thing that makes sense.

Robusto

@Cerberus I hear "hoah" and parse it as high.

Cerberus

Hmm yes, the "t" is indeed from the music.

At least I am glad you agree about the vowel.

High was the first thing I thought of, because of Runner's High, but I rejected it because neither consonant nor vowel seemed to match /hai/.

Robusto

I'd even say it's more like h'ah, and high in a lot of American accents would be pronounced hah or haee, but this one is truncated by a sudden loud sound. Anyway, it's high, like I ought to be.

After my bedtime. Night!

Cerberus

5:17 AM

It's high time, I suppose.

Good night!

@Robusto Yeah, I considered thought, but it didn't make sense, and the ending t was absent.

Noah

6:14 AM

Hi

I am being a troll

Hi

Mahnax

6:41 AM

-1

Q: Stuff happen or stuff happens?

Is it "bad stuff happens to good people", Or "bad stuff happen to good people"?

Please get rid of this one quickly, thanks.

Noah

@Mahnax Like delete it?

hell, I just answered the question.

user19161

7:25 AM

@Noah I will be waiting for your Ark.

Noah

@JasperLoy Don't. I had a terrible dream. It's going to be the next Titanic.

user19161

@Noah Then it's a fake Ark.

user19161

@Noah Hi, I am also a troll.

user19161

@Mahnax This is very bad and should be downvoted.

Mahnax

7:51 AM

@JasperLoy Indeed.

@Noah Sure. It's junk.

David Wallace

Hi, everyone. Are we all well?

Mahnax

I am. How are you?

David Wallace

I'm OK. Long day. My father and my son both came for lunch. I seem to have been frantically busy all day.

Mahnax

Today was a busy day for me as well, actually.

David Wallace

Yeah?

Mahnax

8:05 AM

Yeah. I've been taking care of the house, went to work, picked up some sushi, went to a tea party, had to deal with a menace (read: Shih Tzu), etc.

David Wallace

You have shih tzui?

Mahnax

Yes, the family pet is a Shih Tzu/Havanese that acts like a bad Shih Tzu.

She knocked over four rubbish bins in the house and then ran out onto the road this morning.

David Wallace

Oh dear. How old is she?

Mahnax

I chased after her, barefoot, in the snow. It would have been comical if my feet hadn't been so cold.

She's three years old.

All hope is lost.

David Wallace

@Mahnax It does sound a little Pythonesque, to be sure.

Mahnax

8:08 AM

@DavidWallace Heh, maybe just a little.

Tomorrow I'm working at a different Starbucks location. It will be interesting.

David Wallace

Closer to or further from your home?

Mahnax

Around 100m closer.

Per Google Maps, that is.

David Wallace

I see you have checked. Great. We don't have them particularly close together here.

Mahnax

They are very popular here.

David Wallace

My city contains one Starbucks. The Wellington CBD has three.

Mahnax

8:11 AM

Tim Horton's is just as popular, though. Probably more so—it's cheap.

David Wallace

I have never heard of it. I guess we don't have it.

Mahnax

@DavidWallace How many people live in your city?

David Wallace

103000.

Mahnax

Tim Horton's is a Canadian coffee chain. There are a few in Northern USA, but the rest are in Canada.

David Wallace

It was 1995 when I was last in Canada.

Mahnax

8:12 AM

Toronto, right?

David Wallace

Yes, you have a fine memory.

Mahnax

Heh, thank you.

David Wallace

And I didn't really have time to investigate coffee shops. It was not a holiday.

Mahnax

Hrrm. Back in '95, Toronto would have had a few.

The first Canadian Starbucks was in Vancouver, in '87.

David Wallace

Maybe I just wasn't paying too much attention. I didn't get out and see terribly much of Toronto.

Mahnax

8:14 AM

On an unrelated note, my parents are making me go to church alone tomorrow. They are out of town with my brothers.

I'm… terribly excited.

David Wallace

Are they going to check whether you went?

Mahnax

I'm not sure. They might.

I certainly wouldn't put it past them. I'm going, at any rate.

David Wallace

What would be the consequences if they found out that you didn't go?

Mahnax

I really don't know.

It's been so long since I've needed to be punished for anything.

David Wallace

He put in his thumb and pulled out a plum, and said "what a good boy am I".

Sorry, not my place to ask that.

Mahnax

8:19 AM

The second one, if any.

I've asked a few intrusive questions, I can surely answer that one!

My mum talked to me about religion the other night and I found her surprisingly more moderate than usual.

David Wallace

Did you tell her the truth?

You're obviously not 100% sure about atheism, otherwise you wouldn't have been asking so many questions about Islam.

Mahnax

She asked if I was comfortable with the beliefs I grew up with, and I said "not really".

David Wallace

Oh, good for you.

Did you tell her what specific difficulties you were having with them?

Mahnax

@DavidWallace I'm sorry, but that is not accurate.

David Wallace

Don't be sorry.

Mahnax

8:23 AM

@DavidWallace A little bit. There were littler ones around.

David Wallace

Are they largely technical, doctrinal difficulties? Or difficulties with some of the broader concepts?

Mahnax

Well, I simply find many of the broader concepts unbelievable.

David Wallace

Yes, they can be pretty remarkable can't they!

Mahnax

Christianity seems to stress "God is love".

This is evidently not the case.

David Wallace

Umm, I have the utmost respect for Christianity, even if my past remarks have seemed contrary to this. It is a hard one to get one's head around though.

Mahnax

8:26 AM

I spent years believing that stuff. Believe me, I'm familiar with the traditional (and some untraditional) "explanations".

David Wallace

Yes, but there are "explanations", and then there is stuff that you can pick up and actually believe. They're not necessarily the same thing.

Mahnax

I can respect the belief in the existence of a deity, and I can respect some of the New Testament's doctrine, but that is the extent of my respect for Christianity.

David Wallace

The Qur'an doesn't mention love very much. Only a little. But every chapter (except one, I think) describes God as "the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful". Which is kind of different.

Mahnax

Perhaps that is too harsh, but that is how I feel, heh.

@DavidWallace Interesting.

David Wallace

@Mahnax No, I can understand that.

Although one of the 99 names of Allah is al-Wadood, which means "the loving one".

Mahnax

8:33 AM

I say "interesting" too much.

Cerberus

@Mahnax I agree with the latter half.

Mahnax

@Cerberus Some of the NT's doctrine?

Cerberus

Yes.

Mahnax

Fair enough.

Cerberus

Some of that was actually an improvement over Roman and Greek traditions.

But...

Well, you know.

For all you straight girls who are against gay marriage: you will regret it, as these lesbians will tell you, who are going to marry your boyfriends.

David Wallace

8:35 AM

Interesting! ...

Cerberus

►

David Wallace

And ask forgiveness of your Lord and then repent to Him. Indeed, my Lord is Merciful and Affectionate. - Qur'an 11:90, Sahih International interpretation.

But ask forgiveness of your Lord, and turn unto Him (in repentance): For my Lord is indeed full of mercy and loving-kindness. - Qur'an 11:90, Yusuf Ali interpretation

Cerberus

These are actually funny lesbians! Who'd have thunk.

And some are pretty hawt too.

In a previous life, perhaps.

Or is that blasphemy?

I am glad that you have repented.

Mahnax

Hmm, Islam seems to be opposed to homosexuality as well.

Cerberus

Most old texts were.

David Wallace

8:40 AM

Umm, anal intercourse is a sin. Being homosexual is not.

Cerberus

But modern believers are often more flexible.

You're quite vulgar for a Muslim!

David Wallace

As far as I recall. Of course, as I keep saying, I am NOT an Islamic scholar; you should NOT take my words for such things.

Cerberus

averts eyes

David Wallace

@Cerberus Really?

Cerberus

I can't believe people even contemplate the exact sexual acts of others.

It is absurd.

David Wallace

8:41 AM

@Cerberus You're quite dishonest for an atheist.

Cerberus

Excuse me?

David Wallace

You can't believe that people contemplate the sexual acts of others?

The whole pornography industry is based on the contemplation of the sexual acts of others.

Cerberus

Not like this.

This is not porn.

Religious tracts about sexual acts by random strangers.

Quite vulgar.

David Wallace

Huh?

How is a scripture that mentions sex vulgar?

Cerberus

It is!

David Wallace

8:44 AM

Have you read Leviticus?

Cerberus

I would rather not. I know the Bible contains similar passages.

Mahnax

I do not personally recommend reading Leviticus.

Cerberus

Noted.

David Wallace

Anal intercourse can lead to all sorts of harm. Surely any document that advises against it is actually helpful?

Cerberus

I can barely look at your line.

Mahnax

8:47 AM

Travel by automobile can also lead to all sorts of harm. I would not call a document that advises against it helpful.

David Wallace

@Cerberus You are actually taking the piss, aren't you?

I am starting to have fleeting doubts.

Cerberus

I'm mostly serious.

I find explicit notions of sexuality in religious tracts absurd, and I am mostly quite prudish, but I can deal with that.

David Wallace

Because they are religious tracts? Or do explicit notions of sexuality anywhere offend you?

Cerberus

The idea that a priest would be handing the genitals of babies is the absurdest thing ever.

David Wallace

You think that sexuality and religion should be kept separate, is that it?

Cerberus

8:51 AM

And yet they regularly cut off bits of baby genital. Religion makes me think of purity, white robes, serenity, nobility, contemplation.

David Wallace

Sorry, I am just completely baffled by your attitude.

Cerberus

I understand that this is normal, but it never ceases to amaze me.

Mahnax

Why is circumcision even a thing?

David Wallace

Yes, I have to confess that I am very confused by circumcision.

Mahnax

It's for purity, or cleanliness, I think.

David Wallace

8:52 AM

@Mahnax Actually, it's not so much of a thing.

Cerberus

It is an ancient Semitic/Hamitic custom, I believe.

Mahnax

Yes, but… why?

Cerberus

Probably inherited from prehistorical times.

I'm not sure why.

With girls, I think it is sometimes seen as a means to prevent fornication and adultery.

With boys, there could be many explanations.

Perhaps overlapping.

Mahnax

Yes, FGM is supposed to prevent a woman from experiencing pleasure during intercourse, I believe.

What a disgusting notion.

Cerberus

Desert sand, preventing masturbation, an arbitrary custom...

FGM?

Mahnax

8:54 AM

Female Genital Mutilation.

Cerberus

Right.

David Wallace

6

Q: Why is circumcision required in islam?

I have read in many places that circumcision hasn't proven to be any helpful to health and no advantages to it have been found. Why are we required to have circumcision when we are born? Are there any ahadith regarding this ruling?

quran hadith

Cerberus

I find it completely absurd.

But such is human culture.

Most historians agree, by the way, that many customs never served any major practical purpose.

Much is just random.

David Wallace

Hah, I misread "adze" as "axe" in the second Bukhari quote on that page.

Cerberus

Some things that are now useless or even harmful were once useful, but not all.

Mahnax

8:56 AM

circumcision.org/response.htm

It is very painful.

Cerberus

Eww.

Mahnax

Why anyone would willingly mutilate the genitals of an infant, tradition or no tradition, is beyond me.

Seriously. It's a sickening practice.

Cerberus

And to me.

Mahnax

On a lighter note, same-sex marriage is now legal in Maine.

Cerberus

There are some nuances to all this.

Kit and JSB brought it up a while ago.

Cooled me down a bit.

Mahnax

9:00 AM

What did they bring up that cooled you down?

Cerberus

A nuanced view of circumcision.

How maybe it wasn't so bad.

I don't remember exactly what they said.

Mahnax

It is bad, though.

Cerberus

I'm not supposed to agree.

Mahnax

With me, or them?

Cerberus

With you.

I came off as lacking a nuanced view.

Mahnax

9:04 AM

I refuse to have a nuanced view on this matter. It is a disgusting practice, period. I do not care about "later health benefits" if they are achieved by inflicting large amounts of pain on an infant.

Cerberus

Mar 27 at 19:29, by Cerberus

@JSBᾶngs I suppose. But I consider it harm. You make an irreversible change to a child's body.

@Mahnax The health benefits are bogus.

Mahnax

@Cerberus I kind of guessed that they would be.

Cerberus

Yeah.

Mahnax

I should go to bed. I have work tomorrow and it's 2:11.

Cerberus

Eep!

Bonne nuit.

Mahnax

9:09 AM

Good night, everyone. Sorry if I offended anyone with my displays of fury! ;-)

Cerberus

Try not to think of you-know-what.

Mahnax

My dreams will be full of burning cities and pillars of salt, no doubt. Farewell, then.

poof

Cerberus

Hehe.

David Wallace

@Mahnax Not in the slightest. I admit to being confused by the whole issue. I am not as certain as Cerberus that the health benefits are bogus.

Cerberus

Bai!

Not all can be as certain as I.

This is not a problem.

David Wallace

9:11 AM

And I must say that I do not know how I would react if one of the Islamic scholars who advises me in the ways of Islam were to insist that I become circumcised myself.

Cerberus

Hehe.

It is said to be a terrible ordeal for an adult.

David Wallace

Of course, scholars do not insist on such things; but one could easily point out that God thus commands, which would amount to the same thing.

And yet Ibrahim (PBUH) was circumcised at the age of 80.

Cerberus

tries to think of puppies and whales

David Wallace

Along with all the men who lived in his house.

Cerberus

Anything else.