On Wed, 16 Jul 2008 13:25:51 +0100, Adrian Stott <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>Collective something, I agree, but I'm not certain it's intelligence. Come, come. Where is the spirit of freedom? You can't go around laying down rules for how people are to use the language: once they understand each other, that's all that you need to worry about. You were not in the least confused about what the original poster meant. Someone for whom English was a second or subsequent language might have a problem, which is why world standard English has more formal conventions, but in informal discussion you may adopt a more relaxed attitude. You don't have to tell speakers (or writers) what to do: I mean, you wouldn't go around telling waterways users what to do, would you? bjg
