At 13:01 98-01-13 -0500, Arthur Cordell wrote:
in futurework list
>
>
>
>---------- Forwarded message ----------
>Date: Mon, 12 Jan 1998 16:04:35 -0800
>From: Robert Theobald <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>To: [EMAIL PROTECTED], [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>Subject: text of speech to be given in Toronto
>
>
>After considerable soul-searching, I have decided to send this lengthy
>e-mail to you. It is the text of a speech which I shall give in Toronto.
>While the first third covers familiar ground, I believe that the rest is
>quite new and that the whole represents a new level of clarity for me.
>
And much appreciated (by me at least) but deleted from this response as not
directly related to this argument. For the benefit of Mr. Theobald, I have
just finished doing a little analysis of Mr Greenspan's text which appeared
on this list recently. Struck by the clarity of Robert Theobald's text I
thought it would be amusing and perhaps edifying to do a little comparison.
Here are the results. (Apologies to those who have already seen the results
of Greenspan's).
Just to make sure that I am not perceived as anti-economists (or
anti-non-visionary-bean-counters :) but for emphasis, I submitted both
Greenspan's and Theobald's texts to the grinder (PCSTYLE). Need more be said :
Greenspan's :
PC-Style report for: grenspan.txt
+---------------------------+
¦ Sentences: 156 ¦
¦ Words: 3806 ¦ Poor...Best
¦ Words per sentence: 24.4 ¦ 17.X---------7.0
¦ % Long words: 23.0 ¦ 14.X---------1.0
¦ % Personal words: 1.7 ¦ 0.0X---------9.0
¦ % Action verbs: 0.6 ¦ 0.0 --X------2.5
¦ Syllables per word: 1.8 ¦ 2.5 ----X----1.0
¦ Readability level: 18.9 ¦ 18.X---------6.0
+---------------------------+
POOR FAIR AVERAGE GOOD EXCELLENT
Readability X--------¤--------¤--------¤--------¤---------
Personal tone --------X¤--------¤--------¤--------¤---------
Action ---------¤-X------¤--------¤--------¤---------
Theobald's :
PC-Style report for: theob.txt
+---------------------------+
¦ Sentences: 333 ¦
¦ Words: 6324 ¦ Poor...Best
¦ Words per sentence: 18.9 ¦ 17.X---------7.0
¦ % Long words: 13.6 ¦ 14.X---------1.0
¦ % Personal words: 6.1 ¦ 0.0 ------X--9.0
¦ % Action verbs: 1.3 ¦ 0.0 -----X---2.5
¦ Syllables per word: 1.6 ¦ 2.5 -----X---1.0
¦ Readability level: 13.0 ¦ 18. ---X-----6.0
+---------------------------+
POOR FAIR AVERAGE GOOD EXCELLENT
Readability --------¤--------X--------¤--------¤--------
Personal tone --------¤--------¤--------¤--X-----¤--------
Action --------¤--------¤------X-¤--------¤--------
Reading Theobald and a few others keeps me lurking this list.
Maybe Theobald's message could include a little para on "gobbledygook". Or,
maybe launch a movement for a "gobbledygook-tax". It would surely be more
positive then "income-", "employment-" or "payroll-" taxes.
Peace,
"The end of labor is to gain leisure." Aristotle.
-- ARG d'Ottawa ON Canada. Futuriste-au-loisir maintenant. --
