KNOW, oh prince, that between the years when the oceans drank Atlantis and the gleaming cities, and the years of the rise of the Sons of Aryas, there was an Age undreamed of, when shining kingdoms lay spread across the world like blue mantles beneath the stars—Nemedia, Ophir, Brythunia, Hyperborea, Zamora with its dark-haired women and towers of spider-haunted mystery, Zingara with its chivalry, Koth that bordered on the pastoral lands of Shem, Stygia with its shadow-guarded tombs, Hyrkania whose riders wore steel and silk and gold. But the proudest kingdom of the world was Aquilonia, reigning supreme in the dreaming west. Hither came Conan, the Grammarian, thin-haired, squinty- eyed, red pencil in hand, a teacher, a corrector, a pest, with a gigantic vocabulary and gigantic persistence, to tread dangling participles and run on paragraphs under his oxford shod feet.”—The Nemedian Chronicles
Thought For The Day
- Donald R. McClarey
Donald R. McClarey
Cradle Catholic. Active in the pro-life movement since 1973. Father of three, one in Heaven, and happily married for 43 years. Small town lawyer and amateur historian. Former president of the board of directors of the local crisis pregnancy center for a decade.
I don’t usually give the “I don’t know, ‘can you?’ response to students. My most common response is something along the lines of “I certainly hope so; if you can’t, that may be an indicator of a bigger issue above my pay grade.”
Then if I’m feeling generously snarky, I’ll give a short reminder about “can” versus “may”.
The big issue in my job is “shall” vs “may” when used in a legal or regulatory context. If an agency rule says a person or agency “may” do something, that means it’s optional; “shall” means it’s mandatory. However, we often get agencies using “may” when they really mean “shall”.
I have long assumed Elaine that the drafting of legislation and regulations is conducted when the drafters are drunk or hung over.
At the risk of quoting a German, “laws are like sausages. It is best not to see them being made.”
If you want to see something absolutely Byzantine, try looking at the development of the tax code and regulations regarding pensions. There’s often no logic to it at all. The tax code has symmetry but if you’re looking for something that makes sense don’t look there.
Elaine Krewer brings up a good point. In nuclear regulatory space, shall denotes a requirement, should denotes a recommendation, and may denotes permission. There are industry standards on how to write good requirements specifications using such terminology. And yes, I have taught training classes on this very topic at Neutrons ‘R Us because most engineers are horrible linguists and grammarians, but grammar is what the US NRC pays attention to. Think about that for a moment.
Funny you should say that Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus.
I’m about to start working in an adjacent field as an engineer.
English classes were my only grades below an A in school 😆
That being said, grading English is very subjective. I could have had an A if not for that particular instructor.
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Elaine K, on a high school field trip to Santa Fe, I spent a small eternity watching the legislature debating using “shall” or “may” in a bit of pending legislation. I remember, however accurately, a few “will”s being tentatively offered as well. I eventually left, and went forth to enjoy an afternoon of blue skies and yellow leaves in the plaza. Went to the museum, bought some pinyon fudge and a silver bear paw pendant for my Mom. Much better expense of my time.