incorrigible?

[Alan Baragona]

I don't think he meant "incorrigible" but just didn't know how to shape his
syntax to use it properly.  I believe he thinks "incorrigible" means either
"unpardonable" or "indefensible."  I can imagine how such semantic confusion
might arise for someone who isn't used to using "incorrigible" and doesn't
recognize the etymology of it.

Alan B.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Michael McKernan" <mckernan at LOCALNET.COM>
To: <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Sent: Thursday, July 21, 2005 8:25 PM
Subject: Re: incorrigible?


> ---------------------- Information from the mail
> header -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Michael McKernan <mckernan at LOCALNET.COM>
> Subject:      Re: incorrigible?
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> sagehen wrote:
>
>>"It is just inconceivable & truly incorrigible that in the midst of the
>>war, that the Democratic leaders would be conducting guerrilla warfare on
>>American troops," said Representative Joe Wilson, Republican of South
>>Carolina, about potential legislation aimed at creating an independent
>>sommission to investigate detainee abuse at Guant·namo.
>>(quoted in /The Progressive/ Aug 2005  "No Comment")
>> I can't decide what the speaker was aiming at with
>>"incorrigible:"....incredible? unintelligible?
>>A. Murie
>
> Seems to me that Wilson was simply labelling the 'Democratic leaders' as
> incorrigible due to his perception that Republicans haven't managed to
> subdue them into 'correcting' their errant ways.  So the only problem I
> have with his sentence is he's positioned the term to describe 'It' (the
> situation he's talking about)  rather than 'Democratic leaders.'  Perhaps
> he felt that we'd be able to understand him as meaning ' & truly
> demonstrates how incorrigible they are...'
>
>
>
> Michael McKernan
>