incent : a big SOTA

[Laurence Horn]

At 7:41 AM -0800 1/25/06, Jonathan Lighter wrote:
>"The conspicuous SOTA label identifies linguistic Signs Of The
>Apocalypse only. Those uninterested in such Signs (and Wonders) may
>delete without reading any message so labeled." --- _Compu-Guide to
>Linguistic Apocalypses_.
>
>   JL

We do have to allow for variation, of course:  one person's SOTA is
another's POP (Parochial Orthodoxical Prejudice).

LH

>"Dennis R. Preston" <preston at MSU.EDU> wrote:
>   ---------------------- Information from the mail header
>-----------------------
>Sender: American Dialect Society
>Poster: "Dennis R. Preston"
>
>Subject: Re: incent : a big SOTA
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Wouldn't it be better to enforce personal language prejudices on the
>LPS-L (Language Police Society List) than here at ADS-L.
>
>dInIs
>
>
>
>>How many are aware that English contains a verb "to incent," meaning
>>"to provide with and incentive" ? I sure didn't, at least not until
>>Governor George Pataki (R. -N.Y.) promised a few minutes ago to
>>"incent consumers" to switch to ethanol.
>>
>>  Making the situation far more dire is that my OED colleagues can
>>prove that "incent" has been in print at least since 1977. After
>>nearly thirty years, we should not be surprised to learn that even
>>little children, somewhere, are learning to lisp it. One can only
>>prophesize that these little children will soon be incented to grow
>>the economy.
>>
>>  Won't you join me in taking the Pledge never to use the discrete
>>phonemic sequence "incent" in speech or writing as long as you live,
>>and beyond if possible ? And won't you do your best to scourge and
>>discomfit the misguided souls who do use it ?
>>
>>  JL
>>
>>
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>
>--
>Dennis R. Preston
>University Distinguished Professor
>Department of English
>15C Morrill Hall
>Michigan State University
>East Lansing, MI 48824
>517-353-4736
>preston at msu.edu
>
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>
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