disclaimer inclusiveness

[Jonathan Lighter]

Actually, Joel and John are both undoubtedly correct.

"Few side effects" implies they're unlikely. "A few" might suggest
they're common and/or you might develop them all.

And you do have to consult your doctor, so "sly rhetoric" is unlikely
to be much of a factor in the transaction.

JL

On Thu, Nov 17, 2011 at 10:40 AM, Baker, John <JBAKER at stradley.com> wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       "Baker, John" <JBAKER at STRADLEY.COM>
> Subject:      Re: disclaimer inclusiveness
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> I would say that "with few side effects" is more informative than "with a few side effects."  If I hear "with a few side effects," I don't really feel comfortable that I have a good sense of how many side effects there are or how frequently they occur.  If I hear "with few side effects," I'm being told that, although there potentially are side effects, they manifest in only a small proportion of cases.
>
> Potential side effects often include death.  If the medication is to reduce cold symptoms - a mild disorder for which there are many alternative treatments - then that side effect is a big deal.  If the medication is to treat an otherwise incurable cancer, then the risk of death may be entirely acceptable.
>
>
> John Baker
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] On Behalf Of Jonathan Lighter
> Sent: Thursday, November 17, 2011 8:49 AM
> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> Subject: Re: disclaimer inclusiveness
>
> Agree.
>
> So what if one of the few side effects may be "death," as is
> occasionally the case? Ask your doctor about it!
>
> JL
>
> On Thu, Nov 17, 2011 at 8:29 AM, Joel S. Berson <Berson at att.net> wrote:
>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
>> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>> Poster:       "Joel S. Berson" <Berson at ATT.NET>
>> Subject:      Re: disclaimer inclusiveness
>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> At 11/16/2011 09:52 PM, Neal Whitman wrote:
>>>I also find it strange in those commercials when they say "X is
>>>associated with few [not "a few"] side effects, including ..."
>>
>> Here I suspect "with few side effects" is intended to sound like
>> fewer than "with a few side effects".  Something with "a few side
>> effects" sounds dangerous.
>>
>> Joel
>
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