[Ads-l] Crash-blossom OTY

Joel Berson berson at ATT.NET
Tue Nov 17 17:36:32 UTC 2015


Yes, but one (moi) would not say "victims of attack" in this case, since there were several.  Here we have not the ubiquitous "of" but the disappearing "of".

As for Jon's> Not perfect, but close enough for government work,

Let's hope CNN does better next time.  That is, uses "for" or "of" instead of "on".  :-)

Joel

      From: Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at YALE.EDU>
 To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU 
 Sent: Tuesday, November 17, 2015 11:42 AM
 Subject: Re: [ADS-L] Crash-blossom OTY
   
Yes, the "on" makes the unintended reading less likely, but the weird plural in the modifier within the compound--which seems to have become a standard option anymore--makes it more likely.  For me, it can only be "Paris attack victims", even given the multiplicity of attack sites--i.e. the victims of attacks are attack victims, not attacks victims.

LH

> On Nov 17, 2015, at 8:52 AM, Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> 
> Not perfect, but close enough for government work.
> 
> On the TV screen, with all caps,  the "on" was easily misread (or, better,
> "automatically absorbed )" as "of."
> 
> JL
> 
> On Tue, Nov 17, 2015 at 8:46 AM, Joel Berson <berson at att.net> wrote:
> 
>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
>> -----------------------
>> Sender:      American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>> Poster:      Joel Berson <berson at ATT.NET>
>> Subject:      Re: Crash-blossom OTY
>> 
>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> 
>> Well, at least they got the preposition better than "for" or "of".=C2=A0
>> Th=
>> at is, I don't think there is a "deputy mayor on Paris", so that I find
>> the=
>> headline a bit difficult to read as "the deputy mayor on Paris attacks
>> the=
>> victims."
>> Deputy mayor "for" or "of" Paris seems to crash more loudly.=C2=A0 And
>> "Dep=
>> uty mayor for Paris attacks victims" crashes with a different ambiguity --
>> =
>> is the deputy major for (does he support) the Paris attack victims?
>> 
>> Joel
>> 
>>      From: Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
>> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU=20
>> Sent: Tuesday, November 17, 2015 7:40 AM
>> Subject: [ADS-L] Crash-blossom OTY
>>  =20
>> CNN caption:
>> 
>> "DEPUTY MAYOR ON PARIS ATTACKS VICTIMS."
>> 
>> JL
>> 
>> --=20
>> "If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."
>> 
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> 
> 
> -- 
> "If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."
> 
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