As U get older ,have you become a dilligaf ?

[Jingthing]

2 minutes ago, NextG said:

Exactly. You were wrong. Move on. 

Juvenile tactic

[Lee65]

For sheer perseverance, Jingthing for the win here.  Per capita he's right about more stuff.  (For example, Americans really do never state it when they COULD care less about something.)

 

And, thankfully, he served to distract us from the original topic.  

 

 

 

 

[BigStar]

3 hours ago, Lee65 said:

or sheer perseverance, Jingthing for the win here.  Per capita he's right about more stuff.  (For example, Americans really do never state it when they COULD care less about something.)

 

But they could use the literal meaning of the phrase. That they never do merely confirms that it's an illiterate version of could not care less. As Bryan A. Garner says,

 

If you could care less, you're saying that you do care some. Invariably, though, writers and speakers who use the phrase mean that they don't care at all.

 

Which is what @Jingthingmeant, then blew a lot of smoke to justify misusing the phrase. None of his authorities made credible arguments, some rather silly. "Do want feel miserable because the mob doesn't use correct English? OMG. Do it their way."

 

I'm with the Brits on this one. To the unusual credit of the members, no one's agreed w/ @Jingthing.

 

I could agree with you on a participation award, however.

 

 

Edited March 12, 2023 by BigStar

[novacova]

On 3/11/2023 at 6:04 PM, bignok said:

Avoiding toxic people means avoiding most people.

Few quality friends is more rewarding than a mix of many with toxic in the bunch 

[VocalNeal]

23 hours ago, NotReallyHere said:

Being overly tolerant is one of the problems with our modern age. 

But it goes keeps one's blood pressure down???? 

 

The Serenity Prayer works well.

[Kwasaki]

1 minute ago, VocalNeal said:

But it goes keeps one's blood pressure down???? 

 

The Serenity Prayer works well.

Chang works for me in moderation. ????

[VocalNeal]

^ Doesn't work for other moderators????

[JensenZ]

9 hours ago, BigStar said:

Doubling down doesn't help your case but is only to be expected. Quite a bit of effort expended for something you purport not to care about, no?

 

That doesn't work, either, though relying on one's own like is comfortably progressive.

 

Although some apologists argue that could care less is meant to be sarcastic and not to be taken literally, a more plausible explanation is that the -n't of couldn't has been garbled in sloppy speech and sloppy writing. As a linguist explains: "A listener has not heard the whole phrase; he has heard a slurred form. Couldn't care has two dental stops practically together, dnt. This is heard only as d and slurring results. The outcome is / c'd care less." Atcheson L. Hench, "Could(n't) Care Less," 48 Am. Speech 159, 159 (1973). For a careful seven-step explication of the loss of this alveolar closure, see James Sledd, "[kut] [kut] Be [kut], [kut] It?" 68 Am. Speech 218-19 (1993).

     --Garner's Modern American Usage

 

Educated in what is the question; how well-read, another.  Lists of misused phrases commonly include yours: 20 Embarrassing Phrases Even Smart People Misuse

 

But habits formed in youth can mean lingering misperception in adulthood. Great editors correct the best writers. If they failed to catch an illiterate could care less, they may now find solace in your authoritative rejection.

 

Nowadays, writers have access to tools like Grammarly to avoid such embarrassments and later excuse-making. It's just a browser plugin, so, in theory, you can use it.

 

A Complex Question fallacy. It's fun laughing at all the mistakes in grammar, spelling, punctuation, and syntax here. In fact, ANF has its own canonical spellings, e.g., boarders for borders (this has been vigorously defended with tortured nonsense when called out), loose for lose, etc. But we can't really talk about this, so I hope you're able to see my post before it's removed.

6. I could care less

"I couldn't care less" is what you would say to express maximum apathy toward a situation. Basically you're saying, "It's impossible for me to care less about this because I have no more care to give. I've run out of care." Using the incorrect "I could care less" indicates that "I still have care left to give--would you like some?"

 

Well explained, and humorous at the same time. "would you like some more" LOL

Edited March 12, 2023 by JensenZ

[Jingthing]

Couldn't care less and could care less are casual idioms that mean the exact same thing.

If you fail to understand that, that's your problem.

[JensenZ]

On 3/11/2023 at 8:27 PM, Jingthing said:

Where I grew up could care less was all I ever heard and everyone understood it. It's best to be tolerant of regional usage variations. 

You taught me one thing here. I've seen "could care less" a lot and always considered it to be either a writing error or the writer meant to say he has more care to give. I had no idea Americans accepted this error as the correct way to state that the writer has no more care to give.

 

Now that you know the rest of the English-speaking world uses "couldn't care less" to indicate they are at their limit of available care, and we're on an International forum, you could do the gracious thing and use the term correctly to avoid such discussions in the future.

[JensenZ]

8 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Couldn't care less and could care less are casual idioms that mean the exact same thing.

If you fail to understand that, that's your problem.

You've failed to understand that "couldn't care less" is not, and has never been an idiom. It's a factual statement that a person has run out of care or apathy.

[BangkokReady]

On 3/11/2023 at 6:32 PM, Jingthing said:

American usage.

Deal with it.

I should of guessed! ????

[Jingthing]

The comment section on this video is hilarious!

My favorite is from an American who argued for couldn't care less on.a school playground and was beaten up for it.

 

Brits -- I imagine it's hard losing your empire, your Great Queen, and now having an economy weaker than Russia because of your moronic own goal Brexit.

But sorry, you lot don't own global English usage. Take that on your  biscuit and smother it with gravy.

 

 

Edited March 12, 2023 by Jingthing

[Jingthing]

Keeping it light

 

[JensenZ]

40 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

The comment section on this video is hilarious!

My favorite is from an American who argued for couldn't care less on.a school playground and was beaten up for it.

 

Brits -- I imagine it's hard losing your empire, your Great Queen, and now having an economy weaker than Russia because of your moronic own goal Brexit.

But sorry, you lot don't own global English usage. Take that on your  biscuit and smother it with gravy.

 

 

Well done finally admitting you're trolling.

[BigStar]

2 hours ago, JensenZ said:

I had no idea Americans accepted this error as the correct way to state that the writer has no more care to give.

Merely the Americans oblivious to proper usage. That's a very large number, of course. It's one of many commonly misused phrases, for example, these: 20 Embarrassing Phrases Even Smart People Misuse. Similar list oriented more towards the UK: The 30 most misused phrases in the English language. Some phrases seem often misused in both the UK and America, but I haven't bothered looking into that.

 

Modern dictionaries now pander to the mob, as @Jingthingfound, so, like many formerly reputable sources, are no longer trustworthy. Part of the overall cultural decline. 

 

Edited March 12, 2023 by BigStar

[BigStar]

2 hours ago, JensenZ said:

You've failed to understand that "couldn't care less" is not, and has never been an idiom. It's a factual statement that a person has run out of care or apathy.

Yes, a colloquial but logical phrase.

[Jingthing]

Another source confirming that both usages are correct and mean the exact same thing. Also that could care less is much more of an American usage.

 

This person is skeptical of the sarcasm theory for the development of could care less in the US. The influence of Yiddish grammar is mentioned which is fairly significant In American English.

 

She's right that once lots of people hear a certain usage a lot they tend to repeat it. She's also certainly right that could care less annoys certain people (in my view to an irrational degree).

 

 

[BigStar]

1 hour ago, JensenZ said:

Well done finally admitting you're trolling.

It's embarrassing.

[Cult of the Sun]

I could say something here about cell phones and how they raise blood pressure & make people angry, but people get angry when I talk about their precious devices that most of them sleep with or near.  Sick world..  That is experimental technology, by the way. Never ..ever tested for safety. ????????

[thaibeachlovers]

On 3/11/2023 at 11:57 PM, BritManToo said:

I don't really listen to other people any more so it isn't a problem. 

One of the few advantages of not taking part in club activities is that I don't get involved in other people's lives, which has made life a lot simpler, and in some ways more tolerable.

While I enjoyed having friends when I was working, sometimes they cause too many problems.

The people that did me the most harm in my life were those that I had called my "friends".

[thaibeachlovers]

I had to look up DILLIGAF, and my only thought is that no one could survive if they didn't care about something, even if it's only about eating, and some out there really care about eating, if you know what I mean.

[JensenZ]

 

5 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Another source confirming that both usages are correct and mean the exact same thing. Also that could care less is much more of an American usage.

 

This person is skeptical of the sarcasm theory for the development of could care less in the US. The influence of Yiddish grammar is mentioned which is fairly significant In American English.

 

She's right that once lots of people hear a certain usage a lot they tend to repeat it. She's also certainly right that could care less annoys certain people (in my view to an irrational degree).

 

 

Perhaps you should take the advice of Grammar Girl at 5:35 in the video. The grammar girl uses "I couldn't care less" so as not to annoy people, something you could care less about LOL.

Edited March 12, 2023 by JensenZ

[Wanderer555]

On 3/11/2023 at 8:02 PM, NotReallyHere said:

If you want to be understood, it does.  But maybe you don't want to be understood, which is fine.  Your choice.

Population of the USA:   333,287,000

Population of the UK:       67,508,000

 

Statistically, almost 5 times as many more people will understand the American version than other more archaic versions. 

 

Facts are facts, but in real life many could care less. ???? 

[Cricky]

Yep, miserable, complaining foreigners, there are lots here. 

 

Like I keep saying, the worst thing about Thailand is some of the foreigners. 

[georgegeorgia]

Well lo & behold just said hello to a new neighbour in my building only to have him start complaining to me about everything,city noise , young people etc etc , I felt like saying Dilligaf and moving on but here I was showing empathy ,until he said he walked past some young people drinking alcohol in the rooftop area of the condo  who were laughing, "what can we do about it ? He asked me 

 

Bloody join them ! I shouted back before walking off "join them and live bloody life especially at your age !

 

Reminds me a few years ago sitting in a bar in Soi bukhao in Pattaya ,a miserable old did wanted to talk to me and tell me he thought it was shocking these tourists were coming here to pick up 18uo girls , "30 years old girls I can understand he said but these old guys picking up 18 yo girls he said miserably whilst taking another dip on his gin .

 

"Shouldn't be allowed ! He exclaimed 

[Andrew Dwyer]

11 minutes ago, Cricky said:

Yep, miserable, complaining foreigners, there are lots here. 

 

Like I keep saying, the worst thing about Thailand is some of the foreigners. 

“ Like I keep saying “

 

Ah, the early symptoms ??

[BritManToo]

3 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

One of the few advantages of not taking part in club activities is that I don't get involved in other people's lives, which has made life a lot simpler, and in some ways more tolerable.

While I enjoyed having friends when I was working, sometimes they cause too many problems.

The people that did me the most harm in my life were those that I had called my "friends".

The person who did me most harm in my life was my Brit wife of 30 years.

[georgegeorgia]

1 hour ago, BritManToo said:

The person who did me most harm in my life was my Brit wife of 30 years.

That's in the past !

Nearly every post over the last 10 years you mention it 

 

Why give a F about her now ,you won't be here in 15 years anyway 

[Cricky]

2 hours ago, Andrew Dwyer said:

“ Like I keep saying “

 

Ah, the early symptoms ??

I've also noticed that the miserable, nasty, complaining foreigners are the antagonizers. 

 

Can't help themselves. 

 

Edited March 13, 2023 by Cricky