Re: counterreaction?

On 07 Mar 2009, Fran Kemmish wrote

HVS wrote:
On 07 Mar 2009, the Omrud wrote

fHVS wrote:
On 07 Mar 2009, Steve Hayes wrote

On Fri, 06 Mar 2009 22:46:38 GMT, HVS
<usenet@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

On 06 Mar 2009, Peter Duncanson (BrE) wrote

On Fri, 06 Mar 2009 22:33:02 GMT, HVS
<usenet@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

On 06 Mar 2009, Peter Duncanson (BrE) wrote
Of course there were real examples of bullying, and
when discovered the perps were subject to punishment
that today would be described as actual bodily harm.
Also, the threat of being sent to Borstal was a serious
deterrent. Quite different!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borstal
I'm not sure why you posted this link without any
explanation at all for doing so, but assume you're
correcting his usage of it to refer to reform schools and
such-like.

No correction intended. It was for information only.
Ah; a pitfall of posting a stand-alone and unexplained
link, methinks.
Hardly.

The link was not stand-alone, and was clearly intended to
explain the reference to "Borstal" for those not familiar
with it.
I cannot disagree more: the intent was *not* clear *at all*,
as Peter supplied absolutely no explanation for posting the
link.

Indeed, I took it to be a reprimand to Robin on his usage of
the term, with reference to Wikipee as an authority on the
"correct" meaning.
I took it as an explanation of a term which would not be
familiar to non-Brits or to anybody under 30.

That's apparently the case. I assumed it was more than "For
those of you who don't know what Borstal means, you can find an
explanation on Wikipedia".

If that's all it was, I find the implicit assumption that
people who can find their way to AUE might need help to locate
a definition of something that has its own entry in
Wikipedia...well, patronising, really.

Mileages clearly vary, and everyone else might take it as just
being helpful; it strikes me as a bit insulting.


I find your reaction really puzzling, Harvey. I knew what a
Borstal was - apart from normal general knowledge, we had a
group of Borstal boys on a dig I worked on in 1969. I didn't
find the posting of the link either patronising or insulting. I
clicked on it, and read the page.

Well, as I've explained (I hope) in more detail to Peter, it simply
didn't occur to me that someone would post a pointer simply to
define a word as easily-searchable as "Borstal". Knowing that's
the reason for it, it strikes me as the same as posting a link to
explain "workhouse", or "Stanley Steamer".

If I'd known that was the reason for posting the link, I'd not have
said anything. (I might well have thought "Hmmm....that's a bit
patronising" -- but I'm fairly sure I wouldn't have posted a
response.)

--
Cheers, Harvey
CanEng and BrEng, indiscriminately mixed


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