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Usenet Posted 22 years ago
Usage
Pro-Pervert Punctuation
From The San Francisco Chronicle , 17 Febr 2004
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2004/02/17/state1932EST0125.DTL
SAN FRANCISCO
Two judges delayed taking any action Tuesday to shut down San Francisco's same-sex wedding spree, citing court procedures as they temporarily rebuffed conservative groups enraged that the city's liberal politicians had already married almost 2,400 gay and lesbian couples.
The second judge told the plaintiffs that they would likely succeed on the merits eventually, but that for now, he couldn't accept their proposed court order because of a punctuation error.
It all came down to a semicolon, the judge said.
"I am not trying to be petty here, but it is a big deal ... That semicolon is a big deal," said San Francisco Superior Court Judge James Warren.
The Proposition 22 Legal Defense and Education Fund had asked the judge to issue an order commanding the city to "cease and desist issuing marriage licenses to and/or solemnizing marriages of same-sex couples; to show cause before this court."
"The way you've written this it has a semicolon where it should have the word 'or'," the judge told them. "I don't have the authority to issue it under these circumstances."
Reinhold (Rey) Aman
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2004/02/17/state1932EST0125.DTL
SAN FRANCISCO
Two judges delayed taking any action Tuesday to shut down San Francisco's same-sex wedding spree, citing court procedures as they temporarily rebuffed conservative groups enraged that the city's liberal politicians had already married almost 2,400 gay and lesbian couples.The second judge told the plaintiffs that they would likely succeed on the merits eventually, but that for now, he couldn't accept their proposed court order because of a punctuation error.
It all came down to a semicolon, the judge said.
"I am not trying to be petty here, but it is a big deal ... That semicolon is a big deal," said San Francisco Superior Court Judge James Warren.
The Proposition 22 Legal Defense and Education Fund had asked the judge to issue an order commanding the city to "cease and desist issuing marriage licenses to and/or solemnizing marriages of same-sex couples; to show cause before this court."
"The way you've written this it has a semicolon where it should have the word 'or'," the judge told them. "I don't have the authority to issue it under these circumstances."
Reinhold (Rey) Aman
Top answer
[nq:1]"The way you've written this it has a semicolon where it should have the word 'or'," the judge told them. "[/nq] Whoever would have thought that a semicolon could end up affecting so many people's lives like this? Christopher (Change 3032 to 3232 to reply by private e-mail)
- [nq:1]"The way you've written this it has a semicolon where it should have the word 'or'," the judge told them.
- "[/nq] Whoever would have thought that a semicolon could end up affecting so many people's lives like this?
- Christopher (Change 3032 to 3232 to reply by private e-mail)
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6 Answers
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[nq:1]"The way you've written this it has a semicolon where it should have the word 'or'," the judge told them. "I don't have the authority to issue it under these circumstances."[/nq]
Whoever would have thought that a semicolon could
end up affecting so many people's lives like this?
Christopher
(Change 3032 to 3232 to reply by private e-mail)
Whoever would have thought that a semicolon could
end up affecting so many people's lives like this?
Christopher
(Change 3032 to 3232 to reply by private e-mail)
00
[nq:1]"The way you've written this it has a semicolon where it should have the word 'or'," the judge told them. "I don't have the authority to issue it under these circumstances."[/nq]
I say thank *** for them wayward semicolons.
Dena Jo
You can email me at denajo2 at the usual Yahoo domain
I say thank *** for them wayward semicolons.
Dena Jo
You can email me at denajo2 at the usual Yahoo domain
00
[nq:2]"The way you've written this it has a semicolon where ... don't have the authority to issue it under these circumstances."[/nq]
[nq:1]Whoever would have thought that a semicolon could end up affecting so many people's lives like this?[/nq]
Maybe the judge had Uncle Mal's attitude to "perverts" and thought that the issue would be more appropriate through a "colon"?
Alan
x
[nq:1]Whoever would have thought that a semicolon could end up affecting so many people's lives like this?[/nq]
Maybe the judge had Uncle Mal's attitude to "perverts" and thought that the issue would be more appropriate through a "colon"?
Alan
x
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Alan Crozier filted:
[nq:2]Whoever would have thought that a semicolon could end up affecting so many people's lives like this?[/nq]
[nq:1]Maybe the judge had Uncle Mal's attitude to "perverts" and thought that the issue would be more appropriate through a "colon"?[/nq]
An alarmingly large percentage of the population seem to consider semicolons perverted...(can't remember if I've left
[nq:2]Whoever would have thought that a semicolon could end up affecting so many people's lives like this?[/nq]
[nq:1]Maybe the judge had Uncle Mal's attitude to "perverts" and thought that the issue would be more appropriate through a "colon"?[/nq]
An alarmingly large percentage of the population seem to consider semicolons perverted...(can't remember if I've left
00
Let that be a lesson to all writers who don't realize the power of punctuation.
akra
akra
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[nq:1]Let that be a lesson to all writers who don't realize the power of punctuation.[/nq]
Top-posting is seriously frowned on here. Do like we do, is my advice.
Charles Riggs
My email address: chriggs/at/eircom/dot/net
Top-posting is seriously frowned on here. Do like we do, is my advice.
Charles Riggs
My email address: chriggs/at/eircom/dot/net
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