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Let's not forget poor Zach Hartwell. When I think of Angie and all the plans they have made together- the tragedy is even more poignant- I cannot comprehend her devastation, or those closest to Zach and Ryan.
I was very nearly also a victim of very similar thoughtlessness and reckless abandon, so I'm certain their passing was instant and they felt no pain, only eternal sleep.
They are both in a better place. God willing, we'll all meet up again at Fiddler's Green.
in memory of ryan, pt. 2—from knoxville with love
At Ryan's memorial Wednesday night in West Chester, people were invited up to the microphone to say a few words about his life, whatever they were feeling at that moment. I walked to the podium and tried to share memories of my dear friend, but the words were just spinning in my head. What ca...
I thoroughly respect your position.
But, I completely refuse to relinquish my Its' as incorrect.
I am post-graduate educated and no stranger to academic monograph or incredibly boring peer-reviewed text in highest formal English.
Yet, if one compares English to its' mother German- we have many conflicting rules that have neve been resolved nor standardized. Typical Engilsh arse-ing about- and no that's not considered a swear-word in UK [although the former presented singularly, is]. Spelling is one example and lexography/orthography another.
Our rules for colons, commas and apostrophes are a dog's breakfast.
Secondly my argument is the inconsistency of breaking with the attribution quality of the apostrophe.
The apostrophe clarifies attribution and possession well-as you've described.
However, I argue it's more clear to retain its' as an identifier of attribution/possession than if one omitted the "its'" apostrophe.
I borrow your examples:
You can recognize Rene's music by its abrupt tempo changes.
[the inamanimate]
The golden retriever is known for ITS' gentle personality.
[animate]
Gene's enthusiasm for golfing has been lost.
animate possessive.
Thus, it's perfectly clear than when possession requires clarification- the its' does a wonderful job without breaking with apostrophic convention
Cringe as you might, but being educated with the "rules", or more accurately the mass consensus [sic: logical fallacy] of "conventions" of English grammar (being a dogs' breakfast as I described] I choose to break with the rules in order to be more consistent.
I shall be that brushfire of the minds that cries "Never! I refuse to yield to ridiculous, contradictory, arbitrary English grammar rules contrived after the fact!"
Its' has a place in my heart and I argue a legitimate place on academic literature, as much as Jefferson's "its" when he meant "it's".
PS- I know this particular comment must be driving you mad. It's' meant to.
Its? It's? Or Its'?
A friend of mine asked me to write about how to choose the correct form of its, and I am happy to comply. Those three little letters cause a lot of confusion, but once you master a couple of basic rules, the choice becomes simple. Here goes: Its' is never correct. Your grammar and spellchecker...
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Aug 25, 2013
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