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The distinction between "they" and "he" or "she." I agree that we do need a
gender-neutral pronoun, but why do we have to take an existing pronoun and
try to squeeze it into a role in which it does not belong?
If the language needs to change, why not introduce a new word into it
instead of making ambiguous the definition of another word? I believe that
the certain factions of the political correctness movement have already
suggested a replacement word.
You know, "ain't" is used by a lot of people (myself included) every day and
has been for a long time, but I ain't going to use it in my work, but
somebody in the audience is going to know that it's wrong and I'll lose
credibility for using it. I feel the same way about the singular "they."
-----Original Message-----
From: Christine -dot- Anameier -at- seagate -dot- com
[mailto:Christine -dot- Anameier -at- seagate -dot- com]
Sent: Friday, April 06, 2001 2:00 PM
To: TECHWR-L
Subject: RE: pronouns and portfolios
It's not that we'll "stop using" he and she--it's just that the generic
singular pronoun is shifting from "he" to "they." I don't see what
distinction we're losing.
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