Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!ficc!jeffd
From: jeffd@ficc.ferranti.com (Jeff Daiell)
Newsgroups: comp.misc
Subject: Re: Acronyms.  Is is `1 MIP' or `1 MIPS'?
Summary: pluralism
Message-ID: <-PE4L9E@xds8.ferranti.com>
Date: 3 Jul 90 10:28:31 GMT
References: <6033@helios.TAMU.EDU> <111360@linus.mitre.org> <305@spam.ua.oz> <1990Jul2.022434.1442@melba.bby.oz.au>
Organization: Karen Valentino Fan Club [but opinions my own]
Lines: 21

In article <1990Jul2.022434.1442@melba.bby.oz.au>, zvs@bby.oz.au (Zev Sero) writes:
> In article <UUA4R2D@xds8.ferranti.com> jeffd@ficc.ferranti.com (Jeff Daiell) writes:
> 
>    How so?  Australia is a federal system; surely you didn't say,
>    "Our Commonwealth's constituent States is very diverse" or "The 
>    States of the Commonwealth was arguing last year". 
> 
> The Commonwealth always `is', the States `are'; there is never any
> confusion.  Unlike the United States of America, which sometimes `is'
> and sometimes `are'.
> --

No.  One should always use 'are' for the United States or United States
of America.  If one insists on using a singular, the noun should be
The Union.


Jeff



-- 
                   Fiat Justitia, Ruat Caelum