Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sdd.hp.com!usc!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: christian@cs.rutgers.edu Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Recent post to soc.religion.christian Message-ID: Date: 28 Nov 90 00:20:22 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Lines: 16 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu I have gotten a complaint on a grammatical note included in a posting by Richard O'Keefe. This was clearly a failure in my moderation. I allowed the posting with minimal reading, because I discovered that I had inadvertently missed it when reviewing last night's group. Had I read it more carefully I would have noted that Richard got caught in a cultural difference between the U.S. and elsewhere, and returned his posting for adjustment. I trust readers will note that he is posting from Australia, and will take into account that things may appear impolite in one culture that are not in another. Certainly the use of Mr. O'Keefe is both gramatically correct and polite in the U.S. In the U.S., the use of the last name alone often gives the impression of being cold, and in some contexts could even be taken as insulting. I get the impression from reading British novels that usage is somewhat different there. --clh