modulus pedantry

Michael Press said:

Quoted message said:

<snippage of the textual effects of winter on cyclists>

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

See, this is much better than arguing about the latest Bushco debacle.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

;-)

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Quoted message said:

Anyone remember a game show spoof on SNL called "The Point is Moot"
or "The Question is Moot"? IIRC, it was hosted either by Jesse
Jackson himself or someone playing him. He would pose a question
and then at some point shout at the contestants "THE QUESTION IS
MOOT!" and noone would get any points. Hilarious (I think).

noon is when we eat lunch and no one should miss that.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Moot, of course, meaning arguable and not having a definitive
answer. Not that term that necessarily applies to this thread.

Quoted message said:

That is not quite what moot means. The question argued _can_ have a
definite answer, but the outcome does not have consequences other
than who carried the argument. A moot court is (or was) a teaching
aid in law school where students argue a case in the moot court to
learn the craft.

# Main Entry: moot court
# Function: noun
# : a mock court in which law students argue hypothetical cases for
# practice

That is similar to the misinterpretation of the metaphor:

"Carrot and stick."

In which the driver of a wagon hangs a carrot from a stick ahead of
the mule to get it to move, a mule being notably so obstinate that
clever ploys are needed. Such wagons no longer being used today, the
expression has morphed into: "Carrot and stick." Mind you, no mule
could be brought into motion with a stick as inducement and that ain't
moot.

"Carrot and Stick" was a great metaphor but lost in today's world.

Jobst Brandt

D'ohBoy said:

<snippage of the textual effects of winter on cyclists>

See, this is much better than arguing about the latest Bushco debacle.

;-)

Anyone remember a game show spoof on SNL called "The Point is Moot" or
"The Question is Moot"? IIRC, it was hosted either by Jesse Jackson
himself or someone playing him. He would pose a question and then at
some point shout at the contestants "THE QUESTION IS MOOT!" and noone
would get any points. Hilarious (I think).

Moot, of course, meaning arguable and not having a definitive answer.
Not that term that necessarily applies to this thread.

D'ohboy

Or, even funnier, was Joey on Friends telling someone that they had a
'moo point'. When asked what he meant, he said it was like a cow's
opinion, that nobody cares about. Even Phoebe had to do a double-take.

<snippage of linguistic pedantry>

Thank you, Michael.

I appreciate the opportunity to be incorrect on a rare occasion (if
only slightly). Please examine the following closely:

I wrote:

"Moot, of course, meaning arguable and not having a definitive answer."

Here is the adjectival definition of moot from Merriam Webster's
on-line dictionary:

Function: adjective
1 a : open to question : DEBATABLE b : subjected to discussion :
DISPUTED

I used it as a predicate adjective in "the point is moot".

Meaning "debatable, disputed, open to question".

Please, do not question my language skills again. ;-)

D'ohBoy

In article
<[email hidden]>,

D'ohBoy said:

<snippage of linguistic pedantry>

Thank you, Michael.

I appreciate the opportunity to be incorrect on a rare occasion (if
only slightly). Please examine the following closely:

I wrote:

"Moot, of course, meaning arguable and not having a definitive answer."

Here is the adjectival definition of moot from Merriam Webster's
on-line dictionary:

Function: adjective
1 a : open to question : DEBATABLE b : subjected to discussion :
DISPUTED

I used it as a predicate adjective in "the point is moot".

Meaning "debatable, disputed, open to question".

Please, do not question my language skills again. ;-)

Hey, you know that it is not spelled `mute.' 🙂

You seem to say that for a point to be moot it must not
have a definitive answer. No? The definition that you
supplied from the dictionary does not support this
meaning. I say that a moot point _can_ have a definitive
answer; but one that is inconsequential.

--
Michael Press

Michael Press said:

You seem to say that for a point to be moot it must not
have a definitive answer. No? The definition that you
supplied from the dictionary does not support this
meaning. I say that a moot point _can_ have a definitive
answer; but one that is inconsequential.

Kinda like "I know that recumbent bike may be faster, but the point is
moot becuse Fabrizio would never ride one".

Come to think of it, in this industry, the point can be Moots.
Hmmmmmm.

Mark Hickey
Habanero Cycles
http://www.habcycles.com
Home of the $795 ti frame

Michael forged on, stating:

Quoted message said:

I say that a moot point _can_ have a definitive
answer; but one that is inconsequential.

--
Michael Press

The inconsequential nature of the answer is not suggested by the
definition I was working under, however, I do not dispute the validity
of your etymology-based definition.

Let me further clarify and agree that an assertion that is *debatable*,
*disputed*, or *moot*, probably does have a definitive answer, but that
answer is not agreed upon. Meaning that no conclusion can be reached,
that the point is arguable and the definitive answer (that does exist)
is unknown or not agreed upon by the parties involved in a discussion.

Have I pared the hair fine enough?

D'ohBoy, who believes we have a moot point here.