[dave weil]

On Fri, 04 May 2007 11:44:28 GMT, wrote:

So now we have been told by one of the top experts on American usage
what many knew all along: the Constitution of the United States
unconditionally protects the people's right to keep and bear arms,
forbidding all governments formed under the Constitution from
abridging
that right.

If only the Constitution had been written by English teachers
chuckle.

He made a big mistake in his anaylsis though. In trying to prove that
the sentence was unconditional, he assumed a state of unconditionality
in the beginning as part of his argument.

Big no-no.

I wonder how a British language expert would weigh in though, since
"American useage" was still in its infancy and they were far more
British than current day American. I think that everyone agrees that,
in terms of an Americanism, it's deficient. I wonder if it falls under
an acceptable British construction (I highly doubt it). Chances are,
it's just a poorly-worded sentence.

Maybe I'll watch some Masterpiece Theare and see if anything similar
comes up g.