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Re: CHAT: Unsolicited abuse

From:Daniel Seriff <seriffda@...>
Date:Wednesday, May 12, 1999, 0:46
Matt Pearson wrote:

> I know exactly what you mean. Yes, it's *possible* he thought that, but > I doubt it. When I told him that one of my hobbies was making up a > language, he asked me whether the language was 'logical', and then went > on to pontificate about Esperanto and its function as a medium of > international communication. Although not exactly a fan of Esperanto, > he was intrigued by the Esperanto concept (in addition to being a > psychologist and professor of pedagogy, he was also a specialist in > 'peace studies' or some such - all very Swedish!). It was only after I > informed him that *my* language was not intended as an auxlang that he > became hostile and started spouting catch phrases like "mental > masturbation". So I don't think he thought of me as a schizophrenic > or a glossalalic. In his mind, language has a purely utilitarian > function, so any artificial language project which is 'just for fun' > would be a waste of valuable time - a reaction which many other people > on this list have reported.
I wonder if he also thinks that things like music and literature are wastes of time, too. Conlanging is no less creative than those endeavors.
> Matt.
-- Dan Seriff <seriffda@...> "Mozart is just God's way of making the rest of us feel inferior." - David Barber