Changing words by Susan Grimsdell
I know language changes and there’s no going back once words have either been lost or their meaning changed, but, in a no doubt forlorn bid to change things back to how they were, I want to focus attention on two changes that really bother me. Dying words First of all, I mourn the loss of a once-common word – “died”. People don’t die any more. They “pass away”. They “pass”. I just don’t understand where they’re supposed to have passed to, especially in New Zealand where only a small minority of… Read More
Marijuana and pain by Susan Grimsdell
I’ve been obsessed with pain lately. Not mine, but two of my friends who’ve both broken ribs. Panadol doesn’t cut it. Morphine’s good, but not something you want to take too much of. The best thing, I’ve heard, is marijuana, often called cannabis. We’ve all heard how effective it is for crippling pain. But in NZ it’s not on the list of options. Decriminalisation and legalisation I had a look to see if there are places that do allow people to buy and use marijuana, and it’s truly mind-boggling how many there… Read More
Values versus science by Susan Grimsdell
New Zealand has been seeing some pretty scary behaviour from seemingly ordinary people lately. Government staff have been the target of a torrent of abuse and threats, on social media, in phone calls and by email. This has included death threats and, following up on that, some staff have had the wheel nuts on their cars loosened. Dead birds have been thrown on the steps of Parliament and thousands of people have marched in fury down the streets of our cities. Predator danger The issue? Dept of Conservation dropping a poison, referred… Read More
Going round in circles by Susan Grimsdell
I’ve been feeling giddy lately – my brain is spinning, and here’s why. It has come to my attention, through an amazing book I’ve been reading, that most of the problems of the world – and there are many – are caused by us poor humans not realising that we think in circles and vicious ones to boot. Cause and effect Starting with a very obvious example – black people in America were all slaves at first. When slavery ended in 1865 do you think black people then started to flock into… Read More
When a comma means so much by Susan Grimsdell
My favourite news item of the year is the one about a comma. It was all about overtime pay for truck drivers, pay dating back over four years. Big money was at stake – as much as $10 million. Truck drivers and grammar I love it because I have to confess that I’m one of the “grammar police”: very picky about the way words are used and about things like syntax, apostrophes, and for sure – commas. So when I heard that the humble comma, placement of, was the key to a… Read More
