Pet Peeves and Sundry Ramblings

Over the years, I have come to realize that there are a number of things that irk me in this world and a few others that are offshoots of the first. People who insist on using acronyms for every other word are one and the acronyms themselves are another,in some cases. Personally,although I do use common acronyms, I find it basically a lazy practice and possibly a cover up for not knowing how to spell or use a dictionary! No one is in such a hurry that they can not use correct grammar, another peeve, or spell out full words. Frankly, no one's time is so important that they can not stop to spell properly and fully. When did we find it necessary to invent short forms such as, LOL, BFF, or BLTN? I understand certain military acronyms, such as FUBAR, or SNAFU, since the actual wording can not or perhaps should not, be used in certain company, or in public, but what is wrong with "laughing out loud"? FUBAR,for those who don't know, means "fucked up beyond all recognition and SNAFU, is "situation normal, all fucked up" both are frequently used to describe situations in the military and elsewhere for that matter.

The grammar thing is one that drives me crazy. Now my grammar is not always perfect and I tend to over punctuate narratives, but the penchant today to not even attempt to use proper grammar, is overtly stupid! It shows a lack of intelligence and a total disregard for the nuances of the English language. It may be one of the most complicated languages on the planet, but when well written, it is also one of the most beautiful and descriptive. True, the language of Shakespeare is not the English of today, but it is still delightful and inspiring prose. The English of today, is equally as fine,if people choose to give it the courtesy it is due. Nowhere does the lack of understanding of the language show itself more dramatically, than in the writing,if you can call it that, of today's youth. These are the leaders of tomorrow and most can not put two sentences together with any degree of accuracy in spelling and grammar. What have we done with our education system, to promote this rubbish?

I often find myself  pondering the, ever growing, lack of understanding, of good photography amongst buyers today. It is bad enough that every Tom Dick and Harry with a point and shoot thinks they are a professional photographer, but to have photo buyers willing to support this idiocy, baffles me. I have spend most of my adult life perfecting my craft and yet, with the advent of digital capture, that has all been reduced to whoever will sell for the lowest price and give away the copyright as well. For someone to believe that no skill is required to produce a great image is odd enough, but to then think that the photographer should relinquish all claim to their creation, for little or no compensation, just plain doesn't make sense. Try telling Ford or General Motors that you will only pay this much, for their product and then you own the rights to that product/design and can do whatever you like with it,including prevent others from buying it. Somehow, I doubt that they would agree. That, however, is exactly what buyers are expecting of photographers. Of course, if photographers said no, in their entirety, it would be a mute point, but they don't! For every one of us that insists on fair compensation and the retention of the copyright, there are ten who could care less and will sell everything at bargain basement prices. You do the math, who wins in the end?

I could go on and on and on with things that provoke my ire, in today's world, but I won't. Suffice it to say that there are many more avenues of discord that I could venture down, most related to the ones I have already touched upon. Things like the proliferance of "social media" and worse, "social media gurus", or the lack of personal responsibility for one's actions, to name a couple. The point is, that none of these things need to be and would not, if we just took the time to think about consequences once in a while. There is a consequence to every action you take, be it good or bad. If the people who decided not to teach our youth about the proper use of English, for instance,had taken a moment to reflect on the consequences, perhaps that same youth, would now know how to write intelligently.