"Eric G. Miller" wrote: > > On Mon, Feb 18, 2002 at 12:09:06PM +1030, Tom Cook wrote: > > Tony Crawford wrote: > > > > > > Tom Cook wrote (on 18 Feb 2002 at 10:41): > > > > > > > [You should be more optimistic.] There is no interest here in > > > > ridiculing anyone, even less someone who formulates his > > > > criticisms and suggestions constructively. > > > > > > > > Here endeth the lesson. ;-) > > > > > > How much is less than no interest? > > > > This is a good point, and one which I in fact considered while writing > > the message. Although it appears non-sensical to say 'even less' than > > no interest this is a fairly well accepted usage in various idioms. The > > usage is in fact meant to bring to the reader's mind the very question > > you have asked; if there is no interest in X, how much must we dislike > > Y? > > The problem isn't "even less", but the subsequent "someone". What is > an "even less someone"? There should be a period (or at least > semicolon) after "anyone". Then, "even less, if criticisms and > suggestions are constructive." The circumlocution of putting > "constructively" at the end when it modifies "formulates" is all > unnecessary verbiage. > > "We have no interest in ridiculing anyone. Even less, if their > criticisms and suggestions are constructive." > > "Even less" than "no interest" is an understated emphatic, but > "especially if/when" would probably work better.
I disagree here. I am no English scholar, although I take a casual interest in keeping my own English correct, and I lack the terminology to properly describe this, but I think that, where a sentence has two main clauses, it is valid to omit almost any part of the second main clause. These parts are then assumed to be identical to the same parts in the first main clause. Thus: There is no interest here in ridiculing anyone, [and] even less [interest in ridiculing] someone who formulates his criticisms and suggestions constructively. Now that I look at it again I see that you are indeed correct regarding the punctuation; either the 'and' I have inserted above should be there, or a semicolon should take the place of the comma. Regards Tom
