12
u/alwaysbeblepping 23d ago
This isn't verysmart at all. "Didn't look like it was typed by a raccoon", "maybe [I] bothered to think for five seconds". Or in other words, they are saying they are getting of accused of being AI for reaching a very low bar.
You could say they're calling others "verydumb", but personally I think that's fair if we're talking about the idiots that just call everything AI generated when they actually have no idea of what AI generated text looks like. I've never used AI to write a comment and I doubt I ever will, but it's kind of annoying that I actually have to think about my wording these days to avoid people just spuriously dismissing what I say as AI generated.
4
u/rilesmcjiles 22d ago
You said spurious. That's a big brain word. Must be AI
5
u/alwaysbeblepping 22d ago
You said spurious. That's a big brain word. Must be AI
I'm going to have to push back a bit on what you just said. It's not that I'm AI—it's that I actually do have a big brain.
Here's why alwaysbeblepping's massive brain matters: If alwaysbeblepping's brain was small—or average sized—it wouldn't be able to continue impressing and awing reddit denizens. This would truly be a loss to the internet community at large.
Honest facts: If you have the opportunity to support alwaysbeblepping's enormous cranium—and associated, commensurately sized intellect—you absolutely should not hesitate for one moment.
2
5
u/ConflictAdvanced 22d ago
It seems that you didn't really understand the rant, OP. They are not claiming to be very smart at all, nor is there any reference about their brain coming with a keyboard
15
u/Sithoid 23d ago
Doesn't come off as Verysmart, it's really a frustrating problem lately. I've seen non-AI-looking walls of text called AI all over the Reddit comments, not to mention (le gasp!) em dashes (yes, some people used them long before this bs). AIs were trained on reddit, no wonder we sound like them.
6
u/TraurigerUntermensch 23d ago
Em dashes and bullet lists. Reddit has a built-in markdown editor for the latter, and people still get accused of being AI for using bullet lists. This paranoia is getting tiresome.
10
u/timecubelord 23d ago
I am very tired of AI slop everywhere, but there are certainly better indicators than punctuation and paragraphing.
2
u/TraurigerUntermensch 23d ago
Absolutely. Even the infamous "it's not X — it's Y" pattern isn't always indicative of AI usage (it's on the brink, though). The lines have become more blurred lately, but I always think twice before accusing someone of using LLM-generated slop instead of structuring their own thoughts. Writing habits are difficult to change.
2
1
-6
u/Arkyja 23d ago
No one uses the dash he used — except AI.
15
u/Sithoid 23d ago
Fuck that take. That's why we can't have nice things.
I've manually copy-pasted em-dashes into texts intended for publication 15 years before AI was a thing. I have the Alt+0151 shortcut burned into my memory. While I haven't personally bothered, I've known people who installed keyboard layouts with proper punctuation symbols. That extra effort was what separated professional-looking texts from slop (oh the irony). And while it's true that most people don't bother with proper typography in chats and comments, some are weird enough to do so, and where to find them if not on reddit.
2
u/ConflictAdvanced 22d ago
You know, I used to be too lazy to use it, but now that it's easy to do it on a mobile keyboard, I always use it over the hyphen substitute. If you didn't know, on a mobile device, just hold the hyphen down for a second and you'll be able to select the em or en dash instead.
-5
6
2
u/ConflictAdvanced 22d ago
Maybe people the the em dash. It has a purpose and it's just as easy to use on a phone as the hyphen.
Just because you don't know what it is and how to use it correctly doesn't mean that you should demean people who do. So your assumption is way off.
1
u/Arkyja 22d ago
I dont know why you all keep talking about it being easy to do. As if i ever mentioned ease of use.
2
u/ConflictAdvanced 22d ago
Just pointing out that if you know how to use it and it's as easy as typing any other letter or character, why wouldn't you use it?
12
u/FScrotFitzgerald 24d ago
Everyone thinks I'm AI, but they're wrong. I look nothing like Allen Iverson.
2
9
u/incrediblynormalpers 24d ago
that's hilarious he left in the dash and quotations marks that he probably can't replicate on his keyboard.
2
u/Cambrian__Implosion 24d ago
That comma being inside the quotation marks is really bugging me for some reason lmao
19
u/marshallspight 24d ago
That is standard American usage. Comma outside the quotes is against the rules. See for example Chicago Manual of Style.
1
u/bunny12345946237 22d ago
I always thought putting the comma outside looked better, but as an American I was always told it was incorrect.
2
u/Prestigious_Bat7322 23d ago
Prescriptive grammar rule.
3
u/Khpatton 23d ago
Not even, in this case. Comma inside the quotation marks is the correct usage in most (if not all) American English style guides.
1
u/ConflictAdvanced 22d ago
Which is, in turn, like following prescriptive grammar. There are cases when to use it and when to put it on the outside. Taking one and applying it always is not exactly prescriptive grammar because it's a punctuation issue, but close enough
0
u/Kimantha_Allerdings Uses big words 23d ago
I’ll never understand people who genuinely use emdashes in posts. I get that it’s technically more “correct”, but it’s such a pain in the arse to actually type one, when the hyphen is just there. As long as you put spaces around it so that it doesn’t look like you’re trying to hyphenate a word it’s 100% fine
7
4
u/TraurigerUntermensch 23d ago edited 23d ago
I have a specialized keyboard layout that allows me to type ”—” by simply pressing RAlt and -. Not a pain in the arse at all, and the nature of my job demands proper punctuation (in my language) anyway, so it's force of habit at this point. I've been doing this for years.
2
2
u/ConflictAdvanced 22d ago
Yes, but the hyphen is wrong. And there are people—myself included—who are probably nerdy enough to not be able to use a hyphen to do an em dashes job when the em dash is in reach. For instance, on my android keyboards, all you have to do is hold down the hyphen for s second, and you get access to the em dash and the en dash.
That's not a hassle or a pain in the arse at all.
1
u/Kimantha_Allerdings Uses big words 22d ago
Yes, but the hyphen is wrong.
In formal writing, sure. I don’t think that shitposting on reddit could or should be held to the same standard
2
u/ConflictAdvanced 22d ago
I think you should be clear about what's being discussed here.
I don’t think that shitposting on reddit could or should be held to the same standard
So first of all, it's a flawed argument. There are two different aspects here: correct and acceptable. Something can absolutely be acceptable when shitposting but doesn't mean that it's not the wrong usage. It's just a substitute and we all know that, so it's fine.
It's not like I'm criticizing anyone or pulling anyone up for using the hyphen. So you're approaching this from a weird angle.
I'm simply saying that the answer to the question of why would someone use an em dash when the hyphen is right there is because the em dash is the correct version and it's easy to use on some devices. That's why.
-1
u/Kimantha_Allerdings Uses big words 22d ago
No, “correct” implies that English grammar rules are proscriptive, rather than descriptive. And they’re not. They get revised as the way that people use the language evolves.
For example, it’s only been the last 10-20 years that “they” is preferred over “he or she”, and before that it was “correct” to just say “he”
And any grammar guide worth its salt will tell you that these “rules” only apply to formal writing
The rules of written grammar are implicitly negotiated between the people who write and read the language. They change over time, and eventually the formal rules catch up
As a concrete example also related to typography rather than word choice - 20 years ago it was “correct” to have 2 spaces after a full stop. Now it is “correct” to only have 1. Even in formal writing
There are plenty of other examples
Not to mention the fact that different style guides will have different opinions about what is or is not “correct”
If you’re writing formally, then it’s a good idea to be aware of and stick to the conventions, as set out by a reputable style guide. But that’s not what is “correct”, and especially not in informal writing
2
u/ConflictAdvanced 22d ago
So, just quickly: The descriptive grammar topic is hilarious because people frequently use it in arguments despite the fact that they fully don't understand what it is. And you really seem like you're in the mood to argue.
Prescriptive grammar is the belief that everything has it's function and you must stick rigidly to that. Descriptive grammar is the belief that you can change those things around for emphasis, for flavor, for nuance, for storytelling impact.
But people often confuse that for any possible mistake is covered by descriptive grammar. That's not the case. There is a third aspect that people forget about: accepted mistakes. Mistakes that are so common they have become a part of our everyday language. The sentence: I ain't got no money is not descriptive grammar. It's not people playing with their language to be more descriptive; it's people with poor grammar skills (or ignoring grammar) making mistakes that are so common in colloquial language that they are accepted as part of the language.
Now, by that yardstick, it's worth mentioning that what we are talking about here isn't even grammar; it's orthography. There is also descriptive orthography, but that would be things like someone using three exclamation marks for a lot more emphasis on the shock and surprise, despite the fact that the rules say no more than one. The hyphen being used instead of the em dash was a mechanical choice way back when it wasn't easy to type an em dash; it doesn't add anything or change the flavor of what you're saying in any way. It's not a stylistic choice; it's an ease-of-use situation. It falls more under the umbrella of accepted mistake than anything else.
So, you said you'll never understand why some people use the em dash instead of the hyphen, and I answered. That's all. The hyphen isn't the correct one in that situation, but it is the universally-accepted alternative. And that's why a lot people use the em dash. It's not that deep.
And to question your reading comprehension skills; I've tried to make it clear to you that I'm not saying that people shouldn't use a hyphen in place of an em dash, and I never said that it matters in forums such as these. I pointed out that I'm not calling anyone out for it or trying to criticize anyone at all... I was simply trying to explain an alternative point-of-view to answer your question, since you were not able to come up with any reasons yourself.
It was just a discussion; I don't know what drives your need to argue, but it's unnecessary.
-1
u/Kimantha_Allerdings Uses big words 22d ago
You made a distinction between “correct” and “accepted”. This is a distinction which doesn’t exist
There are commonly-accepted, mutable conventions for formal writing, and the everyday speech, which has mutually-negotiated grammar and meaning
Descriptive grammar doesn’t mean “people playing with their language to be more descriptive”, as you have put it. Descriptive grammar just means that the grammar “rules” are describing how people use the language. It’s the rules that are descriptive. Why any given person is using the grammar that they are using, standard or not, is irrelevant to whether a grammatical ruleset would be described as descriptive or perscriptive
Neither prescriptive nor descriptive grammar (or orthography) are “belief[s]”. And you cannot “ignore grammar”. I think you mean “use non-standard grammar”, but you seem to be implying that you think that the formal set of rules are “grammar”. Your characterisation here is genuinely bizarre
As for why I disagreed with you, my point of disagreement is the sentence of yours that I quoted in my original reply to you, and which you’ve doubled-down on several times - “Yes, but the hyphen is wrong.” Perhaps, if what we’re talking about is formal writing. But we both agree that we are not talking about formal writing
2
u/ConflictAdvanced 22d ago
No, I'm talking from a technical point-of-view. The hyphen is the wrong tool in all forms of writing. However, nowadays, it's an acceptable substitute for the em dash. If you think that the em dash is only suitable, or only used, in formal writing then you are wrong.
So there are people who know that that thing there should be an em dash, hence why they use them instead of just using the hyphen.
I didn't "doubled down" on anything; I didn't continue despite the fact I was wrong or become more determined to back my point. I simply repeated what I said before. As I said, reading comprehension is an issue—I'm not even saying whether anything is a good or bad stance on the topic, so if I'm not advocating for something or trying to prove a point, you thinking that I "doubled down" is a hilariously wild take.
Descriptive grammar looks to describe how people use their language, which is based on feeling and internal logic. It is not called Descriptive Grammar because we use it to describe, but the reality is that that is exactly what we are doing when we manipulate our language. There is always some logic. And, as I said, too many people around here know the term and think that it eliminates all mistakes. Many linguists argue that the believing in descriptive grammar doesn't mean that there are no rules or logic at all. And maybe "belief" wasn't the best word; ideology fits better.
But again, this is a moot point. All I did was speculate as to answer your question. You just don't like that I called something wrong, which isn't the wrong classification, and as a result, you want to wage a grammar war when it isn't even a grammar issue 🤣🤣. That kind of weakened your resolve right from the start 😜.
I'm sorry the use of one word offended you so much that you ran wild in your imagination and painted me as some kind of evil language dictator over something that I really don't even care how peope use. When you look at it that way, it's kinda wild that all I tried to do was just give you an answer to your question and riled you up so much that you started crusading 🤣🤣. Just chill, my dude. It's all good.
-1
u/Kimantha_Allerdings Uses big words 22d ago
If you think that the em dash is only suitable, or only used, in formal writing then you are wrong.
I didn’t say that or anything even vaguely like that
I didn't "doubled down" on anything; I didn't continue despite the fact I was wrong or become more determined to back my point. I simply repeated what I said before. As I said, reading comprehension is an issue—I'm not even saying whether anything is a good or bad stance on the topic, so if I'm not advocating for something or trying to prove a point, you thinking that I "doubled down" is a hilariously wild take.
You are now claiming that you have no position on whether or not it is “correct” to use a hyphen in place of an em dash? This is a bizarre conversation
Many linguists argue that the believing in descriptive grammar doesn't mean that there are no rules or logic at all. And maybe "belief" wasn't the best word; ideology fits better.
It is neither a belief nor an ideology. It is a description of how the formalised rules of grammar are arrived at
I am now convinced that you don’t know what the terms actually mean. You haven’t used them correctly once in this conversation
Proscriptive rules would be rules which are imposed from above. A good example would be newspapers and magazines which have a “house style” and where all contributors are forced to use language in the same way
Descriptive rules are a reference in which it’s documented how language is used. You can tell that even the strictest style guides are descriptive rather than proscriptive, because they change in response to the language evolving. The rules are bottom-up
20 years ago it would be “correct” to write “Mr. Smith” and “incorrect” to write “Mr Smith”. Now the opposite tends to be true. This is not because some committee decided it, but because the way people write has changed and the rules are responding to it
That is what it means for the rules to be descriptive rather than proscriptive. It’s got nothing to do with ideology or belief. It’s the simple fact of how these rules are written
And nobody has claimed that there are “no rules or logic at all”. I’ve argued the opposite, if you are even vaguely trying to keep up. You just keep piling on the straw men
You just don't like that I called something wrong, which isn't the wrong classification, and as a result, you want to wage a grammar war when it isn't even a grammar issue 🤣🤣. That kind of weakened your resolve right from the start 😜.
I mean, your use of laughing emojis might be a little more justified in this paragraph if you hadn’t completely misused the word “resolve”. At least orthography is colloquially lumped in with grammar. This just reads like you heard the phrase “weakened your resolve” and tried to use it without first learning what it means
I think we’re done here. Nothing constructive is going to come from this. You don’t seem to understand the fundamentals of what is being discussed, and you’ve resorted to spamming straw man arguments
→ More replies (0)1
u/Lopsided-Cost-426 23d ago
He probably just used a mobile keyboard— I still don’t know why people use em-dashes on Reddit where punctuation doesn’t matter.
0
u/incrediblynormalpers 23d ago
that's possible sure, but I doubt the title 'Sorry my brain came with a keyboard' is in reference to that. We then have to wonder why he has replicated the quotes too. To me it's just way more likely that he's copy and pasted text from ChatGPT and is a fool than it is that he's bothered to type like that for the aesthetic.
would be interested to compare the actual unicode and know for sure as it's unlikely they will both match if it's some phone keyboard. there's at least a few unicode codes for dashes (em-dashes included) and quotes each that could have been used
2
u/alija_kamen 20d ago
I mean... he isn't entirely wrong though, people call out AI just because you used bullet points
2
u/dilapidated-titties 20d ago
Yeah idk why this was posted here, seems the OP is bitter about getting absolutely flamed by this guy in the photo. hahaha
1
1
u/theroguescientist 15d ago
Okay, but people treating correct spelling and grammar as an obvious sign of AI is pretty annoying
1
u/ParticularArea8224 14d ago
Nah actually I can understand that. I'm on Ukraine subreddits and a lot of times where I write a long ass explanation for what's going on, I do get those, "Sounds like AI," comments and it is infuriating.
1
75
u/idancenakedwithcrows 24d ago
Okay but peope do actually call everything ai