On Mon, 17 Feb 2003, Mark A Mandel wrote: > [names deleted] > > #>>>>>I think I recall in Taltos that Morrolan can see a lot better than > #>>>>>Vlad. > #> > #>>>> Do you always generalize from a sample of one? > #> > #>>>This is (one hopes intentionally) very funny. > #> > #>> It is also a very good example of a snarky rhetorical question. I > #>> would have been more courteous, but a response that paraphrased a line > #>> from _Issola_ was just too good an opportunity to miss, as well as > #>> being appropriate. > #> > #>That's what single quotation marks are for. > # > #Only if it's an exact quote, which this wasn't. Or is that a rule of > #style that I am unfamiliar with? > > My friends and comrades, this is why emoticons are used. In cyberspace, > no one can hear your tone of voice or read your facial expression or > body language, whether you're saying something or reacting (with a wince > or a grin) to something someone else has said. May I ask all present to > return their weapons to their sheaths and join me in a glass of Piarran > Mist? A participant in the above exchange, I don't think there was any weaponry involved - the first response seemed a bit rude, but in a later reply (which you've excised) the writer explained why he chose that manner. I think emoticons are evil and encourage bad writing. They're even worse than constructions like `"Time to go," he smiled.' - Philip