Normally I don't read this kind of thing. But the Evil HR Lady mentioned Dear Abby, with a link that I was feeling bored enough to click.
Today, on her front page Abby is relaying a plea from a group of people who use speech synthesizers. They write:
and so forth. Abby's response?
- Please be patient. It takes us a little bit longer to get our messages out than it does you.
- Feel free to ask questions. Don't pretend to understand us if you don't.
- Do not think we are stupid. Have you ever tried to communicate using one of these things?
- If it looks like we're having trouble, ask if we need help.
- Treat us like adults – just as you would want to be treated.
I'm pleased to help spread the word. For people who are vocally challenged, you have written an eloquent letter. [...]
Since when is the bar for written eloquence supposed to be lower because the writer can't speak? Has Abby actually read point 3 in the letter she's reprinting? Mysteries abound.
Dear Abby: Well put. For a woman, you write pretty neat yourself.
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Henning Makholm is a computer scientist and software developer living in Copenhagen, Denmark. Find out more about him on his
I was always an Ann Landers person, myself (although I know the originals have both passed away). For some reason, Dear Abby usually rubbed me the wrong way.
ReplyDeleteWhat I used really dislike was the frequency with which she would devote a column to printing letters others had written her on a subject. I read advice columns to see the advice of the columnist, not readers' thoughts on subjects I usually don't care about.
Enough of that; if I want to rant any more, I'll do it on my own blog. I just found your blog via askamanager, and it seems interesting.