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It indicates to me that he wasn't taught it and hasn't thought about it, so he 
doesn't (read: can't) follow a consistent pattern. This argues for teaching 
grammar as a separate discipline, as opposed to the currently-popular preference 
for nudging students toward good grammar in their writing, all the while not 
correcting errors, which to some is "playing gotcha".
 
Can quarterbacks and surgeons and chefs and small-engine mechanics become 
proficient without instruction and drill in the basics of their trades? It makes 
no sense to me to imagine that writers can become good at their trade without 
learning the basics. "Here's the ball and here's the club and you just go out 
there and see if you can hit it. He won the Masters last year but if you 
approach your game with confidence, you can beat him."  Yeah, right.
 
.brad.mon.13sept10.This from an old friend, a graduate of (name deleted to 
protect the guilty) with a degree in English, and a former editor of the (name 
deleted to protect the co-conspirator). Ignore the content.

"I just got a call from Sam saying Sally had died last week. She had been 
ill for several years, which he said explains why we haven't heard much from 
them. She died in a nursing home where Sam says she got wonderful care."

What's interesting to me is that there are two erroneous "hads" in the first two 
sentences, and yet none in the last.


      

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