Thank God you clarified, otherwise he might have had a heart attack." This thread is disappointing :(
"
@SeriouslyNow
said:Yeah, the fact that you write for a living doesn't really give your opinion much credence... especially since I write for a living too. I don't go so far as to assume that invalidates everyone else's opinions, however, like you seem to. Not only are you really reaching on this, everyone that's posted on the topic has understood implicitly that he was giving his opinion. You're the only one that seems to think that the intent was to portray an objective thought. You want everything spelled out for you and a good writer would know that that isn't necessary in every situation, e.g. metaphor, hyperbole, etc." @Icemael said:
I do write for a living professionally. I am not the person who should be embarrassed. Just because you flatly deny something, it doesn't make someone's critical analysis of the thing you said automatically wrong. Your denial is as weak and as subjective as the opinion you tried pass off as an objective fact which I correctly criticised. Your examples are broken and(/because) your logic is flawed. I never said that your opinion was wrong, I said that you were trying to shape your opinion as if it was fact using a really awful analogy (admittedly built on someone else's crappy analogy) about the nature of good comedy and so by proxy saying that Portal 2's comedy was not good (and therefore by proxy again, justifying your objectification of the game itself as being not good). Your initial position is weak because in all cases you have attempted to pass off your opinion as fact - nee the Simpsons 'when it was good' vs Portal comedy. YES, you do need to state that something is your opinion when you shape your sentences the way you do because if you don't it clearly reads as if you're saying things OBJECTIVELY. Subjectively, I think you're being an ass. "" @SeriouslyNow said:
No I was not." @Icemael: The "in my opinion" defense is worthless when you spend time telling people how the humour of one thing is better than another thing. Humour is subjective and you were clearly speaking OBJECTIVELY. "
@SeriouslyNow
said:Then you should feel embarrassed." I write for a living professionally. "
I can only imagine what conversations you've had.
"Was that shovel you bought good?"
"No, it was useless."
"My sister bought an identical shovel and she loved it, so you are wrong."
"What?"
"You didn't add 'in my opinion', so you were clearly speaking objectively!"
"No I wasn't."
"SHUT UP! I WRITE FOR A LIVING SO I AM RIGHT!"
"
In grade school, were you ever forced to write a persuasive essay? Did your teachers tell you that you're supposed to state your side of the argument and present it as if it were the right choice? That's an example of giving an opinion without clearly stating it as such. The fact that it is an opinion is implied since it is a "persuasive essay". Just like when someone asks for your opinion and you give it, it is implied that your opinion is an opinion, and not a fact.
Even if you were "technically" correct (which you aren't, since context plays a role in analyzing all writing, and the context is clear in this case), you're approaching his video game forum post as if it were a thesis paper. What is the point of "critically analyzing" the grammar of someone's forum post aside from just being a dick? He wasn't using logic, he was giving his opinion. You can compare two things subjectively, which is exactly what he did with The Simpsons and the Portal series.
"How could anyone hate cake?"
"Cake is too sugary, and pie is much more delicious. Oh, and frosting is disgusting."
Now, given the context, I think it's fairly clear that the response in this example is entirely subjective and was intended to portray an opinion that pie is superior to cake. I wouldn't assume that the responder was trying to trick me into thinking that factually cake is unworthy of a dessert-eater's love; but that's because I'm not a moron and I understand the way that human beings talk to one another. I wouldn't bust out a Writing Guide and tell them that they are liars for not phrasing their response to some exact guidelines, because clearly that is not a standard that is meant for colloquial use, and is intended for a more formal avenue of communication.
I'll admit though, you have a knack for ignoring any comments that you don't have an answer for and keep hammering points home that have already been addressed by people in the thread. Please, stop making yourself look bad, for all of our sakes.
PS Now that I've revealed myself as a writer, feel free to invalidate my opinion by pointing out any writing errors in my forum post, you know, because forum posts should be held to the same high standards as a college thesis. I'd relish the opportunity to point out ways that you've obfuscated your own point in the quoted post through poor writing.
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