This appeared on my facebook page a couple of days ago, as things like this appear from time to time. And, I had a good laugh, as I do. A smug, condescending laugh. I would feel a bit awkward about writing that, but I am reasonably certain that nobody who makes spelling mistakes like that is reading my blog. In fact, they probably don’t read much of anything, which is my point.
Of course, there are many different kinds of spelling mistakes, and they aren’t all comical. Sometimes it’s just a typo. If someone writes “I talked to my sixter today,” Occam’s Razor says they probably just hit the wrong key. Then there are things like your v. you’re, there, their, and they’re, its and it’s. It’s important to know the differences, misspelling these can actually lead to confusion, but I must confess I occasionally slip up. Then there are words that are seriously hard to spell. A person may misspell hypocritical or subconsciously and still be making a valid point, although it does indicate that they are ignoring the squiggly red marks. Ignoring the squiggly red marks is like ignoring a ‘Road Closed’ sign. When it turns out there was a good reason for the notification, you are seriously going to feel like a dumbass. I have personal experience with that one.
But, when someone makes a mistake like ‘lack toast intolerant’ or ‘die of beaties’ (or my personal all-time favorite, which was not on this list: low self of steam) it is clear to the educated reader that the writer has probably never seen the word in print. They are going strictly on what they have heard. If they’ve never seen those words in print, it means they don’t read very much, and have probably formed their opinions based on what their friends have said or, worse, Rush Limbaugh. If that’s how they’ve formed their opinions, there is no need for anybody to take their opinion seriously.
So, bad spellings (that certain kind of bad spellings) are useful in monitoring a conversation. In the same way that a steaming pile of grizzly bear poop lets the hiker know that it is advisable to take a different path, when you see ‘die of beaties’ in a comment, you know you should not take that person’s medical advice.
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