I'll be the first to admit that I was once a grammar Nazi.
You know these people.
They scour Facebook looking for someone that mixes up "you're" and "your", or "their" and "there".
Then they post a comment with a funny little asterisk and the correction.
Then their friends have a Chernobyl-style meltdown.
StarStudent: People should really watch there grammar.
AssClownKnowItAll: *their
StarStudent: screw you, man, you better watch you're back
AssClowKnowItAll: *your
StarStudent: your gonna loose your front teeth talking like that
AssClowKnowItAll: *lose
StarStudent: (user has deleted this thread)
AssClownKnowItAll: If you don't like it, tell the *principle on me... HAHAHAHAHAHAHA
The problem is that you have the unfortunate combination of someone who has really never cared about grammar or spelling and someone else who thinks it's OK to call him out in front of God and everybody.
"It's for his own good."
"I'm trying to help him not sound like an inbred."
"He'll thank me for it later."
Grammar Nazis were probably bullied in school and never quite got over it, and those who commit grammar mistakes on social media were probably the bullies..
So there's either a part of the grammar Nazi that doesn't know when they're embarrassing somebody or a part of him that wants to rub somebody's face in it for a change.
But friends don't willingly embarrass friends in public.
It's funny - if we want to say something personal, private, intimate, or potentially embarrassing, we send a private message.
That way, nobody finds out about fungal infection, your DUI, or the fact that you never finished your GED.
Grammar Nazis publish it right on somebody's wall for all of their friends, family and coworkers to see.
A grammar Nazi thinks it's his civic duty to teach proper language to the masses, even if they don't appreciate it, and even if they react violently...
..as if one day, the Oxford English Dictionary would have him knighted and he would be henceforth known by his royal title "Sir AssClownKnowItAll" for being such a self-sacrificing bearer of wisdom.
Nobody likes to feel embarrassed, so Mr. Bad Grammar strikes back like a cornered tiger with the following methods:
- physical threats
- guilt tripping
- pouting
- unfriending / blocking
- deleting the thread
- slashing tires
- mailing Anthrax
- insults
- talking about you behind your back
- advertising you as a prostitute on Craigslist
What grammar Nazis have to realize is that perfect grammar and spelling is a must for a lot of professions, but not for social interaction.
That's why I'm speaking at this meeting tonight.
My name is Ryan and I was a grammar Nazi.
It's been five months since I've corrected someone.
You are not your friends' teacher unless they ask you to be.
