Bit of a shame

[D_W]

As you're not English, you can use that bit of knowledge to understand why you so often generate the reactions you do. It is then up to you, of course, whether you want to keep on bumping up against those reactions, or whether you adjust your posting style when dealing with a predominantly British audience.

That's sort of the point of my prior post. If the subject matter gets to a user who actually uses it (see custard, for example), then I'm fine with it. I got sort of a jolt from andy-kev about the sharpening stuff. I get PMs and emails about it all the time and can't remember who I've talked to, but I'm quite fond of sharpening and the same as planing, find that most people are punishing themselves with false dilemmas. It's sort of like planing, though - I'd love to know more about the motives of the user before I start going on about results and economy of getting them without compromise (that is, most people who sharpen something once per week aren't really going to benefit from discussions of things like wanting a slow finishing medium rather than a fast one).

It's the product of an unhealthy fascination with sharpening things but being very lazy about it (same as planing).

I also get it that English (and a lot of american) first allow a set of rules among people to dictate what they'll communicate (not just how), but a lot of americans will put fascination with the topic (especially men) first and check at the end to see who is still around.

The funny bit about it is that of my three closest friends here, all are like that, but the one who is the most offensive (by the accounts of everyone else) is English, and he made his way out of the country about 40 or 45 years ago because his father was a joiner and he wanted to be a mechanical engineer. That created a problem there in finding a job (it would make nearly no difference here), his father told him to stay in his lane more or less and take whatever his lot in life becomes and they had a multi decade falling out about it. He is still working here as an engineering manager and maybe some of his behavior is rebellion. I don't know. I appreciate how he talks, he appreciates how I talk, and we are practically giddy about lampooning each others' boasts.

He has a gigantic fondness for David Charlesworth (as do I).

The other strange thing about him is his fondness for healthcare in the US and the regularity that he points it out (he's of means - when you have full coverage here in the states, healthcare is almost like a luxury service, I guess, but we are about to find out what it's like when even the overspending here doesn't create surplus capacity).

There is one very english habit here, though. That is, despite the infections and death tolls increasing, many folks are of a mind to say "oh well, I'm tired of it. Let's carry on and not make a big deal about it". Unfortunately, the newspapers feel we deserve horror stories above and beyond just factual reporting.

 

[MikeG.]

If you're finally getting the point that "I know better than you" means it doesn't matter what on earth you say afterwards as you've lost your audience, then great, my work here is done. Your reply, however, can also be read as "I'll carry on as before because I'm right"......in which case you'll not have an audience. We'll see, I suppose.