Statement of dogma

[prog]

I've actually been doing it for a while, now, but I'm going to go ahead and state it for the record:

Henceforth I will use the pronoun they (them, their) when I wish to refer to a person in the singular without specifying their gender. ← See? I just did it. That wasn't too awful, right?

Ten years ago I hated this usage. Now? It's like a warm bath.

Comments

[daerr.livejournal.com]

I'm glad to see that you've come around. It is the One True Way.

[ahkond.livejournal.com]

ALL ARE WELCOME
MOVE INTO THE LIGHT

[radiotelescope.livejournal.com]

I quit. Back to Pittsburgh for me.

[aspartaimee.livejournal.com]

you know what else is like a warm bath? sitting in urine.

this makes me sad. i think maybe i will go back to oldie tymie quaker ways and say thou makes me sad.

Funny, I've gone the other way

[taskboy3000.livejournal.com]

I use the singular masculine pronoun for neuter gender, as was the style of the nineteenth century. I need to have some sanity in the verb/pronoun agreement.

"No one in the theatre was frightened out of his wits."

"Drivers who parking in the McDonald's parking lot should expect to see his car towed at the end of the night."

Using my portable cone of silence, I ignore baseless charges of sexism and misogyny. If pressed on this, I present real examples of sexist, hurtful language.

God save the Queen's tongue!

[karlvonl.livejournal.com]

Funny, I was just reading a discussion about this in a message board the other day. Here's the thread:

http://www.iidb.org/vbb/showthread.php?t=160148

The fourth post in particular supports your position rather convincingly IMHO.