Ho Ho Ho and Fa la la la la, de da de do do.

That is my own made up version of Holiday carols.  I do that sometimes and it’s always fun to play around with words and phrases, especially to illicit a laugh or two from an appreciating crowd. Or my kids.  I know that will get a laugh out of them.  Especially Bubbsy – he is 6 nearly 7 .

There is a little catch though – a rule.  Yes I know, but the rule is;  to change the rules you must know the rules – and understand them.  It’s one of only a few here at RNWS so don’t yell at me for imposing new rules.  

In order to change the sayings, play with the words and phrases and have fun, you need to, much like with rules. know the meaning and correct way to do it, otherwise when you use a word incorrectly or change out one word for the word in a phrase you thought it was (like song lyrics) but isn’t at all,  it’s just stupidity.

Or laziness really, since you didn’t bother to find out what you are changing into what you understand even less.

I get lazy like that sometimes but I hate when I am mixing it up if I don’t know what I am starting with, be it words, phrases, song lyrics, whatever.  I may sing the wrong words at the top of my lungs in the car, or use a word in a poem because I think it is the right word, but you better bet, or not if you don’t want to, I am just saying, I will not publish that poem, Mental Moment or any other piece without ensuring I have the correct word or my own version with…

The knowledge to back up my bullshit.

It is a sociological phenomenon, people will repeat whatever they hear without checking if the original source is correct for  themselves  – because they heard it from their friend who heard it from their friend and we trust these people who shared so don;t even consider who they may have gotten their info from – and especially if the idiot repeating the wrong info is a celebrity and whatever it is is less of an effort overall.

It becomes flat-out ignorance when faced with the err of their ways, they refuse to correct their mistakes and when more and more people repeat the error, it does not make it right.  It makes it idiotic and society a bunch of sheep.

End of Sociology 101 for today.  You think.

Today’s Mental Moment…

 (is a little ranty I will warn you, but I need to say it and I do not mean to insult, but this whole thing is stupid to the point it is unlike any other sort of stupidity and I dislike it intensely.)

is about LIKE, dislike and unlike and how the whole mess of using and misusing them has gotten entirely out of hand.

It’s true.

Now, I could stew and say it’s all stupidity, ignorance or laziness depending on the day, but I think it is plain old mindless living and by making it a Mental Moment, I can correct part of it and at least get you thinking about it.  I come to this conclusion because I am guilty of throwing the improper term out there as well, and it took a blatantly ridiculous comment string to get me really thinking about the whole thing.

That and the fact just last week I explained to my 9 yo, the lovely Magpie, the difference between unlike and dislike.

What I explained to her in terms of what the words meant and when the proper time to use them hit me like a brick between the eyes one night recently while on Facebook and I have been stewing ever since.  You see the opportunity to explain to my daughter was the butterfly – I started thinking about it, but did not follow it.  Facebook was the brick.

So here we are deep in a Mental Moment …I suggest you consider me as the butterfly, follow along in the moment here my friends.  You may like it. You may find you think alike but I doubt you will dislike it, unless you don’t want to admit the error of your previous ways.  It’s only a Mental Moment, for you to do with as you like.

Consider This:

Unlike, is not the opposite of like.  and some idiot in Facebook land who put Unlike there where the LIKE button is (after you push it?) has caused the dumbing down of the masses that is just too much to accept, in my book anyways. ( The next Mental Moment Book – you might want to grab  a copy of the first one and a copy for all your friends for the Holidays – IJS) 

Because it is the holidays and because I am filled with peace and goodwill and fa la la la cheer, I will not go out in left field on the matter of how people just throw stuff up there without checking.  I will even give a little bit of empathy to the poor sod who said UNLIKE,  as in context of pushing a button (doing) , the LIKE button in this case, then changing ones mind or deciding that in fact, one did not LIKE  it all and wanting to take back their LIKE, (undoing) they just assumed it was to UNLIKE.

That is why I have come to this Moment..

And because it is Facebook, we now have a bunch of people who think they know what they are talking about, walking around saying

I unlike liver and onions.

Really … I see you are unlike liver and onions.

I happen to dislike them too.

How this brick hit me was in the form of a post that someone who had never pressed the LIKE button – commented UNLIKE! to which I was immediately miffed because at least if it is to be used incorrectly, it can be used correctly within the incorrect parameters.  Undoing the LIKE.

I could go on and on all day long but the easiest and most cheerful way to deliver this and to end the debate is to refer to the dictionary, and to save you time I will tell you I looked it up in several forms and references and the result is pretty much the same – with exception of Urban Dictionary – fine to use , not as a singular source of reference.

un·like Preposition /ˌənˈlīk/

Synonyms:
adjective: different, dissimilar, distinct, diverse,disparate, variant, unequal

1. Different from; not similar to
   • they were unlike anything ever seen before
   • a large house not unlike Mr. Shaw’s
2. In contrast to; differently from
   • unlike Helen, he was not superstitious
3. Uncharacteristic of (someone)
   • he sounded irritable, which was unlikehim

un·like Adjective /ˌənˈlīk/

1. Dissimilar or different from each other
   • they seemed utterly unlike, despite being twins
2. Not like; different from
   • he was very unlike to any other man

Now let us look at dislike –

dis·like Verb /disˈlīk/

Synonyms:
verb: loathe, detest
noun: aversion, distaste, antipathy, repugnance,disinclination, indisposition, repulsion, disgust

disliked past participle; disliked past tense; dislikingpresent participle; dislikes 3rd person singular present

1. Feel distaste for or hostility toward
   • he was not distressed by the death of a man he had always disliked

dis·like Noun /disˈlīk/

dislikes plural

1. A feeling of distaste or hostility
   • despite her dislike of publicity, she was quite a celebrated figure
   • they had taken a dislike to each other
2. A thing to which one feels aversion
   • I know all his likes and dislikes

You see, whoever wrote UNLIKE on that FB platform program, should they have done the same thing in school, Id like to think would have gotten a big fat F.

Please note, unlike is an adjective, a preposition and although it isn’t included here. it is sometimes, rarely, used as a conjunctive

Dislike is a verb or a noun.

How far we have misconstrued the definition of, and thusly misused , the word unlike is best illustrated by the following comment by the FB user who was, after being enlightened to the truth of the matter, although not accepting of it, in an attempt to justify the  use of, ignorance, laziness, mindless sheep behavior  – I don’t know – in some sort of half intelligent manner –

 “Unlike” is used in this instance to denote the undoing of the action people took when they “liked” your (post). I “dislike” your (particular habit). “Unlike” is used as a verb. “Dislike” is used as a noun.

So yes, dislike is a noun although not how it is used it in the comment…sadly, but when did UNLIKE become a verb?  Where?

In a nutshell folks – unlike means not the same and is only the opposite of like when you are saying one thing is not like the other – it is unlike it.   Dislike is the opposite of the way like is used on FB – to hit the like button means you approve – or LIKE, to change your mind means you DISLIKE it. Not that hard and like I said I can understand how easily we fell into that trap.  Like every Mental Moment though – we now know better so we need to do better?

I say we start a movement and at least hold FB accountable for lowering the bar of society standards.  Just a thought.

The fact the comment  trying to justify the misuse of the term unlike is from a college professor, does not give me great hope. Although person corrected, note when saying  “I dislike (particular habit) ”  there is no explanation of  the reversal, only the erroneous information of the usage of the terms of noun verb etc ad nauseam.

In fact it is why I will bet a few hundred more people today are out there trying to wrongly justify their use of UNLIKE – because they are aware of original commenter’s education level.

I am not picking on that person – much, but the original burr in my butt?

Original commenter  never LIKED the post how can he UNLIKE – using it as a verb, which it is not.?  It’s mute anyways because unlike is not correct no matter how you color it. Sorry..

It is maddening.  To me anyway.

I hope to you as well… now.  Think about it.

Don’t just accept things without questioning, for surely our demise lies in following along mindlessly and letting anyone dictate anything without calling them on the things that dumb us down.

To your Mental State,  may it be merry, bright and enlightened this Holiday Season.

You may LIKE if you wish.

If you liked this Mental Moment grab a copy of A Month of Mental Moments exclusively from Redmund Productions.  Makes a great stocking stuffer and thought-provoking gift.

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