1) “Nothing boisterous or celebratory about it, as some predicted.”

Source:
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/05/briefing/trump-felony-charges.html

What had some predicted?
a) that it would be boisterous or celebratory
b) that it would not be boisterous or celebratory

I guess he means 'a'.
I would say:
2) Unlike what some predicted, there was nothing boisterous
or celebratory about it.

Is '1' ambiguous?
Or has it been misused?

Gratefully,
Navi

On Wed, 5 Apr 2023 13:51:39 -0700 (PDT), arthurvv vart
<arthurvarr@gmail.com> wrote:

>1) “Nothing boisterous or celebratory about it, as some predicted.”
>
>Source:
>https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/05/briefing/trump-felony-charges.html
>
>What had some predicted?
>a) that it would be boisterous or celebratory
>b) that it would not be boisterous or celebratory
>
>I guess he means 'a'.

Yes.

>I would say:
>2) Unlike what some predicted, there was nothing boisterous
>or celebratory about it.

That would have been fine.

>Is '1' ambiguous?

No.

>Or has it been misused?

No. The original 1 is also fine.

On Wednesday, April 5, 2023 at 4:06:23 PM UTC-6, Ken Blake wrote:
> On Wed, 5 Apr 2023 13:51:39 -0700 (PDT), arthurvv vart
> <arthu...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> >1) “Nothing boisterous or celebratory about it, as some predicted.”
> >
> >Source:
> >https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/05/briefing/trump-felony-charges.html
> >
> >What had some predicted?
> >a) that it would be boisterous or celebratory
> >b) that it would not be boisterous or celebratory
> >
> >I guess he means 'a'.

> Yes.
....

Which creates the strange situation that

"There was nothing boisterous or celebratory about it, as some predicted."

says the opposite (about the prediction) of

"As some predicted, there was nothing boisterous or celebratory about it."

I try to avoid sentences like Navi's example.

--
Jerry Friedman

On Wednesday, April 5, 2023 at 4:51:42 PM UTC-4, arthurvv vart wrote:
> 1) “Nothing boisterous or celebratory about it, as some predicted..”
>
> Source:
> https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/05/briefing/trump-felony-charges.html
>
> What had some predicted?
> a) that it would be boisterous or celebratory
> b) that it would not be boisterous or celebratory
>
> I guess he means 'a'.
> I would say:
> 2) Unlike what some predicted, there was nothing boisterous
> or celebratory about it.
>
> Is '1' ambiguous?
> Or has it been misused?

Context.

If you look again, you might find it's been changed.

Jerry Friedman <jerry.friedman99@gmail.com> writes:
> On Wednesday, April 5, 2023 at 4:06:23 PM UTC-6, Ken Blake wrote:
>> On Wed, 5 Apr 2023 13:51:39 -0700 (PDT), arthurvv vart
>> <arthu...@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> >1) “Nothing boisterous or celebratory about it, as some predicted.”
>> >
>> >Source:
>> >https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/05/briefing/trump-felony-charges.html
>> >
>> >What had some predicted?
>> >a) that it would be boisterous or celebratory
>> >b) that it would not be boisterous or celebratory
>> >
>> >I guess he means 'a'.
>
>> Yes.
> ...
>
> Which creates the strange situation that
>
> "There was nothing boisterous or celebratory about it, as some
> predicted."
>
> says the opposite (about the prediction) of
>
> "As some predicted, there was nothing boisterous or celebratory about
> it."
>
> I try to avoid sentences like Navi's example.

Wise. However, these two do have different implications:

"There was nothing boisterous or celebratory about it, as some
predicted."

"There was nothing boisterous or celebratory about it, as some
had predicted."

The pluperfect pushes the prediction prior to the evaluation.
That should disambiguate the meaning.

Phil
--
We are no longer hunters and nomads. No longer awed and frightened, as we have
gained some understanding of the world in which we live. As such, we can cast
aside childish remnants from the dawn of our civilization.
-- NotSanguine on SoylentNews, after Eugen Weber in /The Western Tradition/

On Thursday, April 13, 2023 at 3:08:12 AM UTC-6, Phil Carmody wrote:
> Jerry Friedman <jerry.fr...@gmail.com> writes:
> > On Wednesday, April 5, 2023 at 4:06:23 PM UTC-6, Ken Blake wrote:
> >> On Wed, 5 Apr 2023 13:51:39 -0700 (PDT), arthurvv vart
> >> <arthu...@gmail.com> wrote:
> >>
> >> >1) “Nothing boisterous or celebratory about it, as some predicted.”
> >> >
> >> >Source:
> >> >https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/05/briefing/trump-felony-charges.html
> >> >
> >> >What had some predicted?
> >> >a) that it would be boisterous or celebratory
> >> >b) that it would not be boisterous or celebratory
> >> >
> >> >I guess he means 'a'.
> >
> >> Yes.
> > ...
> >
> > Which creates the strange situation that
> >
> > "There was nothing boisterous or celebratory about it, as some
> > predicted."
> >
> > says the opposite (about the prediction) of
> >
> > "As some predicted, there was nothing boisterous or celebratory about
> > it."
> >
> > I try to avoid sentences like Navi's example.

> Wise. However, these two do have different implications:
> "There was nothing boisterous or celebratory about it, as some
> predicted."
>
> "There was nothing boisterous or celebratory about it, as some
> had predicted."
>
> The pluperfect pushes the prediction prior to the evaluation.
> That should disambiguate the meaning.

I don't see how. I think the prediction has to be prior to the
evaluation and to the "it", with or without "had".

--
Jerry Friedman

On Wednesday, April 5, 2023 at 4:51:42 PM UTC-4, arthurvv vart wrote:
> 1) “Nothing boisterous or celebratory about it, as some predicted..”
>
> Source:
> https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/05/briefing/trump-felony-charges.html
>
> What had some predicted?
> a) that it would be boisterous or celebratory
> b) that it would not be boisterous or celebratory

Its tough to say what some of these recent college grads mean when they say stuff like this. Every result has several reactions. Some might celebrate quietly and others might not. Who knows?