how threads go bad

[OC Richard]

I've noticed something that happens from time to time with threads or posts of mine: somebody will accuse me of telling people what they should or shouldn't wear, or should or shouldn't do, or what have you.

I look back over my own posts and don't see any such thing. It's dismaying because it goes completely against my training and experiences and basic mind-set.

I'm not a linguist by profession but I've taken linguistics courses and it's something of a hobby of mine, and I'm fairly well-read on the subject, for a layman.

There's an approach called the "prescriptive" approach which was in vogue a couple hundred years ago but has been universally discredited in modern times, the "descriptive" approach being in vogue for quite some time now. This is drilled into us, the mind-set of observing and recording what is, rather than telling others what we think it should be.

As Wiki says

Linguistic prescription is the practice of elevating one variety or manner of language use over another. It may imply some forms are incorrect, improper, illogical, or are of low aesthetic value.

Prescriptive approaches to language are often contrasted with descriptive linguistics, which observes and records how language actually is used. The basis of linguistic research is text (corpus) analysis and field study, both of which are descriptive activities.

Another article words it this way

Linguists create descriptive grammars in order to understand language more deeply. They understand that a single language can have multiple dialects, and that each dialect will have its own grammatical rules--internally consistent, but perhaps different from other dialects of the same language. The rules they deduce are sometimes more nuanced than the ones taught by prescriptivists.

Prescriptivists include schoolteachers, copyeditors, and others charged with correcting people's use of the language. Prescriptivists start with the assumption that there is one "correct" way to use the language, and many incorrect ways.

I cannot help but bring the descriptive mindset with me in my interactions with Highland Dress. I spend much time examining what is, and what was. The fact that something is, or was, doesn't elevate it to a status such as "correct".

But others oftentimes misinterpret this, and put words in my mouth. A simple absurd example might be

Me: "I didn't see any red pickup trucks on my way into work this morning."

X: "Why are you against red pickup trucks? My grandpappy always drove one, he loved it! Stop telling people not to drive them! People are free to drive whatever colour pickup truck they want!"

etc...

Even if I don't say anything, but just post a photo of a red pickup truck, I might get

"Why are you insisting that everybody drive red pickup trucks? It's a free country! Everyone knows that the true pickup truck is blue!"

etc...

My trouble is that I can't put myself in that type of mindset, to predict what might set it off.