CompuServe Messages

<<PMFJI, but I would like to point out that CompuServe is an international network, with many members who's native tongue is not English. So please don't take it for granted that everybody will understand "commonly used phrases".>> Now this is a very valid point. It is something that all too often if forgotten by we in America. We have many expressions of this sort that have no meaning when you look at the words themselves, but which have a meaning that they have acquired. There is a word for this, I cannot think of it at the moment. Anyway, your point is a good one to be aware that Compuserve is international. To you, my apologies if you were unaware of this phrase, I can see how it might appear confusing or attacking. It is a phrase that is not uncommon here in the US. It is a very unusual phrase in that it is never yelled but always spoken, almost entirely behind the back of the individual it references to describe their actions. In this sense, my use was quite extrordinary because I used it directly towards the individual that was the subject. This is not unheard of, but it is uncommon. This brings up another subtle aspect of these types of phrases: There are customs that accompany their use. Sometimes, these customs are difficult to reproduce via other mediums, such as Email. So, yes, for safety, it is best to avoid such phrases. But sometimes they are called for when an individual need to be "klunked on the head" because they are offering poor service. Just as I "klunked" the individual for the unhelpful "chicken shit" answer I have been clunked on he head for not gladly tolerating whatever level of medioctity may exist. All is fair game. And, it is productive. Whether I admit it or not I'll be more sensitive in the future, and those prone to chicken shit answers will probably work on empathy for others as well as themselves. So, we all gain–hopefully.