4 ms·

> I see what you did there, homie; but next time make it efnicity. :) I do not see what I did there at all. Might you explain? > One of the Roma people, possi

> I see what you did there, homie; but next time make it efnicity. :) I do not see what I did there at all. Might you explain? > One of the Roma people, possibly. Not at all. Both his parents were immigrants from an African country; I do not know which.

kazinator 6y ago
Ah, well that's kind of worth mentioning, I would think; that person was Polish in nationality only, not actually of Polish descent yet somehow dark-skinned. :) What I mean regarding "as if it be ..." is not standard English grammar. Use of the "be" form of the verb (that is not the subjunctive be) without inflecting for tense or person is featured in African-American Vernacular English. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African-American_Vernacular_English#Tense_and_aspect https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African-American_Vernacular_En... (An example like "I request that everyone be quiet" is standard; that's standard grammar, using the subjunctive mood of "to be").
- Blikkentrekker 6y ago
  > What I mean regarding "as if it be ..." is not standard English grammar. Use of the "be" form of the verb (that is not the subjunctive be) without inflecting for tense or person is featured in African-American Vernacular English. But it is the subjunctive. “as if” classically demands the subjunctive the mood in it's subordinate clause, if it __be__ used as an irrealis. I realize well of course that in vernacular English the subjunctive mood has been in decline for the past centuries, so it might not be so commonly used as such any more in spoken English. https://www.google.com/search?q=%22As+if+it+be%22 https://www.google.com/search?q=%22As+if+it+be%22 Though, I am given some pause by that the sixth citation here is the King James Version; perhaps it has been more in decline than I had thought. Nevertheless, I am not some bourgeois peasant. If it be good enough for the K.J.V., then it is good enough for me.
- yesbabyyes 6y ago
  It's also a four syllabic rhyme. :)

kazinator 6y ago

Ah, well that's kind of worth mentioning, I would think; that person was Polish in nationality only, not actually of Polish descent yet somehow dark-skinned. :) What I mean regarding "as if it be ..." is not standard English grammar. Use of the "be" form of the verb (that is not the subjunctive be) without inflecting for tense or person is featured in African-American Vernacular English. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African-American_Vernacular_English#Tense_and_aspect https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African-American_Vernacular_En... (An example like "I request that everyone be quiet" is standard; that's standard grammar, using the subjunctive mood of "to be").

Blikkentrekker 6y ago
> What I mean regarding "as if it be ..." is not standard English grammar. Use of the "be" form of the verb (that is not the subjunctive be) without inflecting for tense or person is featured in African-American Vernacular English. But it is the subjunctive. “as if” classically demands the subjunctive the mood in it's subordinate clause, if it __be__ used as an irrealis. I realize well of course that in vernacular English the subjunctive mood has been in decline for the past centuries, so it might not be so commonly used as such any more in spoken English. https://www.google.com/search?q=%22As+if+it+be%22 https://www.google.com/search?q=%22As+if+it+be%22 Though, I am given some pause by that the sixth citation here is the King James Version; perhaps it has been more in decline than I had thought. Nevertheless, I am not some bourgeois peasant. If it be good enough for the K.J.V., then it is good enough for me.
yesbabyyes 6y ago
It's also a four syllabic rhyme. :)