Studies indicate that word processors have made us all a little lazy when it comes to written communication. Spell-checkers and grammar-checkers abound. Unfortunately, we may have become a little too dependent upon such things.
It still pays to check one’s work personally before hitting the “send” button on an e-mail or the “publish live” button on one’s blog page. Want proof? Just check out these actual headlines that somehow made it into print…
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Man Kills Self Before Shooting Wife and Daughter
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Something Went Wrong in Jet Crash, Expert Says
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Miners Refuse to Work after Death
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Juvenile Court to Try Shooting Defendant
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
War Dims Hope for Peace
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
If Strike Isn't Settled Quickly, It May Last Awhile
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cold Wave Linked to Temperatures
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
London Couple Slain; Police Suspect Homicide
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Red Tape Holds Up New Bridges
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Man Struck By Lightning: Faces Battery Charge
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
New Study of Obesity Looks for Larger Test Group
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Astronaut Takes Blame for Gas in Spacecraft
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kids Make Nutritious Snacks
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Local High School Dropouts Cut in Half
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hospitals are Sued by 7 Foot Doctors
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
And the winner is....
Typhoon Rips Through Cemetery - Hundreds Dead
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now, if you’re thinking, “Did I read that right?” the answer is, “Yep, you sure did!” Apparently, it pays to proofread!
But what makes this all the more amusing is that these headlines are supposedly written by professionals. Journalists should rightly be expected not to produce such sloppy work. They, above all people, should know better.
When people observe inconsistencies in the lives of Christians, the effect is equally disconcerting. Just as non-journalists recognize obvious flaws in sloppy proofreading, even so non-believers easily spot hypocrisy in the lives of those of us who profess to be Christians.
As followers of Christ, we must be careful not to undercut His Word by our ways. As Paul admonished Titus (1:16), we should not claim to know God, and then by our actions, deny Him. For those who do so are “detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.”
SOURCE: These and many other funny headlines can be found through a simple Google web search using the words “proofreading” and “lost art”. Many are actual copies of scanned in newspaper clippings.
It still pays to check one’s work personally before hitting the “send” button on an e-mail or the “publish live” button on one’s blog page. Want proof? Just check out these actual headlines that somehow made it into print…
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Man Kills Self Before Shooting Wife and Daughter
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Something Went Wrong in Jet Crash, Expert Says
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Miners Refuse to Work after Death
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Juvenile Court to Try Shooting Defendant
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
War Dims Hope for Peace
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
If Strike Isn't Settled Quickly, It May Last Awhile
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cold Wave Linked to Temperatures
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
London Couple Slain; Police Suspect Homicide
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Red Tape Holds Up New Bridges
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Man Struck By Lightning: Faces Battery Charge
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
New Study of Obesity Looks for Larger Test Group
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Astronaut Takes Blame for Gas in Spacecraft
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kids Make Nutritious Snacks
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Local High School Dropouts Cut in Half
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hospitals are Sued by 7 Foot Doctors
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
And the winner is....
Typhoon Rips Through Cemetery - Hundreds Dead
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now, if you’re thinking, “Did I read that right?” the answer is, “Yep, you sure did!” Apparently, it pays to proofread!
But what makes this all the more amusing is that these headlines are supposedly written by professionals. Journalists should rightly be expected not to produce such sloppy work. They, above all people, should know better.
When people observe inconsistencies in the lives of Christians, the effect is equally disconcerting. Just as non-journalists recognize obvious flaws in sloppy proofreading, even so non-believers easily spot hypocrisy in the lives of those of us who profess to be Christians.
As followers of Christ, we must be careful not to undercut His Word by our ways. As Paul admonished Titus (1:16), we should not claim to know God, and then by our actions, deny Him. For those who do so are “detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good.”
SOURCE: These and many other funny headlines can be found through a simple Google web search using the words “proofreading” and “lost art”. Many are actual copies of scanned in newspaper clippings.