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>>>Speaking of pet peeves - Does anyone else on this list have a problem =
with using 'since' to show the reason for something happening instead of
(what I think to be) the correct word 'because'? In my view 'since' =
strictly refers to time; 'because' refers to the reason something =
happens. Yet, I see 'since' quite often used to introduce the reason =
something occurred. This is my pet peeve. It's a little furry, but its
mine. What do you all think?
Lisa Miller
Technical Writer
Advanced Technologies Group<<<
James J. Kilpatrick has a nice essay about this usage in _Fine Print_
(1993):
[Paraphrasing]...Since, as a conjunction, can mean "inview of the fact
that" or "because" ... At least 99 times out of 100 _because_ is a
better word than _since_. Since can cause confusion because its first
meaning has to do with the passage of time. When we read _because_ we
know exactly where we are going.
I always change _since_ to _because_ when its meaning is "because" (a
reason) and not time passage in the work I do. I get no arguments from
the folks I work with.
