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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsNYC officials dodge blame for ‘SHCOOL X-NG’ sign in front of Manhattan high school
NYC officials dodge blame for SHCOOL X-NG sign in front of Manhattan high school
NEW YORK Everyone whos ever gone to school should know how to spell school.
But someone who plastered a school crossing sign on the street in front of a New York City high school got it wrong.
A spokesman for the city Department of Transportation said the error was made by a utility provider, not by the city.
The Post says workers apparently cut into the several months ago to get to underground utility lines. When utilities or contractors perform work on a city street, they are responsible for restoring it correctly.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/nyc-officials-dodge-blame-for-shcool-x-ng-sign-in-front-of-manhattan-high-school/2012/01/24/gIQAvVGgNQ_story.html
Snake Alchemist
(3,318 posts)HappyMe
(20,277 posts)The passersby they interviewed said that they had not noticed the mistake until it was pointed out to them.
The Straight Story
(48,121 posts)JHB
(37,161 posts)Can you tell? When you read the same thing over and over you start anticipating what it is supposed to say and not necessarily what is actually there.
When proofreading things, sometimes you have to hand it to someone else to have a fresh set of eyeballs on it. How often does that happen out in the field?
The only thing dumber than the initial error is the hoopla being made out of it.
HappyMe
(20,277 posts)I think it's kind of funny that the word school is spelled wrong outside of a school.
Is our children learnin'?
JHB
(37,161 posts)...the article was a vehicle to bash the school rather than the shoddy work of the the people who actually did it.
Given a choice between faulting the private- or public-sectors, the (com)Post will always reach for the public-bash.
elehhhhna
(32,076 posts)Circle of Ecellence
Atman
(31,464 posts)Many years ago, gotta be about 25 now, Hartford's "Bradley Field" was re-built, and turned into a modern "International" airport...international only because it had one flight to Canada, but I digress.
They built new terminals and new garages. I drove in to pick up my brother one day shortly after the airport re-opened, and the first thing I noticed were the signs lining the roadways in front of the new terminals...hundreds of them, spaced xx number of feet apart...
NO PARKNIG.
Every single sign. Not only did some fool manufacture them without noticing the typo, but another crew of fools actually installed them. LOL!
HillWilliam
(3,310 posts)JHB
(37,161 posts)...and not the unidentified utility provider. (who? Does this company have a name?)
I note the principal comes in for more grief than the (private sector?) provider:
Nothing surprises me anymore at this school, (PTA president Marta Valle) said. Whats ironic is that the principal has probably painted the lunchroom and rooms inside over about five times since 2010.
Shes probably spent $100,000 in paint doing and redoing the inside of the school, but she doesnt notice this right outside her door!
***
But one city worker, who didnt want to be identified, put the blame on nearby school officials.
Regardless of who painted it, someone from the school should have been outside supervising, or noticed it by now, the city worker said. This is sloppy work.
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/in_for_bad_spell_6P0ucEX2cUYafpF8K5zp3L
To be honest, I'm not surprised at all that no one at the school noticed: they see that distorted lettering in the road every day, they know what it is supposed to say, so they didn't actually read it. If you saw a red octagonal sign at a corner, would it necessarily register with you as you're keeping your eye on the road/traffic/pedestrians if it said "SOTP"?
Yes, it's dumb. Blame the people who did it.
Atman
(31,464 posts)This is a ridiculous story. And you're totally right about the "reading" part. People don't "read" those signs, they just recall the familiar shape and process the information they already know.