These times demand logical apostrophes
We’ve long been bothered by the Times’s use of an apostrophe with pluralized abbreviations, must noticeably as “DVD’s” in a regular feature on their site’s front page. Today the headline has been freed of that unnecessary punctuation.
Whether the apostrophe was incorrect or just a variation that some people find more attractive is up for debate. What isn’t up for debate is that many native speakers of English have great difficulty using the apostrophe correctly, even in situations where standards are unambiguous. Siding with the most logical style for abbreviations, whether or not you like the way it looks, is the right decision for our paper, our language, and our culture.
(I’ve been reading too many Times endorsements lately.)
Backtalk
What’s worse is that I have a pretty good grasp on the rules of apostrophes, and I still manage to get it wrong. I don’t usually catch it until I go back some days or weeks later and re-read. Surely it is the punctuation of the Antichrist.
Every so often, I look up to see I’ve typed something like “I don’t understand why your going…” and my blood turn to ice. I should start crossing myself when that happens.
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