Re: [math-fun] Isn't "The lesser of two evils"

On 11/03/2016 00:54, Fred Lunnon wrote:

How often have you heard some hagiographically overambitious (or just maybe purposefully devious?) individual hold forth along the lines of "Wally's contribution to this project cannot be underestimated!"

Slippery things, double negatives --- especially when combined with an inability to distinguish the possible from the acceptable.

Another old one: Linguistics lecturer: "In some languages, such as modern Greek, two negatives make a stronger negative. In some, such as English, two negatives make a positive. But in no language do two positives make a negative." Smartarse in audience: "Yeah, *right*." -- g