[WikiEN-l] Math homework (for Martin)

[Poor, Edmund W]

Martin,

I have often taught math to kids, and my specialty is "word problems".
May I help you with you math?

The following statement need re-factoring:

  "X says Y about Z and they meant W"

How about this?

  A says that when X said Y about Z, they meant W.

Can you handle an equation with five variables?

An alternate 'solution' is:

  X said Y about Z.
  A said that X meant W.

I have run across nearly a dozen examples that fit this formula on
Friday and today (lazy bum that I am, I took the weekend off).

* Wesley Clark's statements about Iraq and Al Qaeda

=> "A" quotes Clark as linking Iraq being buddy-buddy with Al Qaeda a
couple years ago
=> "A" quates Clank as saying recently that Iraq NEVER had a link with
Al Qaeda

Then, good reporter that he is, "A" quotes Clark as saying that the two
(apparently contradictory) statements aren't really contradictory.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/12/politics/campaigns/12CLAR.html


Ed Poor, aka Uncle Ed