Return-Path: <@FINHUTC.HUT.FI:LOJBAN@CUVMB.BITNET> Received: from FINHUTC.hut.fi by xiron.pc.helsinki.fi with smtp (Linux Smail3.1.28.1 #1) id m0qv0Qi-00001bC; Wed, 12 Oct 94 11:57 EET Message-Id: Received: from FINHUTC.HUT.FI by FINHUTC.hut.fi (IBM VM SMTP V2R2) with BSMTP id 4985; Wed, 12 Oct 94 11:57:14 EET Received: from SEARN.SUNET.SE (NJE origin MAILER@SEARN) by FINHUTC.HUT.FI (LMail V1.1d/1.7f) with BSMTP id 4983; Wed, 12 Oct 1994 11:57:13 +0200 Received: from SEARN.SUNET.SE (NJE origin LISTSERV@SEARN) by SEARN.SUNET.SE (LMail V1.2a/1.8a) with BSMTP id 8493; Wed, 12 Oct 1994 10:54:13 +0100 Date: Tue, 11 Oct 1994 18:44:23 EDT Reply-To: BobMichael Sender: Lojban list From: Bob Michael Subject: Re: lo [nonexistent] X-To: lojban@cuvmb.cc.columbia.edu To: Veijo Vilva Content-Length: 662 Lines: 14 I follow the Lojban list mostly with bewilderment (but trying to catch up!), but my untrained mind could not agree more with ucleaar: >>I think we should lay this red herring to bed & recognize that >>what does or doesn't exist out there in thw world is >>irrelevant to language. When we say elves have pointy ears, we're saying that *by definition* they have pointy ears. We can define anything we like without regard to whether it exists. The truth of the statement lies not if we can point to an elf without pointy ears, but whether we can point to a definition of elf that does not include pointy ears. I'll sink back into bewilderment now. Bob Michael