Subject: RE: [lojban] if

From: "Craig" <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 1 Dec 2001 14:22:09 -0500

>I have more trouble with the sentence

>if you had met john, you'd have thought he was handsome.

>Grice says that in fact you didn't meet john, so ganai gi logic says we'll
>never know what your opinion of his handsomeness is.

>fau da'i lenu do pu penmi la djan kei do jinvi ledu'u ri melbi

This is why 'bai' should be used for if. It implies the causality (fau does
not, nor va'o; both have been interpreted as meaning that), plus it allows
the counterfactualness better than fau because fau still doesn't cover what
happens if you DON'T meet John. Bai as if does.

bai lenu do penmi la djan. ku do lenu ra melbi ku birti (can't be ri, that
means do.)
Caused by the (hypothetical, hence a possible if interpretation)
you-meeting-John, you believe in his handsomeness.
If you had met John, you would think he's handsome.

This does not say anything about whether the listener met John, but neither
does the fau, va'o, or ganai-gi version.

My question is, how do you do if-then-else constructions?

--la kreig.daniyl.

'coi doi drata mibypre
.i pu temci so'i detri
.i mi'o na cafne ka'e tavla
.i lenu go'i cu zekri
.ija'e ko mi cusku le do nambi
.i mi ba go'i do
.i mi'o cmila joi maltavla joi mi'atavla
joi pinxe le vanjo'
-la djimis.BYFet

xy.sy. gubmau ckiku nacycme: 0x5C3A1E74