3

Pass me by

My edit was rejected by @Tushar Raj and @Choster, on the grounds that it deviated from the original intent of the post.

I would like someone else to review their decision, as in my opinion the edit was valid.

The OP states:

Should I say he passed me by, or he passed by me?

[I think it's passed me by, but I'm not sure.] The OP is saying that he thinks the correct answer to his question is 'it's passed me by', but that he is not sure. I wanted to remove this sentence.

To explain my thinking:

  • the question lacks basic punctuation and context, which was partially remedied by a previous edit and comments. However, I first thought the second sentence was given as example of usage, then realised it wasn't. I then assumed it must be another strand to the question, regarding the meaning and usage of 'it's passed me by', but it wasn't.
  • Having finally concluded the OP was asking for positive affirmation of what he thought was the right answer, I was going to insert more punctuation, but am unsure of group etiquette on this.
  • I opted for removing the sentence, to try and keep the question as straightforward as possible.

Many thanks

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  • 1
    Could you edit this question to expand on why including that sentence confuses matters? Why is it necessary that it be omitted?
    – Andrew Leach Mod
    May 28, 2015 at 16:14
  • Thanks for your comment, @Andrew Leach. I have edited my question as requested and will respect your decision.
    – Julie Carter
    May 28, 2015 at 17:48
  • First, don't let a rejected edit bug you. It's not a big deal. Happens to all of us. Second, we generally explicitly encourage questioners to tell us what they think the right answer is, and why. Questions without that kind of information are usually closed as "insufficient research" (i.e. someone just passing along their quandries to us, unscrutinized).
    – Dan Bron
    May 28, 2015 at 20:43
  • Thanks, @Dan Bron
    – Julie Carter
    May 29, 2015 at 4:44

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
6

The proposed edit would have removed

I think it's passed me by, but I'm not sure.

resulting in

Should I say he passed me by, or he passed by me?
Thanks.

We receive a crushing load of "which is right" and "is this correct" questions, almost all of which are of substandard quality such as this one. As one of the guidelines for asking a good question is to "be specific," we generally ask the posters that as a minimum, to indicate which one they believe is right, and why. Thus, this edit would have detracted from a question that is already poorly presented.

If the second sentence might have been interpreted as another example instead of the author's supposition, it would have been better to format the example as quoted text. But overall, I am surprised the question is still open; there's no research and no context. I do not expend much effort in trying to salvage questions that are likely to be closed and deleted.

This was no reflection on your English skills, but rather on your relative newness to the stack, and I hope you are not discouraged from proposing edits elsewhere.

1
  • Ok, thanks for explaining your thinking to me.
    – Julie Carter
    May 29, 2015 at 4:42

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