TANSTAAFL versus TINFL
The acronym TANSTAAFL means ‘there
ain’t no such thing as a free lunch’; and though I basically agree with the
economic point, I have some problems with the way this acronym put it. I prefer
TINFL, meaning ‘there is no free lunch’.
The contraction “ain’t” is as
grammatical as any other, but “ain’t no” is a double negative, read as single!
This is “ain’t” as a false class indicator; bogus folksiness.
This sin of inauthenticity pales in
comparison to TANSTAAFL’s verbosity. Nine words, and four of them are ‘such
thing as a’; pure grammar without semantic content! Filler! Styrofoam! A
four-word desert! By word seven you have to struggle to stay awake! And such
pedantry dares to utter “ain’t”?
Compare that to the directness of
TINFL; there is no free lunch. Five words, authentic grammar, clear, spare, and economical.
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