We interrupt your regularly scheduled LJ . . .

. . . for a rant.

Normally, grading my students' writing doesn't bother me. To the contrary, bad writing or spelling tends to bemuse me more than anything.

But. Oh. My. God.

In a single short essay answer, one student used all the following abbreviations, many of them repeatedly:

Neo-Assyr. (Neo-Assyrian)
bc (because)
amt. (amount)
agric. (agricultural)
inc. (increased)
gov. (governmental)
diff. (difference)
deport. (deportation)
approx. (approximately)
w/ (with)

Appropriate for notes? Absolutely. Appropriate for e-mail? Relatively speaking. Appropriate for academic essays? Oh hell no.

O Internet, what have you done to our children?!?!?