XPost: rec.puzzles, alt.usage.english   
   From: wugi@brol.invalid   
      
   Op 24/01/2026 om 23:56 schreef Peter Moylan:   
   > On 24/01/26 22:00, wugi wrote:   
   >   
   >> Often I see an item about, eg, circumstances of someone's death,   
   >> start with a sentence like "Le 25 janvier 1903 mourait SoAndSo dans   
   >> sa voiture." With the meaning of a point-past.   
   >   
   > Is this a way of softening the news? "Il est mort" sounds a bit blunt   
   > and insensitive.   
      
   No, it's a descriptive, commenting, introducing turn of phrase in a text   
   about the topic. Nothing negative per se:   
   Le 32 février 2027 J.S.B. gagnait son premier concours de pianorgue.   
      
   --   
   guido wugi   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)