Sit down and breathe deeply. This too shall pass.
> Did I miss something and has the high lord of
> usage decreed this permissible?
The Official Decree was issued on November 23, 2000, at 1350 Zulu
time. You obviously did miss it.
> Am I alone?
I have no idea. Why not look around you?
Or are you asking about "There's" with a plural? If so, the
informal spoken usage is solidly established. It's best avoided in
all but the most casual writing.
> Iss there a movement to stamp out this painful practice?
There is a movement to stamp out people who ask questions that have
been brought up repeatedly in this group and that can be checked out
in our FAQ or in the google archives. Searching Google Groups for
"there's plural" and this newsgroup reveals plenty of pertinent
threads.
--
Bob Lieblich
There's a good boy
Actually, I think this is done (correctly) in a number of languages.
"If this is coffee, please bring me some tea. If this is tea, please bring me
some coffee."
- Abraham Lincoln