Burr Saddle Some Disassembly Desired

Perhaps it's from being a draftsman.  Perhaps its from doing some technical writing.

Getting the terms right is essential.

Otherwise we could call everything a "thingy".

There are places where getting the term wrong can land you in jail.  Ask for a flash-hider when you meant muzzle brake in places which ban the former, for example.

The clip/magazine thing drives people nuts.  Why?

On one side there's a group of people who insist that they are different and can show what those differences are.

On the other side, there are those who say they are the same thing.

Try ordering en-bloc magazines for your Garand.

It's not just guns.

Disc brakes have pads.  Drum brakes have shoes.

There are numerous things that are bearings on a car, and you need to be specific to get the one you need.

Specificity often derails some people.  You have to coax them into describing what they mean because they don't know what it's called.  After about the thirtieth time of doing that, you start getting prickly about people calling things what they are.

Is it a bullet or a cartridge?  Clip or magazine?  Stock or grip?  Silencer or suppressor?  Rifle or carbine?  Assault rifle or assault weapon?

Words mean things.  The reason they mean things is we use these crude symbols and series of fleshy vibrations for communication.  Without common terms, communication can't occur.  Someone who speaks chinese and someone who speaks english can talk at each other all day thinking they are being perfectly clear and not transmit one meaningful thought.

To communicate we have to speak the same language.  The "pedantic" people who are making an issue of clip v magazine are essentially saying, "the terms have been established, learn them."  If clips and magazines are the same thing you should be able to show that to be true.  Admitting that the terms are only synonymous conditionally basically says the pendants are correct.

The very act of complaining about the "pedants" is itself pedantic, or didn't you check to see what the word you were using meant?  Oh wait...