Typo Eradication Advancement League Stamped Out?

Radical Grammarian Duo Went Too Far but Have a Marketable Plan

Search for the online presence of the Typo Eradication Advancement League (TEAL) at JeffDeck.com/teal/ and you will find a relatively blank page that promises to offer up a statement on the signage of National Parks to come at a later time. Has the Typo Eradication Advancement League been stamped out?

WAVY-TV reported that the brains behind the operation -- Jeff Deck of Somerville, Massachusetts, and his cohort Benjamin Herson of Virginia Beach -- admitted to their conspiracy and complicity to deface a historic marker because it contained a typographical error. Restitution and probation were ordered, and in addition the dynamic duo of grammarians with a purpose is banned for one year from national parks.

A Google cache screenshot of the Typo Eradication Advancement League shows a slightly different face of the organization. A mix of a game and a grammarian on a mission, TEAL had issued a 2008 Typo Hunt across America. An apparently even more dynamic trio has plotted its course across the nation and highlighted areas where it plied its volunteer trade. Adding to the disdain the group has for typos of all kinds is the occasional comic it posts, this one pertaining to a spelling error on a tattoo.

I am reminded of the Mike Reed caricature depicting the grammarian warrior as the one person whose lack of contribution to any discussion is made up for by his outward obsession with pointing out the spelling and grammatical errors of others. He appears self righteous, self serving, and seems to look down his nose at the mistakes made by others. Does this describe the Typo Eradication Advancement League?

I would like to believe that it does not. Perhaps Jeff Deck and Benjamin Herson simply snapped at the signs of a growing grammatical incompetence paired with typographical ineptitude. Maybe they set out on a noble mission to help Americans reclaim their dignified linguistic heritage. Then at some juncture something went terribly wrong, and rather than fixing the errors of the masses, they decided to become graffiti hacks with a purpose; instead of contributing to America, they simply took away from it.