"I be at da park". Were black people right all along?

It has been the general consensus that the grammar in the phrase "I be at" is incorrect, but I am here to propose that black people have actually been correct all this time. "I be at" is actually the only way it can be said while using the verb "be" in any of its tense forms. Let me explain what this means. Every verb has a tense that fits the past-continuing tense form. Lets use the words "run", "jump", and "play". In the past tense these would be ran, jumped, and played, while the past tense of be would be was. The current form would be running, jumping, playing, and being. These are verbs and thus have a form for all the tenses. So how would one use the word "be" in the sentence "I (blank) at the park"? One could say "I am always at the park" or "I can generally and consistently be located at the park" etc, but these are completely different sentences with different words, and are not using the verb "be". Someone prosed that the form of "be" in this sentence should be "am" thus rendering the sentence as "i am at the park". The problem is that this phrase doesnt treat the word "am" as a verb nor does it denote that one is always or usually at the park, but rather presently. Furthermore, am is not used as a verb by evidence that "am-ing" is not a word, nor can a persom "am",while someone CAN "be", and be-ing IS a word. All of this, coupled with the next fact that verbs that are in past-continuing tenses, are spelled exactly the same way, meaning that the way you describe the fact that you "run" continuously is by saying "i run" as opposed to "i ran" denoting that you no longer run. So "jump" is rendered as " i jump ", "run" is denoted as "i run" etc, and ergo "be" would be "i be". I believe I have proven that black people had it right all along when using the wording "i be" to denote a past but continuing tense. "i be at the club" is the only way to use the verb "be" in this sentence.

lolly2011-07-02T10:46:59Z

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Interesting... maybe ...
*thoughtful face*

Your logic makes sense , but no, I would say that it is wrong, as the majority of people wouldn't say it that way. Language is basically a fashion, just as in Shakespearean times, saying something like "where are you going?" would be wrong, and should be "For where art thou going?" (or something...) If "I be at the park became a common phrase, then I think that this would be right, and it could be, because everything you said makes sense, but at the moment, I would say this is wrong. Though I would say, I've never heard anyone say "I be at the park". Hope this answers your question. :)

Catcherintherye2011-07-02T17:57:43Z

Nipples.

Love Life2011-07-02T17:54:45Z

Yes.

Sunday Crone2011-07-02T17:52:23Z

Sorry I was taught American English, and would not be able to respond to the sentence you suggest.