the use of "as far as I'm concerned"

[optimistic pessimist]

Dear all,

"Bob is in a hurry to catch the next train, but as far as I'm concerned, there is no hurry at all."

Do you use "as far as I'm concerned" to mean "as for me"? In many cases, the phrase seems to mean "in my opinion"", but that doesn't fit in the sentence above.

Thank you!

OP

 

[MikeNewYork]

It can mean "in my opinion" there.

 

[Raymott]

"Bob is in a hurry to catch the next train, but as far as I'm concerned, there is no hurry at all."

This almost certainly means "in my opinion". I can see how you might think it could mean, "Bob is late, but I left half an hour ago, so I'm not in a hurry." The phrase "as far as I'm concerned" is unlikely to mean that, in my opinion.

 

[emsr2d2]

I would put the comma after "but".

George is in a hurry to catch the train but, as far as I'm concerned, there is no hurry at all.

It's quite wordy and I would expect, in natural everyday English, something like "George is rushing to catch the train but I don't think there's any need to rush".

 

[TheParser]

***** NOT A TEACHER *****


Hello, Optimistic Pessimist:

You probably already know this, but I just wanted to remind you that the expression "as far as I'm concerned" often has a negative meaning.

Maybe (maybe) students should NOT use this expression until they understand the language very well.

Mona: Have you heard about the Parser?
Tony: What about him?
Mona: He's in the hospital.
Tony: As far as I'm concerned, he can stay there forever!

Mona: There are two candidates for mayor of our city. Who do you hope wins?
Tony: As far as I'm concerned, both of them should lose!

 

[MikeNewYork]

Is "as far as I'm concerned" the source of the negativity? Or is it the other text? In my opinion, "as far as I'm concerned" is a neutral phrase.

 

[Eckaslike]

I agree with Mike. It depends how the phrase is used. The Parser is right that it is often used negatively, but if it is used per the OP's sentence then the only source of negativity is the fact that the speaker is disagreeing with Bob's need to hurry.

However, it can be also used positively:

Anita: I really like Cheddar cheese, do you?
Barbara: As far as I'm concerned it's the best there is.