Hi, Alexander!  Recently you wrote in a message to All:   
      
   ak> http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18192375   
   ak> =========Beginning of the citation==============   
   ak> After watching the footage, Mr Campbell said he believes Uefa should   
   ak> not have chosen the countries as hosts of such a prestigious event   
   ak> in the first place.   
   ak> =========The end of the citation================   
      
   ak> Should it have been written in this way:   
   ak> Mr Campbell said (that) he believed UEFA should not have chosen the   
   ak> countries...   
      
      
              Assuming that Mr. Campbell is still alive & well, that he made the   
   remark(s) attributed to him shortly before the news reporters rushed to their   
   computers in order to meet a deadline or to get ahead of the competition, and   
   that I've seen no evidence suggesting he may have changed his mind... I'd say   
   "he believes".  IOW, I'm treating the verb as an ongoing action here....  :-)   
      
      
      
   ak> It seems to me that there is a rule how to transform a direct speech   
   ak> into indirect one.   
      
      
              Quite possibly.  I don't do rules well because so many of them are   
   devised for students at a grade three reading level... and I think you're far   
   beyond that.  Adult native speakers of English carefully recite "i before e",   
   then shrug & do what looks right to them because they've never heard or don't   
   remember the rest of what was intended as a simple mnemonic.  Some folks even   
   make signs saying (e.g.) "Staff only, no exceptions!" but make exceptions for   
   wheelchair users whenever I'm willing to take on the role of the Cantankerous   
   Old Lady who adamantly refuses to put up with this sort of nonsense....  :-))   
      
              As a native speaker of English I collect examples... sometimes for   
   decades... until I can explain in words the principles native speakers absorb   
   intuitively, with varying degrees of success.  Whatever I have to say is thus   
   more of a principle than a rule.  The notion that certain principles may take   
   precedence over others, in certain situations, explains more to me than rules   
   which are "more honoured in the breach than in the observance"... [wry grin].   
      
              Another example: within the last week or so Alexander informed the   
   denizens of this echo that he was puzzled about xxx.  I'm reporting in my own   
   words, although Fidonet technology enables me to quote exactly what Alexander   
   said.  To the best of my knowledge nobody else has responded to his concerns.   
   But a lot can happen in a week or so & electronic mail goes missing in action   
   from time to time, therefore I can't be sure Alexander is still puzzled.  ;-)   
      
      
      
      
   --- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+   
    * Origin: Wits' End, Vancouver CANADA (1:153/716)