The Past Perfect (Pluperfect) Tense

The above tense is invariably advised by any grammar guide to be used only to indicate the existence of some state/being or the happening/supposed completion/completion of some event/action earlier than or before another (all these being in the past).

However, I have observed that such tense (highlighted by me in bold) being inappropriately used in two sentences of two separate news items of an English daily today.

Road users have to turn away as constant pounding of the waves along the beach had caused a stretch of the costal road at Kampong Pantai Tok Jembai, Kuala Terengganu, to cave in.

Here, the past perfect (pluperfect) tense is used to describe one action only, and hence, the present perfect tense (has caused) is more appropriate as it depicts the present state which is turning away road users.

Almost nine in 10 American teenage girls say that they feel pressured by the fashion and media industries to be skinny and that an unrealistic, unattainable image of beauty had been created.

Here again, such tense (which is in the passive voice) is showing the creation of one action or thing (image) which is still prevailing in the feeling of nine in 10 American teenage girls - necessitating the use of the present perfect tense (has been created) instead.

Kengt, Penang, 03FEB10