The phrase far be it for me is nonsensical. The real phrase is far be it from me, which means, “I don’t want to presume. “The mistaken phrase derives from a mishearing of the original, which has been in English for centuries.
The personal pronoun that follows far be it from should be in the objective case. So constructions such as far me it from I and far be it from he are questionable.
The incorrect far be it for me appears surprisingly often—for example:
Far be it for me to demand realism in a movie featuring canine-fellatio and pube tornados . . . [New York Magazine]
Far be it for me, a Bay Area pediatrician, to tell Floridians about how to keep their kids safe. [San Francisco Chronicle]
And these writers use far be it from well:
Far be it from me to define normal. I’m the furthest of the furthest from any dictionary’s version of that word. [Craig Daily Press]
“‹Far be it from us to play grammar police, but isn’t “Why Pay More” a legitimate query? [Daily Fork]
Far be it from me to criticize Jean Paul Gaultier or his styling ability. [Papier Blog (now offline)]
