America - Learn to Speak English

The English language, used properly is a joy. There is an incredible array of words, enabling a conveyance of  many of the subtleties, the nuances of human emotion. With English, we can plumb the depths of despair and climb the heights of love. We can explore our relation to our fellow creatures and give voice to their feelings. We can attempt to relate our lonely outpost here in the middle of this average galaxy swirling in the midst of the infinite. We can contemplate our Creator and try, usually with little effect, but still with nobility, to explain our relationship to the Divine.

I am not stuffy. I love slang and the diversity of dialect, but, in appropriate situations. I am not prudish. I have been known, on occasion, to let loose with amazingly colorful bursts of profanity, but, when overused, those expletives lose their punch and just become boring and tasteless. A little bit goes a long way.

Part of the problem is sheer sloth. We have grown lazy. However, part has come from the academic world. The post-modern philosophers have promoted the idea that what is written or spoken only has whatever meaning the reader or listener gives to those words. The author or speakers intent does not even matter,  just what you think. Thus, we may as well eliminate dictionaries. If I want to call the sky green, well, okay. If I write the word 'alligator' and you envision a squirrel, well, that is your interpretation.

This is dangerous on two levels. First, it puts an end to coherent communication. The Tower of Babel story explains why we have different languages. If we follow this line of thought, each individual human will have his own unique language and we will live in a world of pure solipsism. Certainly, we all have different associations we attach to words. Love may conjure up one image to me and another to a toddler, but at least their would be a basic agreement that the word refers to a positive  emotion.

The other problem is extremely dangerous. Do they even still teach George Orwell's 1984 anymore in schools? If not, educators should be chastised, if not actually tarred and feathered. Those who have read it will remember that in the book, Big Brother decided what words meant and preached that Love=Hate and Peace=War. If a society allows its basic language to be thus manipulated then we may as well all be lobotomized.

So please, learn the wonderful English language. How? Easy, read. If you see words you don't know, get a dictionary. Buy a real dictionary, they are cheap and much easier to use than an on-line version. Push yourself a little and try some of the classic writers. They told fine tales and really are not that hard to read. And please, try to speak the language. The occasional use of 'bro' and 'dude' is okay, but when used all the time they grow amazingly boring. If you try real hard, I will bet that you can use actual names of people and do so without every other word being obscene.