> I call your bluff,  your spelling is poor and your message is a
> spoof!
>
> Joe Hemmens
 
Gee Joe,
 
*You* may *suspect* his message is a spoof, but I don't see
what his spelling has to do with it.  (How's your (and my) spelling
in Spanish these days)?  Or Greek? or Chinese?
 
Am I taking you too seryusly?
 
I suspect you meant this in good very humo(u)r, but that is sure not
how it came across when I first read it!  And I'm not sure how many
others will 'get it'.  Especially if they themselves are 'spelling
challenged'.  People tend to be a bit sensitive about that.
 
Anyway I am going to take this opportunity to prosetylize a bit about
spelling and grammar flames, opportunities lost, and such...
 
What I love about this group is the fact that there are many unique
voices present here and they emanate from many parts of the world.
Many who write here have languages other than English as a mother
tongue.  They don't have to come here, but some of the more
courageous do and we are richer for their presence.  Comments on
spelling or different manners, assumptions, methods and beliefs tend
to sting, and shut such people right up. (For example: I have not
heard any posts from China since an unfortunate  gaffe that ocurred
some time back. I had big hopes we would learn something from China
since they have had these mites for some time, and they have 1/4 of
the world's poulation potentially available to think about such things).
 
We are not in the <insert your county here> anymore; we are in an
international cyberspace.  We are on a new frontier here and our old
assumptions don't apply. Although we have to learn a new tolerance,
there are a few who we should always challenge: there are some who
try to promote (SPAM) untested products or make completley false
statements and it is right to confront them (hopefully politely).
However, to challenge anyone on the basis of spelling, diction,
grammar and cultural characteristics brings free international
discussion to a grinding halt. If we squelch participants, how will
we know what we did not learn?  Quality of thought has no (or very
weak, anyhow) correlation with spelling ability. (Eye hope this is
trew -- or eye yam in beg truble and so is Andie).
 
Pedro has recently -- by virtue of his provocative thinking and
eloquent writing -- stimulated one of the best discussions on this
list for some time in the opinon of some regulars.  As far
as his references to a big 'secrete', he does sound like he is
bragging, but then maybe he has something to brag about.
 
I do think you are well within your rights to challenge him to reveal
it or stop talking about it, but I think you could have used a bit
more tact :)  Don't look to me for tact lessons tho'!
 
I might point out as a matter of interest that until relatively
recent years, English spelling was matter of taste. (Hast thee tryed
to reede Chaucer latelie)? Besides, I think Bernard Shaw managed to
point out that our accepted spellings of many words are somewhat
'ghoti'y, anyhow.  Formal and 'correct' spellings are a recent
device, and like most 'manners' that are not based on empathy for
others, serve mostly to distinguish one class and culture from
another, often for exploitive purposes.
 
Anyhow, I hope we will measure a person for purposes of this list by
the quality of his/her heart and mind and ideas and not the
perfection of the spelling, grammar, and punctuation. I hope we also
can manage to suffer through some unfamiliar and apparently
non-mainstream ideas, because all new ideas are by definition 'not
mainstream'. Their very unfamiliarity can be threatening.  Some of
the best ideas sound the dumbest the first time we hear of them.
 
Personally I do not want this list to be an 'old boys club',
consisting of only anglophiles who hold all the mainstream ideas,
exclude those who are 'not quite like us', and congratulate
ourselves on our sameness.  I doubt most of us do, but this list can
quickly become like that *by accident* if we do not explicitly
encourage diversity.  That's (hopefully) what I am doing here,
assuming I am not ticking you off too much.
 
I realise that I am 'becoming my own ememy in the instant that I
preach', so feel free to tear a strip off me, Joe.  But please don't
be offended; keep on posting.  I do like your posts (mostly).
 
And to those of you who barely understand our strange language and
are afraid to write to this list, I say 'Give it a try'. What the
heck, we all get flamed now and then. It only hurts for a little
while. (Ouch).
 
Merry Christmas.
 
Regards
 
Allen
 
W. Allen Dick, Beekeeper                                         VE6CFK
RR#1, Swalwell, Alberta  Canada T0M 1Y0
Internet:[log in to unmask] & [log in to unmask]
Honey. Bees, & Art <http://www.internode.net/~allend/>