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Kate and Ze,
This is an interesting thread.
The conventional wisdom is that radical reforms are too hard to sell. Kate argues that it is easier to regularize everything. Shavians probably agree that it is easier to start anew than to revise what we have. I think that the threshold of a sellable reform is that one that is over 85% phonemic.
This would make English as easy to learn and use as Spanish. --Steve
> KATE: I'd certainly consider either of these possible for an "international
> English," and would consider working for a group that wanted to > establish one of these possibilities as a new standard. However, I > think that the public would not regard either /2/ or /3/ as sufficient > change in speech to justify a change in spelling that would signal and > "go with" the new variety. ZDR: Wich public do you m�n? The anglo public or the non-anglo? Enyway 2 and 3 is much mor ch�nge than wat the general anglo public would accept. The non-anglo public would accept n�rly ENY simplific�tion (regularization), in pronunci�tion or spelling. ZDR: The problem is that it is very dificult to m�k them USE
it or be prepaird to use it befor a substantial part of lerners do it (as very few americans would be prepaird to lern a spanish with simplif�d grammer). And wair do you get that substantial number of p�pel who is prepaird to lern and use something without a substantial number of p�pel b�ing prepaird to lern and use it befor? > KATE: I think that we can more easily sell "Let's regularize everything - at > least for international business/basic communications use" Yahoo! Groups Links
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