"Globish"

Interesting article in The Independent today by the excellent Mary Dejevsky, bemoaning the rise of "lowest common denominator" global English (Globish) as a threat to traditional English. I disagree on two levels.
My first point is the rest of the world(with the possible exception of France!) has had the good grace to accept the inevitable rise of English (especially American English). Do we not owe it to them to welcome a standard, easily-learned version of English with all irregularitites (spelling, irregular verbs etc) ironed out, so that the world can embrace it easily in the way that, say, Maths or Music can be readily learned? Would it not benefit English kids, too, to learn the structure of this new language alongside the native tongue, so that they understand the fundamentals of grammar? (Esperanto revisted: I thing it was said of Esperanto - "Great concept, wrong language")
My second point is that many English people can distinguish between and understand anything from William Tyndale's translation of the Bible to pulp fiction. (English can be all things to all people. This is its glory. I refer you to Melvyn Bragg's wonderful book "The Adventure of English".) Why not a standard global version of English, too. Maybe someone with the influence of Lord Bragg should agitate for this. Over to you, your Lordship!
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Published on May 30, 2012 04:16 Tags: mary-dejevsky-melvyn-bragg
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