If you were reading about the primary exports of a
small region of an
obscure country and in the list was "rocket", is it possible you could
have come away from the article believing that the obscure country is a
mjor exporter of rockets? Under ideal conditions, yes, these kinds of
dialectical differences can be illuminating, but under equally likely
non-ideal conditions, the differences can be confusing and misleading.
You can't provide technical measures against poorly-written articles.
An article that listed "rocket" as an export without further definition
needs editing, not some fancy technical solution.
While I admire the pluck of characterizing
inconsistency as richness, I
think that "down in the trenches" the reality of the differences in
dialect (mostly between en-us and en-gb, but also, for example between
pt-pt and pt-br) is a continuous stream of conflict, debate, confusion,
and frustration that policy has failed to allieviate.
And you think that there wouldn't be massive bunfights as to which word
was most appropriate for each of the dozens of English locales - given
that many people within a locale will use different words for the same
object or concept?
There exists a technical solution that would alleviate
the problem and
not significantly burden editors. Should we reject this solution on the
wishful notion that our differences can unite rather than divide us?
No, only a tiny fraction of the many subtle and usually inconsequential
differences between British and American English (not to mention the many
other variations of English, some that don't fit neatly on national
boundaries) are amenable to technical solutions.
Is any technological measure going to make the following (fictional)
passage accessible to the average American?
Brian Lara scored a double ton at the WACA in the 1997-98 season in a
tour match against the PM's 11. This was a Bradmanesque effort, the feat
even more impressive considering Jo Angel's reverse swing and Michael Bevan's
Chinamen, both aided by the Fremantle Doctor.
On the *specific* issue of number names, it might be feasible to provide
a fix there. Beyond that, however, technical fixes are more trouble
than they're worth.
--
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Robert Merkel
robert.merkel(a)benambra.org
http://benambra.org
Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds.
-- Albert Einstein
They laughed at Einstein. They laughed at the Wright Brothers. But they
also laughed at Bozo the Clown.
-- Carl Sagan
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