June 2, 2011

  • I am often struck by the inability of so many people to use the language they speak to say what they mean. I don't even want to try and list all the times I hear people use a word incorrectly, or who have no idea what the word actually means before using it. I see it everywhere, in print, on TV or in a movie, in advertisements, and of course, in every day speech.

    To me, language is probably the single most important tool humanity has. Without it, there could be no society, no meaningful communication, no science, no math, no history. Misused... I think it undermines the foundations of our societies.

    It used to be that a person would most likely spend their entire life never hearing a language other than that which they spoke, but those days are rapidly disappearing. Even the most isolated of peoples are now exposed to languages they do not know, and each time there is the potential for both gain, and loss. When we learn from each other I think we enlarge ourselves, enlarge the societies we belong to, and  find out that there are almost always new ways of seeing things. That opening of perspective is something I believe we should seek, something we should nurture, something we should embrace.

     

    I read, watch and listen... and wonder at the growing ignorance I see.

     

    In this world of almost limitless connections it almost feels like we're turning our backs on the very foundations of humanity, willingly, wantonly, discarding the ability to think at the expense of conformity.

     

     

     

    I was reminded recently that there are many tools I need to pick back up again, to hone my skills, and find my place again.