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From: selvakum@watserv1.uwaterloo.ca (C.R.Selvakumar - Electrical Engineering)
Subject: Re: basic"english"-another critique
Message-ID: <D4o5MB.M2E@watserv1.uwaterloo.ca>
Keywords: a flaw in the vocab list of basic english
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References: <3ibmnk$hh3@metz.une.edu.au> <D4GsJv.616@sun3.vlsi.uwaterloo.ca> <3ioppo$i6k@news.cs.tu-berlin.de>
Date: Mon, 27 Feb 1995 17:22:58 GMT
Lines: 34

In article <3ioppo$i6k@news.cs.tu-berlin.de>,
Wolfgang Schwanke <wolfi@cs.tu-berlin.de> wrote:
>selvakum@sun14.vlsi.uwaterloo.ca (C. R. Selvakumar) writes:
>
>>            No I don't think there is any 'strength' as you imply.
>>            The popularity of English is due to America. Period. English
>>            colonial influence would have died just like others ( Dutch for ex)
>
>America is a former British colony.
>
>Let me assure you, when I think "English speaking country", I think
>"England". The US are far away from a European perspective.

Greetings,

    True US is far away, but the importance ( weight) of English is 
    overwhelmingly due to US ( even for Eurpoean). I think even the 
    effort to form EU is driven by the need to balance the effect of a huge US.
    India and China togather with the already well established
    Japan and Korea many other emerging countries of Asia is another reason
    for forming EU ( to provide an alternative to US, I mean in a 
    market competetive sense ). There is no intrinsic strength in English
    which is just a myth. The popularity of English  is due to politics and
    the heavy influence of US and not due to England ( that US was a former
    colony is of no consequence; England was also a colony of the Romans). 
    Just my understanding, I'll be
    glad to correct myself if there are convincing counter arguements.
     
>
>Greetings
>Wolfgang
             -selvaa


