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<TITLE>Re: [ILAT] ILAT Digest - 20 Oct 2010 to 21 Oct 2010 (#2010-218)</TITLE>
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<FONT FACE="Verdana, Helvetica, Arial"><SPAN STYLE='font-size:14pt'>Ah, yes, I did hear you correctly. Agreed.<BR>
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On a purely linguistic level, there is also, as hinted at in your original post, the issue of importing massive nouns into, e.g., a verb-based language and thus doing just what you are saying below: <B>things</B> become the focus. In organic change, importations may be nouns in the original language but turn into verbs if organically borrowed, not imposed by, say, a Ministry.<BR>
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Thanks, as always. I hope I recover; chancy but possible. MJ<BR>
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On 10/23/10 1:29 PM, "Richard Zane Smith" <<a href="rzs@WILDBLUE.NET">rzs@WILDBLUE.NET</a>> wrote:<BR>
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</SPAN></FONT><BLOCKQUOTE><FONT FACE="Verdana, Helvetica, Arial"><SPAN STYLE='font-size:14pt'>MJ, <BR>
so sorry to hear about your illness ...i hope you're recovering well?<BR>
<BR>
Yes i think its a much different question (and problem) than simply<BR>
about whether to freeze frame a language in a perceived "language purity phase"<BR>
or to push forward a "backward" language to "get with the times."<BR>
<BR>
It has to do with the survival of once sustainable culture/world views.<BR>
These views are desperately needed for survival of our planet,<BR>
NOT to put on museum shelves as artifacts of by-gone primitives.<BR>
<BR>
I assume views of reality are always evolving/changing in any culture,<BR>
but some paradigms like capitalism is based on <I>competition and unlimited growth</I>,<BR>
an untested sustainable concept that's eventually irrational and destructive.<BR>
To interpret/imprint/imbed this kind of "get with it" capitalism into/upon an ancient <BR>
culture is like building a McDonalds in Mecca or on Machu Picchu .<BR>
<BR>
Ok...so lets use McDonalds as an example:<BR>
<BR>
Because McDonalds seeks Omnipresence on earth (capitalistic systems ideal)<BR>
It will twist its way in to pretend to satisfy any culture to gain foothold.<BR>
But with it comes a price. It will in effect distorts cultural norms.<BR>
<BR>
Are we doing the same by interpreting/bringing in concepts like<BR>
"processed-cow-parts-ground-and-mixed-from-thousands-of-unknown-cattle-from-massive-filthy-stockyards-where-once-grass-eaters-are-filled-with-processed-corn-and-growth-hormones-and-shipped-thousands-of-miles-from-people-you-don't-know" <BR>
and yet hiding Its true description by giving it a nice friendly name like <B> "Hamburger?"<BR>
</B><BR>
Wouldn't it be better to allow a culture access to the truth about<BR>
these strange foreign customs and allow the people themselves to call it a more<BR>
appropriate and culturally astute description :<BR>
<BR>
<B>foreign-spirit-dead-animal-shreds 'tween-airy-white-breads<BR>
</B><BR>
Here see, the deeper more sustainable cultural perspective is preserved<BR>
from people who KNOW what THEY have been eating and might have even had <BR>
just butchered that morning.<BR>
<BR>
sorry to ruin anyones lunch!<BR>
bon appetite !<BR>
<BR>
ske:noh<BR>
Richard Zane Smith<BR>
Wyandotte Oklahoma<BR>
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