Uncalled-for/ The Ukraine

[Kathy Paxton]

Dr. Cleminson wrote:
>This is interesting.  I (as a speaker of British English) have always
>felt that the definite article with these country names was
>obligatory, and its absence from any of them (including the Ukraine)
>grates on the ear.  I wonder whether it is Ukrainian familiarity with
>American rather than British English (via the diaspora perhaps) that
>has led them to consider the American norm as "correct" and to read
>all kinds of non-existent political implications into the British
>one.  Personally I feel rather affronted by Ukrainians telling me how
>to speak my own language: I don't tell them how to speak theirs,
>after all.  Wouldn't it be more civilised (with an s or a z (zed or a
>zee)) just to accept it as another instance of Anglo-American
>divergence and leave it at that?
>

To which "The Bohdan The Peter The Rekshynskyj" replied:
> Well said!
>
>Cheers from the chap from THE BRITAIN!
>
>All give praise to THE ENGLAND!
>
>                        Cheers,
>
>                                                       The Bohdan
>
>
>
>PS - 'tis AMERICAN English which is NOW the "lingua franca" of the world.
>         Sorry, old the chap!
>
>  ;-)

Excuse me, but thatwas uncalled-for.  Dr. Cleminson made a very good point.
 There was no need to resort to the "We are the best!" attitude that is all
to prevalent, not to mention dangerous, these days.

--Kathy Paxton (kathyp11 at aol.com)