Oxford Round Table--which doesn't sound very "round"

[Charles Doyle]

In this morning's mail I received a form letter from the so-called Oxford Round Table ("at Harris Manchester College, Oxford, England"), an organization I'd never heard of. The letter begins:

<< It is understood by most scholars that a standard language is the foundation of a viable nation-state.  Established nations . . . cohere around a common national language that is spoken, written and perpetuatied by mass literacy and universal schooling.  However, a natural effect of migration of peoples to the United States and other developed countries has created an increased concern for bilingual education . . . . >>

"Most scholars," huh?  Is the Oxford Round Table a front for some right-wing anti-immigrant crusade?  What IS it--really?

--Charlie

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org