aka: "LOL JK"
Call me old school if you must, but I just don't get kids today. And yes, I am fully aware I fit into that category still. But I remember a time before cell phones. Now that's certainly not like saying I remember a time before TV, or cars, or fire, but it's something. When I was younger, I had to jot down all my friend's and family's names and numbers on a single piece of paper, fold it 8 times and slide it into my wallet. If I ever lost that paper, I lost all my friends as well. After calling people enough, I eventually memorized phone numbers, but now, I can't even tell you mine (I never call it, except when it's lost - fyi, never drop it in the toilet, no matter how many times you call, you won't find it, water limits sound wave capability). But no one needs phone numbers, they just know the names the click on their phone and magically begin dialing. The only reason for numbers on a cell phone nowadays is to text people anyhow. And this scares more than North Korea, biological warfare and clowns combined.
We are losing our language. English is spoken all over the world (yet most people I know here can't seem to master it), so like the black man tired of having his words spoken by nerdy white guys, we came up with a brand new language. LOL, TTYL, FTW, CYL. These are all just random letters, and most of them don't even use the right letter (it's "see ya later" not "c ya later" - also, shouldn't it be "LA?" "Laugh Aloud?"). But how far will this go. In the book "1984," Big Brother had workers create an evolving language, and took out words that were deemed unsuitable, or negative towards the country. Words' definitions were also changed repeatedly. I am a believer that the beauty of language is that it changes, adapts, and becomes current, but most of these text phrases aren't even words. How bout this: PWI - Parent Walked In. Come on now, shouldn't it really be: SUSTAFNMMJCI - Shut Up, Stop Talking About Friday Night My Mom Just Came In.
When I was younger I made up words too, especially around parents. Certain activities were given different names. We had fishing for one thing, and drinking Gatorade for another. I don't need to specify any further, but the people that mattered knew what they meant. And if my parents heard me say one of the words they wouldn't think twice. But if I had been on the phone with a friend and said: DYGTAFTPWYPAG (Did You Get The Alcohol For Tonight's Party While Your Parents Are Gone), I'm pretty sure they would have wondered.
The point I'm trying to make, is that kids need to be more creative, not just lazy. Perhaps it all spurred from kids with a limited text plan and were unable to master the phone pad typing skill known as T9. If that's the case, how about just waiting a few minutes until class was over and speaking to the other person. I worry that our language will soon become nothing but letters, and we will forget what those letters even stand for.
And occasionally those letters don't even stand for anything at all, just a one-time misspell that went awry. Take the word "Pwn" for instance. Some person one day, pressed "P" rather than "O" and suddenly a brand new word was created. The problem is the word means exactly the same thing ("You got pwned" = "You got owned").
But where and when does it stop? I really hope it doesn't come to a mass extinction of all children for the benefit of all mankind and the English language, that would be a travesty. I think the end has come when we begin teaching Abbreviated English and people begin getting their degrees in that. But then when does it stop from there? Does the U.S.A. simply become "Da U?" Will people eventually "Pay they T 2 da IR on Ap 15th?" I hope not. I say spare the children and save our language. It's the only we have...for now.
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