Psycholinguistics to the resku

Having chosen English as the preferred language in the EEC, the European

Parliament has commissioned a feasibility study in ways of improving

efficiency in communications between Government departments.

"European officials have often pointed out that English spelling is

unnecessarily difficult, for example: cough, plough, rough, through and

thorough. What is clearly needed is a phased programme of changes to

iron out these anomalies. The programme would, of course, be

administered by a committee staff at top level by participating nations.

In the first year, for example, the committee would suggest using 's'

instead of the soft 'c'. Sertainly sivil servants in all sities would

resieve this news with job. Then the hard 'c' could be replaced by 'k'

sinse both letters are pronounsed alike. Not only would this klear up

konfusion in the minds of klerikal workers, but typewriters kould be

made with one less letter.

There would be growing enthusiasm when in the sekond year, it was

announsed that the troublesome 'ph' would henseforth be writtne 'f'.

This would make words like fotograf' twenty persent shorter in print.

In the third year, publik akseptanse of the new spelling kan be expekted

to reash the stage where more komplikated shanges are possible.

Governments would enkourage the removal of double leters whish have

always been a deterent to akurate speling.

We would al agre that the horible mes of silent 'e's in the languag is

disgrasful. Therefor we kould drop them and kontinu to read and writ as

though nothing had hapend. By this tim it would be four years sins the

skem began and peopl would be reseptive to steps sutsh as replasing

'th' by 'z'. Perhaps zen ze funktion of 'w' kould be taken on by 'v',

vitsh is, after al, half a 'w'. Shortly after zis, ze unesesary 'o'

kould be dropd from vords kontaining 'ou'. Similar arguments vud of kors

be aplid to ozer kombinations of leters.

Kontinuing zis proses yer after yer, ve vud eventuli hav a reli sensibl

riten styl. After tventi yers zer vud be no mor trubls, difikultis and

evrivun vud find it ezi tu understand ech ozer. Ze drems of the Guvermnt

vud finali hav kum tru."