The above quotation from Monsieur Dumpty is most apt, especially within the context of this thread.

I remember a bizarre conversation I had back in the 1950s with a fellow who was hanging out in the University District, but was not a student. He favored the abolition of all dictionaries. In fact, he favored the abolition of all books and other reading material. He was cognizant of the fact (one of the rare facts he was cognizant of, actually) that the English language had a rich vocabulary of over 600,000 words, each of which signified a concept, and that by mixing and matching, one could fine-tune meaning quite precisely.

He maintained that this led only to confusion, bewilderment, and ultimately to misunderstanding. His recommendation for saving the world was to issue a mandate reducing the English language to no more than 350 words. Think of all the money society could save if it didn't have to spend it on such things as schools, colleges, and universities.

I don't know what ever became of him, but last I heard, he was seen in a back alley somewhere in the University District shopping for lunch in a Dumpster.

Don Firth