I've seen a poem (maybe Bill D posted it?) in which all of the words are spelled correctly, but many are the wrong homonyms (did I spell "homonyms" write?). I use the English spelling on words such as "realise" because it's easier to hit the "s" key than the "z" - I always manage to type "x" instead.

I can spell, but I think the spell checkers come in handy for people who can't. They shouldn't be viewed as the ultimate authority though. They're just a quick, easy way to help improve writing. They're not perfect, but they're better than nothing.

When I type, I try to be as correct as possible. When I read, I read for understanding. If a person's spelling errors don't get in the way of that, I ignore them. Fore exampel, I can reed this sentense with no porbelm.

While spelling errors may offend the sensibilities of some, the thought that people are made to fear sharing ideas because they can't spell worth a damn offends me a lot more.

In my job, I score kids' essay questions. The ideas seem to flow freely from dyslexic (and other spelling impaired kids) until a certain age. After that, they quit trying. I don't know whether they get embarrassed about spelling or what happens, but a kid who would once write three paragraphs of wonderful, badly spelled ideas, writes one or two badly spelled sentences. My guess is they've met up with a teacher or other kids who perhaps called them ignoramuses. When expressing your pet peeve doesn't serve to educate and only hurts people, it's perhaps time to take a step back and see if you really need to voice those thoughts.

Anyone who respects language will do their best to make sure others can use it to the best of their ability, and not call them names for making mistakes. Anyone who respects people will care about what they have to say, not how they say it.