Are you the kind of person who grimaces every time you read a hacked up “txt”-like messages? Are you the kind of person who would rather listen to nails being dragged across chalk-boards and suffer the consequences than hack English and Aranglish words when sending mobile text messages or through Internet chat windows? Are you the kind of person who automatically label those who habitually use “ppl” to supposedly mean “people” and “w/” to mean “with” and rather shout out “LOL” than actually laugh as simple lazy individuals who should be put out of their misery out of compassion for future generations?

I must admit I am. I feel guilty if I shorten a word to miss its vowels, so rather than doing that, I actually dig into the vocabulary store to find a shorter synonym!

I know. Call me anal, but I don’t really care. Maybe it’s just my age, but it takes me an age (with a face that looks like it has just had a bad experience with a very bitter lemon) to read that “form” of communicable language – if you can call it that – and even longer to comprehend what the heck the person is talking about. It is even worse when it’s an adult who uses language in that abrogated form.

Consider this comment entered earlier today for instance. The system rightly (in my opinion) regarded it as spam and into the big bucket it went. Through my regular rifling through that bucket, I realised that it is legitimate and as such – and to the music of nails on chalk-boards – resuscitated it unmolested.

dis is so damn perfect…….da whole idea is awesum…..dis competition proves dt beauty is nt wearn biknis n standin naked infrnt ov da world…..beauty is 2 covr urself n luk hw elegant n beautiful dey luk lyk dis….keep it up!!!n u all miss arab contestant u all r superb…..

Sickening.