To add another facet to the debate:  One of the reasons so many people (ppl) have difficulty spelling is we have become a society that does not read for pleasure, as a general rule.  Of course there are individuals in our culture who do read for pleasure and some freakishly good spellers who never read, however I'm referring to the majority here, the regular Joe and Jane who do not read other than what is required.  This of course means we are not seeing the correct spelling of words often enough for the spelling to sink in properly. The whole 'practice makes perfect' problem can not be fixed without loads and loads of reading the correct spelling over and over and over and over.  My point is I would not blame either the schools or the (lazy) people who do not spell well.  Sometimes it's just something as simple as not seeing the correct way of spelling the word, or for that matter wording the grammar. 

Yes, I like to heal. No, I've never been shadow.

peepull ahr dumn. 

Dikymo: Attacking ignorance and stupidity with ignorance AND stupidity since 1812.

Okay Shi, I only use ppl when blathering on about whatever with you guys. I never use ppl anywhere outside of this game. I am not saying ppl is an accepted shorthand of people, I was saying I was being lazy and using it like one would use don't. And since I am speaking to people that understand what ppl means and see it everyday, I would think it is acceptable. But I will correct myself when in your company from now on. :P

 The reason I lay the blame on the school system, is because they are the ones passing these kids. Instead of dealing with the problem, these kids are shuffled off in another direction to become someone else's problem. Unfortuantely, there are good teachers out there, but they fall into the category simply because of the old phrase "guilt by association". If the kids want to be lazy and not bother with learning, then why are they being passed? Why has it become acceptable to encourage laziness in our youth by letting them take the easy route? 

By letting these kids pass and go on, they are helping to ruin their future. They grow up thinking this is how it is, and then they hit the wall that says they aren't good enough. I dropped out of school when I was in the 9th grade and went to work in an iron foundry. I somehow managed to get my G.E.D. and although it is supposed to be the equivalent of a high school diploma, it isn't. People look at me like I am some kind of moron because I didn't graduate from high school. And I have paid for it. My only saving grace is being a vet, if it weren't for that I would probably be digging ditches. 

And that is what we are setting these kids up for by allowing them to pass. Allowing them to get away with using words like curopt, greaddy, and sitizens. And in just a few short years, we are all going to be drinking Gatorade and trying to grow our plants with it, all the while wondering why the crops are dying. And Shihli is going to be talking like a gay.

*the last part of the rant is only for ppl, oops I used ppl, that have seen the movie. I have no problem with anyone's sexual orientation.* 

I'm inclined to disagree with Shihli on the laziness factor, but also disagree with Luc about education.

Lets be fair to the rest of the populace.  It is not laziness (entirely) which has created the vast rift in our societies literary ability.  It is also not the governments belief that we cannot discriminate against stupid people in our educational system.  It is both.  To be fair, there are a fair number of people in America who are to stupid to be literate.  This is not their fault, they simply are that stupid.  However, there aren't that many of them.  There are also many people who do not have access to greater educational instructors than English 1 in High School. (Did you know that is not even a requirement in some states?  My wife graduated New Mexico with an A-B average.  She cannot spell for crap, do calculus, etc) My writing abilities stem from a deep-seated desire to read at a very early age.  I can remember reading Terry Brooks in fourth grade with a dictionary next to me to figure out half the shit he was spouting.  Thus, I will not compare my reading/writing abilities to everyone else.  To say that "x, x, and x" are proof that the educational system is not defunct would be to dig through a warehouse of broken wine bottles for the only few intact.  It is not the greatest comparison.  In contrast, blaming the educational system is not the answer either.  Pre-collegiate education was designed for only a few reasons.  The ability to read, write, perform simple math, and have a basic understanding of your place in the 'scheme of things'.  That's about it.  Further grammatical, mathematical, literary, poetic, and artistic growth has always been left up to the individual students for a reason.  "We can't all be Einstein"

My belief is in agreement with Dragons.  We are breeding (right now) a generation of people who's only program for typing/writing automatically corrects their errors and our ability not to look like complete idiots deteriorates quickly.  One suggestion I would make if I were the professor for that particular student is using Word.  If your spelling skills are entirely dependent on a computer program, you should probably type everything IN that computer program to 'check' before you ship it anywhere else.  Especially if you are in a position that infers a greater than average intelligence.  (aka, college)

I've written worse....Microsoft Word/Grammer Checks/Spell checks are the calculator of the English Language.

lol Yes well I did use ppl in place of people. Taking the lazy route is all. Kind of like using don't in place of do not. But you see my point with this guy right? Problem is, if you read most of the entries the ppl in my class make, you would see it isn't just him. It is horrible to think about how education has become something that is helpful to get along in life, but not exactly necessary.

I had to stop reading, my mother has a Juris Doctorate and I've read/followed legal speak. This guy needs major help if he wants to get anywhere.

I did however get a chuckle when referring to spelling abilities you used ppl in your opening paragraph :D

"--Many class changes. You won't like the ones made
to your own class but you'll think the changes made to the 9 other
classes are all overpowered." ~Tigole, Blizzard CM