[WikiEN-l] Re: Proper Foreign Names

[Stevertigo]

I see my initial suggestion meets with some resistance. Some of it is
reasonable, some not.
Perhaps it will be suggested again.

As for Czechoslovakia... I never claimed to be particular to those
interests... rather the people who live in Praha dont call it Prague.

I read all of Mavs points, and as usual he ignores any strong argument
against his position. Quite Ignoratio Elenchi.  It did clear up some
particular points, but these were mixed in so much triteness -- "your
minority opinion", "Think of who gets harmed most" -- its hard to gauge the
merits of his reasoning -- if it comes from a grocery shelf or not.

I asked a rather lofty and expansive question: "IS the area of language
forever to be anissue where the prime directive of  NPOV is undermined?" To
wit Mav replied:

    "What? How is it at all neutral to replace terms known by the majority
of
     English speakers with terms that are only known by a few? "

Once again he assumes the context of English as being limited to a majority
interest - rather than deal with the possibility that conventions can
change, if reasonable.  Maverick goes on:

    "I would venture to  guess that there is no English speaker alive who
knows all
     3,000 or so languages in the world. Sure, they would be perfectly at
home with your
      "convention" but the rest of us won't."

Sigh. This is perhaps not the time for this discussion.  Granted, I prefaced
the idea as a highly academic one - one that would require some changed
minds. It no doubt would arouse some ire, as such things tend.  I also
predicted where that typical ire would come from and I was spot-on. :}

Respectfully,
-Steven