Down with apostrophes!

When something becomes too difficult or a burden, just ban it! That appears to be the philosophy that the city of Birmingham in the UK used when the city council decided to ban the apostrophe from all city signs:

The council said the move had been taken for the purposes of consistency and to avoid costs and confusion over whether place names should ever take an apostrophe.

As absurd as this story is, there is more:

However the decision was described as "absolute defeatism" by John Richards, the founder of the Apostrophe Protection Society.

"This is setting a terrible example," Mr Richards said. "It seems retrograde, dumbing down really. All over Birmingham, and in other cities, teachers are trying to teach children correct grammar and punctuation. Now children will go around Birmingham and see utter chaos."

Yes, there is an Apostrophe Protection Society for those of you who love this particular mark of punctuation.

While I don’t think the ban will bring the end of the world, as Mr. Richards might have you believe. Nor do I think using proper punctuation places a heavy burden on the city coffers. Proper punctuation is important and this can be seen as a "dumbing down" of society.

What do you think about this ban? Absurd? A good dose of common sense? Leave a comment below and let us know your thoughts. Inquiring minds want to know!

Related posts

• Edgar A. Poe: 1 author, 2 cities, and a fight over where he should be buried
• Free books encourage children to read

Read More: Misc.