From: Ernest Cline (ernestcline@mindspring.com)
Date: Thu May 06 2004 - 16:45:44 CDT
In dubious hopes of ending this argument, let me offer up the following
thought experiment. Normal Latin script, Gaelic, and Fraktur while they
have all diverged to a certain extent, have not diverged to the point
where additions made to one of them is unimplementable on the other.
To wit, altho the various hooked, curled, and barred letters added to
the normal Latin script to accommodate other languages could be
implemented in Gaelic or Fraktur. LATIN SMALL LETTER D WITH CURL
would look peculiar in Gaelic, but it looks peculiar in normal Latin too,
and it would be distinctively recognizable as such to anyone who
knew both Gaelic and normal Latin.
Clearly, if Phoenician and Hebrew be unifiable, it should be possible
to do the same with the additions that have been made to Hebrew and
apply them to Phoenician in such a way that for anyone familiar with
both scripts, the addition would be both distinctive and recognizable
when applied to Phoenician. If it can't be done then clearly they
should not be unified. If they can, well why being able to do this is
necessary if they are to be unified, it isn't sufficient and the debate
can continue to rage. I am not familiar enough with both scripts to
say wether this necessary condition for unification can be met.
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