I'm not complaining or anything. It's just a thought.
People who really want to learn should absolutely be shown hospitality, assisted, and encouraged.
That said, any regular here would agree that the vast majority of questions pouring in lately are:
- haphazardly, nay, chaotically worded; so much so that one needs to do some pretty serious deciphering before the meaning becomes relatively clear
- indolently written (to put it mildly; I'm being super-polite here, and not at all judgmental, you see): some of the spelling and punctuation is downright insulting. Capitalization is a common feature in all European languages. The rules aren't very difficult to grasp. The spellchecker is an invasive feature on pretty much any software system these days. What gives?
- concern the least captivating aspects of the language
- have to do with homework assignments that students don't wish to be bothered with because they have lives and all
- have to do with moronic video games based on mass genocide in dismal surroundings
- posted by people who won't return after getting the answer they're looking for; or else by people who won't return even to get the answer they're looking for (as they have better things to do)
- and so forth.
I'm not saying such questions should be ignored or closed as soon as they're posted. But many folks here (of this I'm nearly certain) would appreciate it if superior questions were somehow
- Encouraged (rep points, or whatever: the actual method isn't very important)
- Promoted. Since all of us are from vastly different time zones, more often than not a good question gets pushed down the page and is soon drowned in the swamp of brazen illiteracy. More often than not only those who were fortunate enough to see it within two hours (or less) of posting and answer it or comment on it get to ponder on it further, research it, or discuss it.
The list of "featured" questions currently consists of two items: one is from the year of Our Lord 2012; its companion is a year older; both have been answered to the satisfaction of their respective OP's. Seriously?
Right now the list of the "newest" questions is adorned by the following two top posts:
"Is these terms are different?" and "Is a comma needed after following in this sentence?" In order to get to the latest interesting question, one has to navigate to the second page. How many newcomers are going to do this, do you think?
Can anything be done about this?