Sad really. After getting through a series of posts and stories about english teachers having no idea about grammar, I have emailed a professor who is one of the authors of the Cambridge Grammar.

I started with "Grammar in Australian schools" as the subject, then extended it to "Grammar in Australian schools (really - this is about me getting angry in grade 5, and still being angry)".

I did introduce my rant with a paragraph about how I am sure he doesn't need to hear about what followed, but stressed that I just couldn't hold it in.

After I bitched about school and grammar, I wondered whether my frequent use of 'but' and 'and' to start sentences is pathological. Then I said that "...there should be some kind of support network for people who can't let go of the pain caused by wrong teachers. I could go to a meeting place every Thursday night and say "My name is Lynne." (Hi, Lynne!) "And Ms X said I couldn't start a sentence with a joining word." We could all work together to overcome our pain and bitterness.

I reckon it counts as an email from a crank.