Failing English

In my daily discourses, I notice how pitifully poor my cohorts working vocabulary.  Seemingly lost in a myriad of colloquialisms and profanity interspersed for variety.  Must we always offend with each opening of our lips.  Surely, some attention must have been paid in grammar school when the vocabulary building exercises were laid upon us.  Fore I know most have college degrees from one sort of institution of higher learning or another.  My esteemed colleagues from the Ivy League variety do exercise a more refined discourse for mostly vane pursuits but for the others, please buy a dictionary and read it!  I do not raise myself to any higher, loftier position just awareness that there are quite a number of words that can be interjected for the banal comments that I witness on a daily (hourly sometimes) basis. 

For those times when I try to elevate the conversation to a more refined level while discussing simple concepts like what does one wish to eat this evening, I get doe-eyed responses.  Far be it from me to try to increase awareness of words that may be long forgotten.  For this effort, I am usually accused of the felonious crime of sarcasm.  Not at all, wit and sarcasm are not synonymous.  Should a sense of having a suitable vocabulary be cause for ridicule and avarice? I should think not but then again when surrounded by the technically educated (trade school variety) one must adjust ones expectations. 

I have also found those who make their living in the realm of expressing themselves verbally are just as guilty.  I am referring to the attorneys, clerics and politicos.  Those who are called upon to convince the populace of their point of view, beliefs or message.  Time to raise the expectations of our common man.  Education has failed us and this is never good.