Back to Basics

This post is a little tangential to the topics of real estate and living in Ruidoso, but I have to get it off my chest. What's happening to Americans' ability to write and speak English correctly? The adverb is nearly disappearing from speech and highway signs -- as in the Texas slogan "Drive Safe." (should be "safely"). And 99% of Internet writers seem to have no grasp of the difference between "then" and "than" or between "your" and "you're."
I know some of you are rolling your eyes now, like "What difference does it make?" Well, I think it makes a big difference. It's not only a matter of knowing English, it's about having a command of the language so you can say what you mean and mean what you say, just like Horton. Without a sufficient vocabulary and a command of basic grammar, our communication skills suffer. And God knows, if there's one thing we need in the Information Age, it's the ability to communicate our truest thoughts and feelings in the most accurate and meaningful way.
So what prompted this little rant? Sugar Ray Leonard gave the wrong answer to this question: In the following sentence, which word is the verb? "Are you smarter than a 5th grader?" The correct answer is "are." What was your answer?