> In this example are they really arguing about the something in question or are they arguing about the definition of "allophone" without realizing it. The foll

> In this example are they really arguing about the something in question or are they arguing about the definition of "allophone" without realizing it. The followup question is "what is the reason why this edge case is relevant?" and "if this edge case isn't relevant, is the term 'allophone' even useful?" I do not believe they are arguing about the definition either, nor do I believe that the classification has any use as whichever way it falls changes nothing. Linguistics is a field plagued by classification for it's own sake, as many others are. Objects are classified but no conclusions can be drawn from the classification. — perhaps it is but simply a form of mental file organization.