> huge penalty I think it's more like, a few people get the (dubious) bonus of speaking the lingua franca as their mother tongue. (The downside being they almo

> huge penalty I think it's more like, a few people get the (dubious) bonus of speaking the lingua franca as their mother tongue. (The downside being they almost inevitably only speak the one language). Calling it an advantage is more correct, as, if US/UK folks disappeared over night, it would still make sense for everyone to learn a shared language for commerce/science/whatever.