The Consonantal Divide, 1

       Consider some ironies about letters and sounds:  “h” begins with a vowel; “u” begins with a consonant.

       I don’t mean the sounds of the letters, I mean the names of the letters.  The consonant “h” is pronounced “aitch.”  It begins with a vowel "a."   The vowel “u” is pronounced “you.”  It begins with the consonant “y.”

       Another irony is that the "www" of World Wide Web has nine syllables and the MUCH longer "World Wide Web" with 12 letters has only three syllables.  Say "www":  [dub-uhl-you dub-uhl-you dub-uhl-you]--nine.

       Also, if you listen to the letter "w," you hear what that consonant consists of..."double u"...now turn the printed "w" into written "w," you will SEE the two u's, which are both vowels and not a consonant!