That is an apples and oranges comparison. While you speak of "the best English writers I know are native speakers of English", the post you compared to was "the best writer among the students at her school tend to be people from other countries who have undergone rigorous language training". (emphasis added)
While you speak of Hemingway and Steinbeck, the college instructor talks about students, one of whom has been extensively schooled in proper English and probably took the instruction seriously. This says nothing about the education of her other students and it doesn't hit on accents and understanding how they speak, it's about writing.
How many of us end our sentences with a preposition? That's a rhetorical question.
opinion, $.02
I don't. I encourage you to search all 649 of my posts.
Anyway, I commend you guys for being politically correct, being the rescuer, protecting the little guy, or whatever you want to call it. However, you should also realize that people here all come from different backgrounds. Again, the following statement has not been my experience at all: "the best writer among the students at her school tend to be people from other countries who have
undergone rigorous language training".
You can argue all you want. In my experience, the best English writers I know of any style of writing, at any education level, have been native speakers of English. Your backgrounds and experiences are different. So be it.
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