Blurred word crimes: Policy interpretation leads to a scary assumption

As I write this, Al Yankovic’s brilliant parody of “Blurred Lines” has finished its umpteenth play on my iPad. Not only is “Word Crimes” a classic Weird Al takeoff, I actually enjoy his version better than the original song! All the catchy melody with far more intelligent lyrics— what’s not to like? 

Years ago history teachers went gaga when their “academic subject most likely to be dissed by high schoolers” achieved momentary pop glory via Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire.” Now English teachers everywhere are giddily emailing/sharing/pinning/or whatevering Al’s video to friends and family, saying “At last someone gets it!” “Eats, Shoots and Leaves” may still be considered the grammarian classic by some. But that was print, and this is a Weird Al music video. Verb tense, possessive use and sentence diagrams gone viral pop culture, baby! Whom may has thunk it?