The main reason English is used so much is because of the British (and later US) empire, and not because it's easy as a second language (that depends heavily on

The main reason English is used so much is because of the British (and later US) empire, and not because it's easy as a second language (that depends heavily on what someone's first language is). Empires always spread their official language far and wide, no matter how "easy" it is. I agree that language purity stuff is related to xenophobia.