Herb is always pronounced ‘herb’ as in the first syllable of herbie (goes to Monte Carlo, etc).
Btw, it’s or-re-garn-o, not o-reg-ano 
Where does the last r come from? It’s not in the spelling.
And for the definition of “knee”, is it based on whether the limb in question is used for walking, or is it based on the presence of a kneecap (which isn’t found in an elbow)?
Where the hell do people say “an hotel”?
Within the sound of Bow Bells. (Although, it would be better rendered as “an 'otel.”
My guess would be in Canada or areas with a lot of French-speaking tourists.
With a pronounced “h,” it has to be “a;” without, “an.”
As the rule I stated states, it depends on the sound, not the letter.
So we would all agree The Little Red Book is the best selling book of all time? To override tGBoWR we have to be unanimous, and the source would be us.
Personally, I’d go with Alaska because of the international date line.
When I first heard the “knees” question, because of the controversy, it’s usually stated in reverse, e.g. “how many knees does a dog have?”
I thought they were British before 1776?
See post 71. Even in 1774, some considered themselves more American than British; others identified more closely with their individual colonies than with Great Britain.
OK here’s a contraversial question I asked at an Oscar viewing party.
Who was the first African-American to win for Best Actor?
Denzel Washington
Sidney Poitier who won in 1963 is not African-American because he’s not American. He’s from the Bahamas.
Actually, Washington was the 7th President of the United States.
The first President was John Hanson, elected under the Articles of Confederation. Washington was the first President elected under our current Constitution.
The question was “Who is the personification of cold weather in the U.S.?” I said Old Man Winter, she was looking for Jack Frost. I argued for about 20 seconds to no avail.
Where it’s written is probably more interesting - ‘an hotel’ was correct in British English for the older generation, but has fallen out of fashion to the extent that it looks wrong to younger speakers. Understandably so, as the h is pronounced for the word in isolation in spoken English.
There’s no shortage of people keen to uphold standards in the mother tongue, though, so you encounter ‘an hotel’ now and again in written English. It sounds a bit pretentious IMHO, like a gotcha to the younger generation, but it’s not wrong.
[spoiler]From his wiki page - Born in Miami while his parents were visiting, Sidney Poitier grew up on Cat Island in the Caribbean.
I don’t know if he’s a US citizen but he could be. He’s served as a diplomat for the Bahamas so that is the citizenship he uses.[/spoiler]
I think most questions about language do not have definitive answers. Language is changing all the timer, and people use it in different ways. It’s just a tool for communication.
And as regards ‘Grammar Experts’ - sorry, who died and made you boss? Why should we listen to you about what’s right and what ain’t. Besides, most of their books are a few years old, and so they haven’t caught up with the latest trends.
If you are silly enough to fill your speech with so much slang, local colloquialisms, and stylistic devices that no one understands you, well, that’s your problem - but it doesn’t mean you’re wrong.
As for naming things (like America vs Columbia) - I always thought the first person there should have naming rights. Anyone know what the native inhabitants called it?
What was his citizenship status when he won?
Yeah I remember something about this, but I didn’t remember to google “Articles of Confederation.”
Because, as of 2013, “expertise” is conferred by experience and credentials. Part of this is knowing the most recent research in the field as well as the field’s consensus on the matter.
Whom would you believe? 
What about
a) First manned flight?
b) Only manmade object visible from space?
Too imprecise and open to argument.
a) Although you could argue for balloons, there are stories of soldiers being placed on board catapults and trebuchets (I suspect not necessarily volunteers) to get over walls.
b) Apart from city lights on earth (depending on where you class space as beginning at), there are 6 lower halves of Apollo Lunar modules, 3 Lunar rovers and various pieces scientific apparatus, astronaut boots and flags visible from the surface of the moon - because that’s where they are. Then there are the pair of Voyager spacecraft somewhere in the outer reaches of the solar system…
You should obviously use “a,” since the “h” in those words is not silent.
(Unless, of course, you’re a Cockney or have a similar accent.)
Depends on how you define “space” and “manmade object.” I’d guess that there a number of man-made lakes that would be visible. This cite says that the most commonly definition of “space” starts at 100 km, or a little over 60 miles. The ISS and the shuttles orbited at about 200 miles, and you could even barely make out parts of the Great Wall of China at that altitude. I’d think at 60 you’d see a lot more.