CAPSULE COMMENTARY: “Language Laws”

“The Christian Science Monitor reports that Brazilian authorities are cracking down on Brazilians who commit the dastardly act of speaking English words. You know, words such as ‘sale’ or ‘overtime’ or ‘summer.’ Even ‘e-mail,’ ‘mouse,’ and ‘delete.’ Brazilian lawmaker Aldo Rebelo exclaimed (in Portuguese, presumably), ‘Basta. It is time to fight this disrespect of our language.’ Rebelo is the author of a new bill designed to ‘promote and defend’ the national language. The bill, which unanimously has passed the first committee stage, would require that Portuguese be used in everyday speech. Meanwhile, Poland recently passed a law prohibiting the usage of foreign words without a Polish translation provided alongside. Perhaps the Brazilian and Polish authorities will organize an international language-purity conference, perhaps even co-sponsored by the U.S. English-Only crowd. But what language would the speakers us?”