English as she is legislated
Over at Johnson, the Economist’s language blog, they’re having a little fun with Homer, Illinois, which has tried to make a splash for itself in the news by making English the official language of the town.
I commend the post to your attention, mainly because it reprints the entire text of the resolution, which is predictably hilarious.
Stay for the comments, which include submissions by some Defenders of Our Borders and Way of Life. In fairness, the comments in favor of the ordinance are considerably more literate than the ordinance itself. Not that it takes much to accomplish that feat.
Comments
How dare you use American Sign Language in Homer! You learn to speak, and you speak English dagnabbit.
Posted by: Luke Morris | July 18, 2010 12:20 AM
The town in question is not downstate Homer, Illinois, population 1200, but the Chicago suburb of Homer Glen, Illinois, population 24000.
Posted by: Bill White | July 18, 2010 12:55 PM
Yowza! Forgetting their usage and looking just at what the heck they are trying to say, they seem to be saying that
1) English is already the official language of their state and the U.S.
2) They are asking for no changes to any law
3) They have not been enforcing the existing law and support the idea of enforcing it now
Did I get that right?
Posted by: Tracey Chen | July 19, 2010 2:39 PM