Xref: utzoo comp.unix.wizards:12552 news.sysadmin:1556 sci.lang:3372 Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!clyde!att!osu-cis!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ukma!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!porthos.rutgers.edu!maffray From: maffray@porthos.rutgers.edu (Frederic Maffray) Newsgroups: comp.unix.wizards,news.sysadmin,sci.lang Subject: Re: sexist language Summary: Joe Xenophobe Message-ID: Date: 18 Nov 88 03:49:53 GMT References: <1460@ucsfcca.ucsf.edu> <698@packard.UUCP> <3803@imag.imag.fr> Organization: Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, N.J. Lines: 26 In article <410@babbage.acc.virginia.edu>, Alex Colvin writes: Pierre Laforgue wrote: #> Why don't you use the latin language, instead of decadent #> ones as is the english ? ... #> The french language is more subtil than english : ... # From the folks that brought us that admirable word "Chauvinisme". It's funny, this newsgroup gets cluttered every month by yet another (American) person who starts again the usual discussion about English beign the richest language, with the most nuances, the most words, etc. In a word "the best language in the world." This usually does not even elicit accusations of chauvinism. But if one person who happens to be French does just the same, obviously with his tongue in cheek, he is immediately flamed. [Reminds me of the case of the Dutch person who posted a month ago and who got flamed by Americans for his spelling mistakes.] Why don't you let "French = chauvinistic" on the same shelf with "Jew = greedy", "Black = dirty" and "Hispanic = lazy"? (Assuming of course that you do not subscribe to these stereotypes in the first place, which I may doubt.) Fred