Australia: Fed-up politician says he has had “a gutful” of Americanisms
Australians have been told that they should fight to retain their own language and not adopt too many Americanisms.
The Queensland state premier, who has recently been lambasted for referring to a female politician in the state parliament as a “Shiela”, is concerned that an increased use of American words is threatening the Australian language.
The Guardian reports the politician thus: “I’ve had a gutful. We don’t need diapers, candy, ketchip, trash cans and fries, we have nappies, lollies, tomato sauce, rubbish tins and chips. All we hear are Yankee phrases and we are losing our own language. America might control the world but we must control and keep our own language.”
The Guardian states that the use of “robust” language in Australian parliament is quite acceptable. According to the newspaper, one politician recently referred to the prime minister John Howard as an “arse-licker” – and then refused to retract the comment, saying it was a “great Australian phrase”.
