FOLLOW-UP – AT 10:55 A.M. ET:  The president of the University of New Hampshire has now responded to the story – which went viral – of a speech guide published on his campus.  He comes to the right conclusion.  From Reuters: 

MANCHESTER, N.H. (Reuters) - The president of the University of New Hampshire on Wednesday distanced himself from a campus language guide discouraging faculty and students from terms it warns could cause offense, including "American."

The university's "Bias-Free Language Guide" also advises against using the term "poor," instead recommending the phrase "person living at or below the poverty line," drew criticism from conservatives in the state who called it an example of political correctness run amok.

The problem with using the word "American," according to the guide, is that it "assumes the U.S. is the only country in North and South America." It suggests using "U.S. citizen or resident of the U.S." as alternatives.

Of course that's absurd.  The name of the country is The United States of America, and we are the only people who actually call ourselves Americans.  I've never heard a Venezuelan call herself an American, or a Canadian for that matter. 

The publication was created in 2013, according to a university official, but generated controversy earlier this week when several conservative websites decried it as a flagrant example of political correctness at American universities.

"Sounds like a starting point for wasting taxpayer money," wrote blogger Steve MacDonald on the conservative website Granite Grok. He referred to the guide as a "politically correct starter kit."

The university's president, Mark Huddleston, said on Wednesday that the guide was not school policy.

"I am troubled by many things in the language guide, especially the suggestion that the use of the term 'American' is misplaced or offensive," Huddleston said in a statement. "The only UNH policy on speech is that it is free and unfettered on our campuses. It is ironic that what was probably a well-meaning effort to be 'sensitive' proves offensive to many people, myself included."

COMMENT:  Good statement.  We don't need speech guides or speech codes.  The best speech code ever written is the First Amendment. 

July 30, 2015