Duma Demands Russian Officials Not Use Foreign Words When Russian Counterparts Exist – But Uses Them in Making That Demand

Paul Goble

            Staunton, Dec. 14 – The absurdity of the Putin regime’s efforts to cut Russia off from the world, efforts that recall Stalin-era claims that the Russians invented baseball, are highlighted in the Duma’s approval of a bill that will impose penalties on any official who uses a foreign loan word when a Russian word exists.

            But in passing the measure on first reading, the Duma deputies themselves have violated its provisions, Anatoly Baranov of the Forum-MSK portal says. They use the English word “project” when they could easily have used the Russian one predlozheniye and the word “federal” when soyuzny is available (forum-msk.org/material/news/18103982.html).

            As so often when reporting on developments in Putin’s Russia, one feels compelled to say to oneself at least that one isn’t making this up.