France attacks Google
Via The Economist:
Counterparts for spam (arrosage) and bug (bogue) can be created. But Google must be combatted, according French President Jacques Chirac. Seems the English language search engine is becoming too popular. It's French version is used for 74% of searches in the land that gave us Lady Liberty.
France has always protected its language from cultural invaders, so Chirac's desire to create a French-language rival should come as no surprise.
The head of France's Bibliotheque Nationale, Jean-Noel Jeanneney, has spoken of "the risk of crushing domination by America in defining the view that future generations have of the world."
"I have nothing in particular against Google," he told the magazine L'Express. "I simply note that this commercial company is the expression of the American system, in which the law of the market is king."
Search engine as cultural hegemon. Hmmm. And I thought it just helped me find maps around Paris and cheaper plane fares. And translate things to French! (via the google Language Tools site.)
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