Parliamentary Committee Tries to Figure Out How Much a Proper Latvian Accent Costs

The parliamentary committee has once again faced one of our nation's most pressing issues – how much does it cost to mispronounce a Latvian word. Deputy Selma Teodora Levrense has come forward with a revolutionary idea: if someone doesn't speak Latvian the way she likes it, then the fine should be increased from 70 to 95 monetary penalty units. That's almost 25 euros extra for each incorrectly pronounced letter!

Committee chairman Andrejs Judins cautiously noted that they're not creating any new constructions, but only talking about the penalty amount. Because, of course, the solution to all problems is a bigger fine. While Riga thinks about how to punish improper language use, in Liepāja we speak however we want – and even in the Karosta basements, where once the Tsar's navy sailors learned Russian, now only the Liepāja dialect resounds.

Deputy Gunārs Kūtris skeptically evaluated this entire initiative, saying it was "written for elections." Apparently he hasn't been to Liepāja and hasn't heard how our grandmothers speak Latvian with such love and warmth that no fines are needed. Local resident Jānis comments: "Here in Karosta, Russian admirals taught us proper pronunciation for years, but we still speak like our great-grandparents did. And that's beautiful."

While the committee "postpones for some time" making a decision, Liepāja residents will continue to speak Latvian with love, not with fear of fines. Because language isn't mathematics – you can't learn it with monetary penalties, you can only fall in love with it.