As I was watching the Scripps Spelling Bee finals last night, it occured to me that this "English As Official Language" movement is even more stupid than I originally opined.  I mean, our language is derivative of other languages, and we should acknowldege that.

Anyway, our local girl did well, coming in third, after being reinstated following a very rare judges’ error:

She spelled "h-e-c-h-s-h-e-r," and the judges debated for a few seconds before ringing the bell, signaling that she was wrong. They spelled it "h-e-c-h-s-c-h-e-r," with a second "c." The word means something has been certified as kosher.

Saryn stepped to the side and sat down with her parents after the bell rang. They didn’t know that at least two sets of parents immediately went to the information table outside the hall. They had the Webster’s Third New International Dictionary, the official dictionary recognized by the bee, the so-called speller’s bible.

According to the dictionary, Saryn had spelled it right. But the only people who could contest it on her behalf were her parents, and they were on stage. The matter was brought to the attention of Ben Flynt, the Winston-Salem Journal’s spell-ing-bee director, who was in the audience.

Newspapers across the country sponsor the competitors, who advance by winning local competitions organized by the newspapers. Saryn was the winner of the 66th Winston-Salem Journal Regional Spelling Bee in March.

Flynt took the information to the Scripps officials, who took it under advisement. A few seconds later, as the room was told that the next round would begin, it was also announced that the officials had made a mistake – Saryn was back in the bee.

Saryn got utzed on "icteritious", a word for the yellowish color of jaundice, in the 12th round.