Since June 28, 2009, the world has engaged in Orwellian new-speak in reporting on Honduras. As this is on-going and seems to be here to stay, I figure it may be appropriate to start writing a dictionary for those of us who prefer to know what they are talking about in the news. So here goes, first the new-speak word, then the translation in normal language.

Constitutional president: Coupster.

Coup d’état: Action to stop a coup d’état.

Coupster: Constitutional interim president.

Resistance: Rebels, who support the coupster.

Military regime: The democratic institutions that uphold the constitution.

As you see, it is slightly confusing to try to keep in mind what words really mean when they are notoriously used in the opposite sense of their true meaning. Just like George Orwell wrote in 1984, that is why new-speak exists.