House Passes Measure Removing Word ‘Lunatic’ From Federal Law
WASHINGTON (CBS DC) – The word “lunatic” will be stricken from federal law under legislation that passed the House by a vote of 398-1 on Wednesday.
The congressional action is the most recent effort to eliminate language from the U.S. code that has become outdated or demeaning. Two years ago, Congress removed references in federal law to the term “mental retardation.”
The legislation cites one instance in banking regulation that refers to the authority of a bank to act as “committee of estates of lunatics” on guardianship issues. The word is derived from the Latin word from moon and ancient beliefs that people could become “moonstruck” by lunar movements.