Category: Language Matters
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Reverse Hijacking of Liberal-Leftist Lingo
Leftists are consummate linguistic hijackers. I've been making this point since the inception of this weblog back in aught-four. I won't repeat my examples. It just now occurred to me that a useful tactic in the culture war might be the reverse hijacking of liberal-leftist lingo. I have done this three times in the last…
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Moralizing
'Moralizing' is what liberals call moral discourse, just as 'judgmentalism' is what they call the making of moral judgments. 'Hypocrite' is what they call those who preach high standards. Am I being fair? Fair enough. You are free to nuance the point to your satisfaction so long as you don't miss the truth behind my…
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Is ‘Too’ a Sexist Word?
Here. (HT: Karl White) The culture of narcissism on full display. Did this lass major in Grievance Studies? In other news, Melissa Harris-Perry objects to 'hard worker' because it supposedly demeans the experience of slaves. And then there is Dr. Ben Carson who has liberals foaming at the mouth again, this time over his sensible…
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The Great ‘Sanctuary City’ Slander?
Remove the question mark from the above caption and you have the title for a New York Times editorial for 16 October. Here are the first three paragraphs with my comments interspersed: Lawmakers in Washington and around the country are in an uproar over what they derisively call “sanctuary cities.” These are jurisdictions that limit…
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“He Who Hesitates is Lost”
As you know, Yogi Berra, master of the malapropism, died in September. In the Berra spirit, I cooked up the following during last night's troubled sleep: Said by me to Berra in the presence of Peter: He who hesitates is lost. Berra: You mean Peter? What is Berra failing to understand? (I would continue with…
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How Not to Define ‘Atheism’
Nonsense, say I. Note first that atheism cannot be identified with the lack of theistic belief, i.e., the mere absence of the belief that God or a god exists, for that would imply that cabbages and tire irons are atheists. Note second that it won't do to say that atheism is the lack of theistic…
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‘Homophobia’ and ‘Carniphobia’
If you are a conservative, don't talk like a liberal! I've made this point before but it bears repeating. We conservatives should never acquiesce in the Left's acts of linguistic vandalism. Battles in the culture war are often lost and won on linguistic ground. So we ought to oppose resolutely the Left's attempts at linguistic…
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Neologism: A Merton
A merton is a person who doesn't distinguish between studying a subject and writing a book about it. Cf. The Journals of Thomas Merton, vol. III, 136: "Thought of writing a book on Columbia under Spain . . ..") In his short life Merton published some 60 books, some of them good, some of…
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Why Write?
A reader sends me the following quotation from a Richard Mitchell: I have never yet written anything, long or short, that did not surprise me. That is, for me at least, the greatest worth of writing, which is only incidentally a way of telling others what you think. Its first use is for the making…
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‘Traditional Marriage’ or ‘Natural Marriage’?
This from long-time reader, Bill Tingley: As always, Bill, I find reading your blog enlightening and enjoyable. I note you are using the term "traditional marriage" to refer to marriage. Now that the Supreme Court has redefined marriage as nothing more than a civil union, the meaning of the word "marriage" is in turmoil. So…
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On ‘Disenfranchise’ and Hillary’s Will to Power
According to the WSJ, Hillary Clinton thinks that Republican-controlled states have “systematically and deliberately” tried to “disempower and disenfranchise” voters. Here is another clear example of how leftists distort language for their political advantage. To disenfranchise is to deprive of a right, in particular, the right to vote. But only some people have the right…
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Obama and Pigeon Chess
I've said it before: beware of unsourced 'quotations.' An über-conservative correspondent forwarded me the following: "Negotiating with Obama is like playing chess with a pigeon." "The pigeon knocks over all the pieces, shits on the board and then struts around like it won the game."~Vladimir Putin Now Obama is indeed a feckless fool, and a…
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A Checkered Past
Having recently compared two lunch companions to each other in point of having checkered pasts, but aware of recent shifts in the meaning of the phrase, and not wishing to give offense, I quizzed one of them on the meaning of 'has a checkered past' as applied to a woman and to a man. He…
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Trigger Warning!
The grandpappy of them all is attributable to Hanns Johst: Wenn ich Kultur höre, entsichere ich meinen Browning! "When I hear the word culture, I release the safety on my Browning." Often misquoted and misattributed. I myself misquoted it once as Wenn ich das Wort 'Kulture' höre, entsichere ich meine Pistole. I apologize for that…
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Like Being the Chief Rabbi in Mecca
I heard David Brooks on C-Span 2 last night. He uncorked a very funny line. "I am the conservative at The New York Times, which is like being the chief rabbi in Mecca." By the way, it was a mention by Brooks in his latest book that got my friend Lupu onto Soloveitchik. Now I…