Maverick Philosopher

Footnotes to Plato from the foothills of the Superstition Mountains

Category: Language Matters

  • On the Misuse of ‘Unilateral’

    The following  post from the old blog written 20 July 2005 makes a point that bears repeating. John Nichols of the The Nation appeared on the hard-Left show, "Democracy Now," on the morning of 2 September 2004. Like many libs and lefties, he misused 'unilateral' to mean 'without United Nations   support.' In this sense, coalition…

  • ‘White Hispanic’

    Libs and lefties just love to play the race card, as I document in my Race category.  Jonah Goldberg exposes the latest example.

  • Pleonasm of the Day: ‘Negative Attack Ad’

    I once heard John McCain use the phrase, 'negative attack ad.' As opposed to what? Positive attack ad? You may enjoy this Kant attack ad.

  • The Underground Grammarian

    If you think that I am a language Nazi, then pay a visit to the Underground Grammarian. His stern visage reminds me of a passage near the beginning of Franz Kafka's Vor dem Gesetz, "Before the Law." The protagonist seeks entry into the Law, but at the door stands a guard who warns:      Ich…

  • Litotes

    "His explanation of litotes, though not bad, was not very helpful."

  • Leftism Not a Religion

    Dennis Prager often says that leftism is a religion. That is a sloppy use of language. Leftism is an anti-religious political ideology that functions in the lives of its adherents much like religions function in the lives of their adherents. To call leftism a religion only sires confusion. It is enough to say it is…

  • Hocus Pocus

    Here we find, "The magical spell of common parlance, 'hocus pocus,' derives from the words of consecration in the Latin Mass, “hoc est enim corpus”–this is my very body." True or false?  I don't know.  I do know that one ought not believe everything one reads. Addendum:  I was fishing of course, my OED and…

  • On Hairsplitting

    As a follow-up to Anti-Intellectualism in Conservatives, here is an old post from the Powerblogs site.  A surprising number still languish there in cyber-limbo awaiting their turn to be brought back to life.  …………………. The charge of hairsplitting has always been one of the weapons in the arsenal of the anti-intellectual. One root of anti-intellectualism is…

  • Anti-Intellectualism on the Right

    As I write, the 'infanticide is just post-natal abortion' controversy is being discussed by Charlie Sykes who is sitting in for Dennis Prager on the latter's radio show.  Sykes is obviously intelligent, but he just did something that is not uncommon for conservatives to do but is harmful to the conservative cause, namely, display an anti-intellectual attitude.  He used the…

  • Taqiyya, Tawriya, and Creative Lying

    Here: Perhaps you have heard of taqiyya, the Muslim doctrine that allows lying in certain circumstances, primarily when Muslim minorities live under infidel authority. Now meet tawriya, a doctrine that allows lying in virtually all circumstances—including to fellow Muslims and by swearing to Allah—provided the liar is creative enough to articulate his deceit in a…

  • Uptalk or ‘High Rising Terminal’

    So that's what that annoying girl-talk mannerism is called: But the idea that vocal fads initiated by young women eventually make their way into the general vernacular is well established. Witness, for example, the spread of uptalk, or “high-rising terminal.” Starting in America with the Valley Girls of the 1980s (after immigrating from Australia, evidently),…

  • On Calling Obama a Socialist

    It is a tactical mistake for libertarians and conservatives to label Obama a socialist. For what will happen, has happened: liberals will revert to a strict definition and point out that Obama is not a socialist by this definition. Robert Heilbroner defines socialism in terms of "a centrally planned economy in which the government controls…

  • ‘Legally Dead’

    Someone declared legally dead  is presumed dead.  Such a person may or may not be dead. So I say 'legally' in 'legally dead' is an alienans adjective.  What is the test for an alienans adjective? Let 'FG' be a phrase in which 'F' is an adjective and 'G' a noun.    'F' is alienans if and only…

  • The Hyphenated American

    One may gather from my surname that I am of Italian extraction. Indeed, that is the case in both paternal and maternal lines: my mother was born near Rome in a place called San Vito Romano, and my paternal grandfather near Verona in the wine region whence comes Valpollicella. Given these facts, some will refer…

  • I am Principled . . .

    . . . you are doctrinaire.  For variations on this theme, see The Difference Between Me and You.