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Political Hay
Word Play
Funny how certain terms take on a whole new meaning when the Dems are in power.
It has been difficult to decipher some of the Beltway buzzwords in use now that Democrats are in firm control of our national government. Of course it’s understandable that in attempting to sell their socialist platform they must verbally cloak their agenda, as the great majority of Americans continue identify themselves as moderate to conservative. But this has happened before. During the Clinton Administration, and in particular amid the battle over his impeachment, we were daily treated to treatises on the definition of words like, is.
But, coming so quickly as they do on the heels of the George W. Bush years — where the president’s every word was parsed for accuracy as well as pronunciation — in the Obama Era, words and phrases that were applied one way for Bushies, have acquired whole new meanings now. And so, in an attempt to straighten this out, I offer the following list of terms and catchphrases along with their current definitions, instances of popular press corps usage and sometimes the truth:
Herbert Hoover: The 31st president of the United States, whose economic failures were held up for ridicule and endlessly linked to those of President Bush. Mysteriously, the keys necessary to type his name have apparently vanished from the word processors of the mainstream media during the current recession with its nearly double-digit unemployment rate.
Lagging Indicator: An economic term that GOPers tried unsuccessfully to apply to unemployment statistics during the George W. Hoover years. This tactic is being resuscitated by Democrats, but look for it to be applied to Obama’s poll numbers.
Dissident: This word was, in the past, most usually associated with those in the Soviet Union who were unhappy living under the tender mercies of Communism. In the world of mainstream punditry, this now refers to those who express their unhappiness with the prospect of living under the tender mercies of socialism. These dissidents are also viewed as possible terrorists.
Community Organizer: Up until only months ago, this was deemed a noble and even patriotic calling. Yet in a short span, these folks are now considered un-American dissidents and extremely unpatriotic.
Patriotism: This is a term that no longer denotes pure love of country, but rather, love of how a particular political ideology might benefit that country. President Obama gave us a clue on the campaign trail explaining, “I decided I won’t wear that [flag] pin on my chest, instead I’m gonna try to tell the American people what I believe what will make this country great, and hopefully that will be a testimony to my patriotism.”
Patriotic Debate: Discussions that lead to shrieking denunciations of Republican policies, as so ably demonstrated by Hillary Clinton’s demure proclamation: “I am sick and tired of people who say that if you debate and you disagree with this administration somehow you’re not patriotic. We should stand up and say, we are Americans and we have a right to debate and disagree with any administration!” However, those who disagree with the present administration are not considered Americans, but Nazis.
Nazis: Formerly members of the National Socialist Party in Germany; this is naturally now used as an epithet for those opposed to socialism.
Racism: Once defined as prejudice or animosity against people who belong to other races, this is now looked on as a desired qualification to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.
Racists: Those who refuse to believe the above.
The Good War: A term which in antiquity referenced World War II, but has been used more recently by liberals to refer to the conflict in Afghanistan, as opposed to Bush’s bad war in Iraq. Now that this conflict is owned by them, it is unknown if it will continue to be called good, but it will most certainly not degenerate into a quagmire.
Quagmire: The Webster definition reads: “a soft miry land that shakes or yields under the foot, or a difficult, precarious, or entrapping position.” In the real world, an almost perfect description of Democratic healthcare reform.
Healthcare: A quaint term that used to refer to the American system of medical coverage that was once considered among the best in the world. Now of course, it is broken and needs to be reformed in order to safeguard and protect our most precious resource: our children.
Reproductive Healthcare: The means to kill those children.
Confused? Of course you are, and that’s the point. But if all this sounds vaguely familiar, it’s been in the big-government playbook for decades. Let’s let George Orwell explain the usage of this “doublethink:”
The power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them….To tell deliberate lies while genuinely believing in them, to forget any fact that has become inconvenient, and then, when it becomes necessary again, to draw it back from oblivion for just so long as it is needed, to deny the existence of objective reality and all the while to take account of the reality which one denies — all this is indispensably necessary.
Letter to the Editor View all comments (51) | Leave a comment
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Appleby| 8.13.09 @ 7:39AM
Always remember, this stuff is being crafted for a generation that thinks LOL is a word.
Campy| 8.13.09 @ 10:02AM
Lisa,
Well done! Another for the list:
(Classical) liberalism—with emphasis on individual freedom, rational thinking, limited government, free markets—has been morphed/bastardized/hijacked to now define current liberalism, offering public assistance in health, education and welfare, including government intervention in the economy to provide full employment... or, in other words, individuals have a 'right' to be provided with benefits or services by others. Classical liberals are now labeled "conservative," imbued with negative and snide connotation by the thieves.
Campy| 8.13.09 @ 10:23AM
More on doublespeak:
http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/?q=MzMzYmFkNmEwZjcxOGViNDE2YWNjNzBkM2Y3YzdjMjM=
Bo Darville| 8.13.09 @ 10:47AM
These days it also seems like freedom means only the freedom to terminate pregnancies.
Michael Tomlinson| 8.13.09 @ 11:07AM
Lisa thanks for nailing down the double speak of what can only be described as America's neo-fascists the Democrat party and their media propagandist.
Under George W. Bush the Bureau of Labor tells us 19,000 jobs were created monthly from 2001-2009. Under Barack Obama 500,000 Americans lose their jobs monthly or give up looking. During the time when Bush had a Republican Congress (2001-2006) the economy was growing, jobs were being created and the country was safe. Since Democrats took over Congress in 2007 more than 5 million jobs have been lost and the country is economic decline. While the man occupying the White House wants to create a Stasi state where neighbors spy and report on neighbors. This is the change Democrats, Independents and former conservatives gave America. Brilliant!
Paul from SA| 8.13.09 @ 11:42AM
Lisa, great article.
Values: gay marriage, higher taxes, free healthcare.
Tax cuts: rebates, reductions in withholdings
Jim| 8.13.09 @ 11:53AM
"I decided I won't wear that [flag] pin on my chest, instead I'm gonna try to tell the American people what I believe what will make this country great, and hopefully that will be a testimony to my patriotism."
This one statement alone should have been enough to cost this man the election and yet....
Tony in Central PA| 8.13.09 @ 12:23PM
Somebody smarter than me once said that the first step in accomplishing social engineering is language engineering.
Freedom is slavery !
Walter| 8.13.09 @ 1:12PM
I think that Obama never really thought that he could get the Presidency (or even the nomination) during his lapel-flag-pin-missing days. I also seem to recall a picture of the Dem candidates standing for the National Anthem and O was the only one without his hand over his heart. And I thought, "That's a strange way for someone to act who wants people to vote for him for President." That was when he was still a member of Wright's church and Michelle was finally proud of America. I think back then that he was a less-than-one-year-seniority Senate back-bencher who hoped for a VP nod or perhaps to make enough noise to become a player and quit voting "Present" in the Senate. Maybe line up for 2012 or 2016.
Then, if I recall correctly, polls went up, Hillary was in trouble, endorsements came in and then one day I swear that I saw a picture of him with the flag pin on his lapel. Does anyone else recall that picture? I guessed he changed his mind and thought he could win after all!
Richard baker| 8.13.09 @ 1:15PM
To all the Communists out there: Sat Cong. A noble sentiment.
diep cockrill| 8.13.09 @ 1:25PM
Yep... The dictator achieved what he wanted in his lifetime. Welcome to the Socialist/Communist world, America. This is the change that the majority of America wanted. They eagerly casted their votes and chanted for the dictator and his regime. Are these people happy now? I hope that they are satisfied with the poison that they picked.
Bill Croke| 8.13.09 @ 2:42PM
Lisa, Nice one. You and Victor Davis Hansen (another Orwell piece at NRO) are my heroes today.
David Govett| 8.13.09 @ 5:04PM
Of what value is semantics to those incapable of rational thought?
Campy| 8.13.09 @ 5:18PM
Whoa, David Govett... point duly noted and touché, but it pains this lexophile.
ccc| 8.13.09 @ 5:18PM
Next thing you know he'll be redefining burger flippers as manufacturing employees just to make the domestic industry statistics look better.
Alan Brooks| 8.13.09 @ 6:03PM
Bush increased the govt's size far FAR more than Clinton did.
you AS spindoctors are too devious for your own good.
Marc Jeric| 8.13.09 @ 7:17PM
Mr. Tomlinson is so right. The revolutionary marxism manual is explicit on that subject; for example the communist terrorist class in power calls their regimes "People's Democratic Republic". Local soviets of ACORN brownshirts are called "community organizations". Abu Hussein from Kenya, our Community Organizer-in-Chief, the boss of ACORN, has reserved $9 billion in his "stimulus" bill for them. Those thugs will receive more money next year to "work" on the 2010 census - expect more extensive voter fraud. Those ACORN THUGS ARE ALSO TASKED TO CONTRIBUTE THEIR NAMECALLING AND INVECTIVE TO THESE CONVERSATIONS .
Extremely Extreme Extremist| 8.13.09 @ 7:25PM
Spontaeous Demonstration: any left-wing protest planned months in advance by "community organizers," composed of paid elements recruited and equipped for political warfare.
Organized (or Orchestrated or Corporate) Opposition: any group of citizens spontaneously arising in opposition to the various and manifold depradations of government.
U.S. Government: any group of American politicians spontaneously united in opposition to the will and/or good of their constituents.
Hicks (or Mouth-breathers or Knuckle-draggers or etc. etc. etc.): any group of citizens exhibiting signs of education, good sense, and at least a modicum of good character.
(Posted from my phone. Any and all deficiencies herein should be put down to that. Yep. You betcha.)
Joe Steeves| 8.13.09 @ 9:35PM
How about the word stupid? Any police officer or department who responds to a burglary call.
sisyphus| 8.14.09 @ 12:35AM
· Abolition of Private Property.
· Heavy Progressive Income Tax.
· Abolition of Rights of Inheritance.
· Confiscation of Property Rights.
· Central Bank.
· Government Ownership of Communication and Transportation.
· Government Ownership of Factories and Agriculture.
· Government Control of Labor.
· Corporate Farms and Regional Planning.
· Government Control of Education
Thank you K. Marx
Cow Rie| 8.14.09 @ 1:24AM
And this is why the Obama Joker posters, if place in the right areas can do some good.
Some moderate-conservatives are nervous of the Obama Joker Socialist poster that is making the rounds. But it's perfect for Obama. It is a dose of Alinsky back at Obama and here is why.
Obama is a media creation, the media eyecandy for the left. To have his image as the Joker points out that this guy is NOT pretty. It "marks" him. Right now Obama's credibility is just beginning to sink. And this is why we need to keep at him. Linking him with Pelosi is another good tactic. She is ignorant, hateful and her hands are all over the Obama legistlative push. Brand Obama with Pelosi too.
The Obama Joker poster is great political satire. It is creepy and it draws people into it. And it brands Obama, mildly in my opinion, as a Socialist. Some argue it is silly, that the Joker was a Batman movie symbol of anarchy and chaos.
But even Alinsky believed in some chaos to get control. And just like Rahm Emanuel, Obama's Chief of Staff said "Never let a crisis go to waste". The Joker fits these guys perfectly.
So go show the Obama Joker poster. Don't post it on government or private property. They will play the race card because they have nothing else. The Obama Joker bothers them.
Be discrete. But get the message out. Obama is a Socialist Joker, and they do use chaos and fear to gin up support of their policies ( global warming, evil bankers and insurers, no health care, soon it will be swine flu).
If you want the Obama Joker pic, e-mail me at Cowrie666@aol.com. I'll send you one.
It is time to "change" the Obama brand to what is really is. Creepy socialism.
Cow Rie
Pingback| 8.14.09 @ 9:38AM
Word Play | Republican Party of Door County links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
Paul Crowley| 8.14.09 @ 4:22PM
"The Good War: A term which in antiquity referenced World War II." [Lisa Fabrizio].
This is rubbish.
It was never common for people to refer to the Second World War as "The Good War," until recently.
Popular reference to the Second World War as "The Good War" is entirely new. This is purely post-Cold War era (1989-present). Where the press is concerned, then propagandizing of this title is principally only the past few years.
Perhaps some of our children have been being taught this miserable term in the schools over the course of the past 20 years?
Only a fool (or if done so thoughtfully, a freak) would call a war with the destruction on the scale of the second world war, "The Good War."
This was never a common term among Americans.
Paul Crowley| 8.14.09 @ 5:02PM
"Healthcare: A quaint term that used to refer to the American system of medical coverage that was once considered among the best in the world." [Lisa Fabrizio].
No. "Healthcare" is also a new term, one that's become institutionalized in the post-Cold War Era, following the reform of the American medical system, between about 1977-98 (especially, 1986-98).
"Health Care" is the renaming, and reform, of what most Americans used to refer to as medical care. It's the new reformed Americans who use this new term now. Those about 40 years old and younger have been taught to use this term over the course of most of their lives (and not by their parents or their grandparents or their aunts and uncles, where the majority of them are concerned).
Lisa Fabrizio does use the correct tense when speaking about American medical care.
It USED TO BE the best in the world.
Since the reform of our medical system, and our entire society, over the past 35 years, it no longer is.
Improvements in medical technology have been vast (a new phase in the Industrial Revolution), especially since 1980. However, the improvements are obviously not intended for the majority of American citizens.
The new "American system of medical coverage" is now an lousy system. The United States of America (U.S.A.) can no longer provide what was routine.
The mass-movement of the American work population (1971-present, and ongoing), especially south and west, de-industrialization of large regions of the country and industrialization of the south, educational and training reforms (especially nursing), and the reforms of employer-provided benefits (for those who had them any longer), especially, 1998-2008 (redefined by the aditition of an adjective as "Defined Benefits") have led to this.
The Obama administration is only building FURTHER upon the foundation of the reformed American medical system; a re-formed and re-structured medical system, higher-tech, but lower quality care, where the majority of Americans are concerned (i.e. the "fortunate" ones who receive it). The new system, especially since 1992 is all-but-completely lacking in any dignity, what so ever. Relative to even 25 years ago (and definitely relative to 40 years ago), modern (i.e. present-day) American medical care is more akin to veterinary medicine rather than it is to the American medical care of the recent past.
"was once considered among the best in the world" is precisely the right tense. WAS ONCE considered.
Paul Crowley| 8.14.09 @ 5:12PM
"Confused? Of course you are, and that's the point." [Lisa Fabrizio].
Fabrizio should know.
An intellectual prostitute (as the phrase goes) who is adept at "word play" herself.
Paul Crowley| 8.14.09 @ 5:52PM
"The power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them...." [Lisa Fabrizio].
Like Teaching People to decry national health care as leading to further implementation of eugenics in the U.S.A. (which it is) while simultaneously Teaching People to shout that quality medical care for all Americans is unaffordible (while trillions of dollars credited to the American population for the development of the Hindu Kush, via contracts to Asia and Europe, and some of the surplus American population dressed in uniforms, is no problem at all).
So, the new reformed conservatives don't want to be told by a government clerk that grandma has to die?
Instead, they want what they have now: To be told via a letter from an insurance company that Grandma's coverage is going to run out completely by the end of the month??
Boy. These libertarians and libertarian-reformed "conservatives" are regular intellectual giants.. . No "two contradictory beliefs" being held here, boy!
Anyone who is an adult and doesn't know by now that medical care in this country is ALREADY rationed is a fool or has no medical insurance, and never has.
The "choices" being offered?
-Rationing regulated by a government agency.
-Rationing regulated by private corporations.
-Rationing regulated by a government-private corporation hybrid (as we have now).
What is being proposed is only the final touches of the new reformed American medical system.
The government establishes the rules.
The private corporations administer the system.
It's only the finishing touches that are being implemented.
No. It's not socialist. That's only some more "word play" employed to confuse.
Yes. Obama is rubber-stamp Puppet In Chief (just as G.W. was).
Yes. The U.S. Congress is the American national Puppet Show.
Yes. American "Humarn Resources" live and die with the boots of puppets on their throats; they "dance to the tune" played by the puppets (so don't get cocky using the term puppet).
No. The corporations don't own the government.
Paul Crowley| 8.14.09 @ 5:59PM
Yes.
The United States of America is a government that has a country.
Paul Crowley| 8.14.09 @ 6:02PM
Yes.
The United States of America is a government that has a country.
Start signing those "Living Wills" (i.e. the death consents). Another example of word play. . . Not that they'll really be needed, but they're useful for Training and conditioning purposes. . .
Ken Roberts | 8.15.09 @ 2:05PM
Very good well written article I enjoyed it and fun reading it . One item confused me a tad though , and that is double thinking and double speaking , I did not think that the left could think and speak at the same time.
mark| 8.15.09 @ 5:53PM
Paul,
Why don't you go back to your knitting.
Cow Rie| 8.16.09 @ 12:52AM
This is why the Obama Joker posters, if place in the right areas can do some good.
Some moderate-conservatives are nervous of the Obama Joker Socialist poster that is making the rounds. But it's perfect for Obama. It is a dose of Alinsky back at Obama and here is why.
Obama is a media creation, the media eyecandy for the left. To have his image as the Joker points out that this guy is NOT pretty. It "marks" him. Right now Obama's credibility is just beginning to sink. And this is why we need to keep at him. Linking him with Pelosi is another good tactic. She is ignorant, hateful and her hands are all over the Obama legistlative push. Brand Obama with Pelosi too.
The Obama Joker poster is great political satire. It is creepy and it draws people into it. And it brands Obama, mildly in my opinion, as a Socialist. Some argue it is silly, that the Joker was a Batman movie symbol of anarchy and chaos.
But even Alinsky believed in some chaos to get control. And just like Rahm Emanuel, Obama's Chief of Staff said "Never let a crisis go to waste". The Joker fits these guys perfectly.
So go show the Obama Joker poster. Don't post it on government or private property. They will play the race card because they have nothing else. The Obama Joker bothers them.
Be discrete. But get the message out. Obama is a Socialist Joker, and they do use chaos and fear to gin up support of their policies ( global warming, evil bankers and insurers, no health care, soon it will be swine flu).
If you want the Obama Joker pic, e-mail me at Cowrie666@aol.com. I'll send you one.
It is time to "change" the Obama brand to what is really is. Creepy socialism.
Cow Rie
Alice In Wonderland| 8.16.09 @ 2:40AM
Paul, you're depressed! Want a blue pill or a red pill?
Brother Crimewave | 8.17.09 @ 4:09AM
For more insight on Orwell's viewpoint on language read his non-fiction essay "Politics and the English Language" (1946) here: http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/orwell46.htm