The Battle For Our Language

February 24, 2002

by Brian W. Peterson

Last week, I took a tongue-in-cheek look at dictionary entries of the future. Unfortunately, what was meant to be light-hearted is all too serious. The hijacking of our language for political purposes ensures that rhetorical and political debates are lost before they begin.

For example, how can someone be opposed to activities that are “gay?” After all, “gay” means “happy.” Nothing wrong with being happy, right? What’s more, such activities are merely a result of a “sexual orientation.” If someone is naturally oriented toward a given “lifestyle,” how can one change destiny?

The problem is that there is no such “orientation” of engaging in a perverse and socially damaging “lifestyle.” Using the term “orientation” allows us to avoid the ugly fact that homosexuality is a behavior. But those who are not “morally challenged” have already ceded the premise of the argument when they accept such distorted terminology.

Another example of seizing language has cast the nation of Israel in a bad light. The West Bank, the Golan Heights, and the Gaza Strip are often collectively referred to as the “occupied territories.”

True, Israel did gain these territories in wars, but what about parts of Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan? Before the British reneged on their deal with the Jews, portions of these present-day nations would have belonged to Israel.

Israel has only 20% of the land that was originally promised to them. Arab nations, which were arbitrarily boxed in by British boundaries, contain 5.4 million square miles of land, while Israel is only 8,290 square miles. Surely the Arab world would not be devastated to allow these areas to remain in Israeli control.

While soldiers do protect Israel’s interests in these areas, the fact remains that Arabs living in Israel have more liberties than do Arabs residing in Arab nations. And why is it always imperative for Israel to yield for peace to exist in the Middle East?

An example of watering down a term is the word “crisis”- one of the most overused words on television news. As columnist George Will has asked, how will we define a real crisis when one occurs? Will we be out of adjectives? After all, haven’t most of the earnest and frightening terms been used to define lesser occurrences?

Indeed, when September 11 was referred to by many as a “tragedy,” the word was insufficient to describe the events of that horrific day. Too many lesser events had been overblown into a “tragedy.”

Definitions of terms are gradually being altered for the good of political correctness. I cringe when I hear such terms as “tolerant,” “compassion,” and “sensitivity.” These words are all viable in day-to-day dialogue. However, when used in political discourse, these words take on entirely different meanings. Those of us who are concerned with constitutional restraints cannot engage in a discussion of ideas and opinions without having to defend ourselves against accusations of being “intolerant” or “insensitive.”

Sorry, I don’t believe that wasting people’s hard-earned money on nonsensical bureaucratic largesse is a “sensitive” thing to do. No matter. Half of the discussion with a Liberal is wasted on deflecting insulting charges.

The battle over language is an important one. The long range result of redefining terms may someday inhibit viewpoints once considered to be legitimate. As society tries to wipe out intolerance, what happens when Christianity is defined as being intolerant? As we try to be more compassionate, what will we do about Conservatives, who are accused of lacking compassion?

In George Orwell’s book, 1984, the government defined the terms. Big Brother’s “Ministry of Truth” had such slogans as “War is Peace,” “Ignorance is Strength,” and “Freedom is Slavery.” Fiction, you say? True. But given our present fascination with politically correct terminology, the redefining of terms in political discourse will prove to be the weapon of choice for a future Big Brother.

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Brian W. Peterson writes a political column for the Antelope Valley Press (circulation approximately 60,000) in Palmdale, California. He is a graduate of Oral Roberts University, where he majored in TV/Film. Brian’s weekly commentary and newspaper columns can be found at www.LifeAndLiberty.com.

Send the author an E mail at Peterson@ConservativeTruth.org.

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