It should be no surprise to anyone, least of all my readers, that as the November election gets closer, we will be subjected to language that is designed to hide the true meaning of the words while hiding the true intent of the speaker.
This is not an activity that is restricted to the liberal progressive movements. Conservatives are equally guilty of hiding their true intent behind words that allow them to appeal to the greatest number of voters. Some words can be used as positive enforcers; while others have negative connotations…and the astute politician can and will use both to paint the exact picture of him/herself that he wants the public to see.
You see politics has very specific objectives and the politician will use language to achieve those objectives.
To help prepare you for the onslaught, I have listed below some of the language you are almost certain to hear coming from the lips of politicians over the next few months. This language will be repeated almost word for word in the language used by commentators who merely parrot the sound bites they hear.
So…here we go….
“Fair” – this will be used by politicians of all colors to convey to you that just like you, they have a sense of the rightness of bring fair. It will be used in ways such as “fair share” (ie. The rich must pay their fair share) or in ways like “it is only fair that people who have spent most of their lives here should get to stay” in relation to illegal aliens. The beauty of this word to a politician is that “fair” is a totally subjective measure…it is the listener who will determine in their own minds what is meant by “fair”. The politician will never be tied down to what HE thinks is fair because if he allows that to happen, he has no room in the future to change it. An example of this is a “fair share of taxation”…if a politician allowed that to be defines as , say, 53.6%, then anything above that must, by definition, be unfair. No politician will define fair…the purpose of this word is to tie your emotional sense of right and wrong in to his apparent agreement with you. The purpose is to get your vote…not to believe in any sense of fairness. It is a political word with NO meaning, but you will hear it thrown around daily for the next 5 months.
“Racist” – you do not have to be too smart to see this one coming. It has been used to define the Tea Party, to define anybody who disagrees with the President, to define anybody who wants illegal aliens sent home, to define anybody who thinks blacks and hispanics should be held to the same standards as all other Americans. It is used to stop examinations into fraud through government programs like Section 8 and welfare. It is used along with its ugly step-child affirmative action to ensure that one part of society is treated differently to another. Well – I here to explain what racism will mean during the next 5 months. It will mean that your voice is not worthy of hearing. It will mean that you are white and therefor do not count. If you are critical of anything the President does or says, you will be branded as a racist. The attacks against political foes based on racism will be as numerous as the stars in the black sky. As long as that black man in the White House remains, racism will be the weapon of choice for the next election…wielded by the left to attempt to marginalize their foes. The use of the term black man above is NOT racist…it is factual…if that fool wants to run on his blackness, there is nothing wrong with calling him black, but that statement will be treated as racist by the left!
“the less fortunate” – this is a term we will hear repeatedly. Just like the term “fair”, politicians will be careful not to define who the less fortunate are. They will allow you to define that in your own way, and in the hope that you will define it as people who through no fault of their own find themselves in need. A very worthy definition. However, this is not what the politician means when he speaks of the less fortunate. What he means is those who’s vote can be purchased through social programs designed to give them money. The less fortunate may have plenty of money for drugs, booze, electronics etc…and may choose not to use their money for food…but the politician knows that by providing this person with food they will buy his vote. The only way these programs can get the support of the electorate is by talking about “the less fortunate”. If the politician talked about the real recipient of these trinkets, he knows you would never support the program so he is careful NOT to define who these people are.
“undocumented worker” – illegal alien (no other way to describe it)
“move forward”…oh, this is a good one. We will hear this from both sides…the country needs to move forward…really? The politician will take great care not to explain what that means…or what political direction that forward movement will take. Again, they will let you define what it means, while in their hearts and minds they know exactly what it means…it means going in the direction THEY (not you) want the country to move in. Moving forward when on the top of a cliff is not necessarily a good idea. Sometimes it is worth backing up a little and taking a good hard look at what is in front of you. Beware the politician who talks of moving forward!
“fix Washington”…we will hear this a lot from both sides. The presumption is that the people are sick of a do nothing Congress and want to see Congress doing its job. Both sides are going to use this to try to convince you that they feel your pain and that they can do something about it. The reality is that the only way Washington can be fixed is if YOU elect the right people to represent you…people who put the future of this country before their own economic or career needs. Fixing Washington is not the job of the President – it is the job of the PEOPLE. When politicians say they want to fix Washington, what they mean is that they will bend Washington to do what they want…which is not always the same as what the people want!
“compassion” – in an election year we will hear this word a lot. It will be used to explain why the politician supports certain programs, and will be used in the negative to describe people not supporting the program as having a lack of compassion. When I say “get a job” I will be accused of lacking compassion – but if say “go on welfare” I will be viewed as compassionate. The politician’s use of this term is designed simply to use it to buy votes…from those who are the recipients of his compassion.
This is but a short list of some of the terms I expect we will be hearing. Each election season brings forth its own range of phony words…last time around hope and change was a meaningless phrase that swept the current President to victory. But what did it mean? Nobody ever defined it.
This year we will undoubtedly be assaulted with more meaningless slogans, more meaningless words designed to hide the intent of the politician who will play on your own definitions of right and wrong….
I leave you with what I believe will be the the three words most bandied around by the current crop of presidential possibilities….
“It’s only right”
This little phrase will be used by politicians, pundits, reporters and all manner of stupid people to defend the actions and policy positions of every lame brained dumb idea that politicians and handlers can come up with to win your vote.
Nothing could be more meaningless and yet so effective in gaining popularity than to talk about “the right thing to do”.
Even when it is not.
Remember folks…the people we will be voting for in November have not yet shown that they are there for you…listen carefully to their words and use a cynical and thoughtful brain before jumping onto their bandwagon.
Elections have consequences. Make sure you understand the consequences of your vote. Do not be fooled by the empty words and meaningless statements of the candidates. Rather look at their records, their actions, and their associates. Words have meanings and that is why politicians choose theirs carefully….
Your vote must also be chosen carefully.
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