[Orlando, 12/26/11] Twelve years ago, I was in Jazzy Dog Cafe in Orlando. Among its signs on the walls, there was, “I’M HAVING A NICE DAY… DON’T SCREW IT UP!” Another showed a hand pointing to a hand grenade, with number one on a tag attached to its pull ring. Its message, “COMPLAINT DEPT. PLEASE TAKE A NUMBER.”
The gas station where I buy cigarettes is a skid row (not a friendly combination of words) hotspot. An enterprising "unhoused" individual whose mobile plastic bin sits near the intersection has decorated the sides. You can clearly see where "homeless" has been scribbled over and replaced with "residentially challenged". Is there a gentle semantic euphemism for "flat out fucked"?
While we contemplate the plight of the “unhoused”, let us not overlook the “undocumented” (immigrant). Perhaps we see a possibility of a trend here. For example, how about the "un-thin"?
Over the last few years I have come to believe that the critical media consumer must adopt the mindset of a student of propaganda. Along those lines, after reflecting one day on the increasing abuse the English language has been taking, I thought it might be interesting to create a list of these abuses, and add to it as I noticed them.
One of my own favorites is the word pair “philanthropist” = “oligarch”. The only difference between the two is where you call home.
So far, I have the following categories: “destroyed words”, “abused excuses for adoption of totalitarian controls”, “narrative terms and phrases”. It is disturbing to see how long the list has become. It feels like this has all really ramped up in the last few years, but I find myself wondering if perhaps I just wasn’t paying enough attention. Nowadays, it’s hard not to notice when you start hearing these “narrative terms” repeated to you verbatim in casual conversation. A family member was talking to me about J6 not too long after the congressional dog and pony show, and they actually said they thought the “insurrection” was “a threat to our democracy”, in just those words!
And let us not forget to notice the way in which everything is labeled as its opposite. This is especially prevalent in the names given to legislation.
From my limited understanding of what they call NLP, Neuro Linguistic Programming, that's exactly how words and phrases repeated by an "authoritative" source whether verbally or in print register in our minds and viewpoints. I recently had a weird moment when it dawned on me that the lion's share of how I have viewed my world, country and myself has probably been affected by these multi generational quasi military/intelligence PSYOPS. I could be crazy and of course I'm paranoid, but I think teams of linguists, psychologists and who knows what other kinds of "manipulators and magicians" are paid heftily to cook these things into our daily reality.
Lihn, you're out of date. According to the most recent experts, there is no such thing as a "vagina". It is called now "front hole" or "bonus hole". And there is no such thing as a "woman". You can, however, use the term "non-man" to describe some of them.
As everyone knows, the late great George Carlin hated euphemisms. One of his best examples was how "shell-shock" became "battle fatigue", then "operational exhaustion" (like something that "might happen to your car" as he said), and finally "post-traumatic stress disorder".
This article reminds me of a Linguistics class I took in the Anthropology department at a community college in California several years ago. The text book stressed that the "thing" being named comes before the name. In other words one can't change the general perception of a thing by altering the name of the thing.
The text gave the example of "naming" dark skinned people (captured and enslaved in Africa now) in America. Can they be given a dignified name in a society in which they are held in contempt by the majority "white" population?
At one time (in the 19th century) the "n" word sufficed, apparently. Then that became verboten, unacceptable. Then there was "negro", or "black" or "colored" or a whole list of additional words (labels) too tedious to expound upon.
The problem seemed to be no word will uplift and dignify a maligned and hated group.
Today America seems to have uncomfortably settled on the term "black" as differentiated from their "white" neighbors.
But the underlying problem still makes us uneasy. That is contempt, even hatred of the "Other."
"The flaw is not in the stars, Brutus. 'Tis in us." (Or something like that.)
“The homeless is now the ‘unhoused’ because, I’m guessing, the old word conjures up images of destitution and squalor, of young people driven insane after weeks or even years on the streets, of old people freezing on sidewalks. Being new, unhoused hasn’t had time to be muddied or piss splattered, but this delusion can only last a second or two. Meaning the same, it’s just as wretched as ‘homeless.’”
Beautiful. I was once a silent party to two distinguished scholars, one an African-Americanist literary critic, the other an Asian American historian of Asia, attempting to school one another to say “diaspora” and “enslaved.” Tough old broads, you would like them. But no one can escape the silliness.
You draggin' my mud through the name? Jeje! I am sorry to hear of your skin condition. I too am having some hand issues. The Spanish language is going through changes (I deny any responsibility) as well. Maybe not in a buzz-word manner but quite a bit in masculine and feminine terms.
For us 'miraculously' lucky esl teachers, we get a few queries about English terms which I wasn't aware of such as cismale or dead-naming. Some years ago, fisting went unexplained because of class age.
Hi everyone,
Speaking of T-shirts, here's an article on them from 8/20/10:
https://linhdinhphotos.blogspot.com/2010/08/dissing-t-shirts.html
Linh
The gas station where I buy cigarettes is a skid row (not a friendly combination of words) hotspot. An enterprising "unhoused" individual whose mobile plastic bin sits near the intersection has decorated the sides. You can clearly see where "homeless" has been scribbled over and replaced with "residentially challenged". Is there a gentle semantic euphemism for "flat out fucked"?
While we contemplate the plight of the “unhoused”, let us not overlook the “undocumented” (immigrant). Perhaps we see a possibility of a trend here. For example, how about the "un-thin"?
Over the last few years I have come to believe that the critical media consumer must adopt the mindset of a student of propaganda. Along those lines, after reflecting one day on the increasing abuse the English language has been taking, I thought it might be interesting to create a list of these abuses, and add to it as I noticed them.
One of my own favorites is the word pair “philanthropist” = “oligarch”. The only difference between the two is where you call home.
So far, I have the following categories: “destroyed words”, “abused excuses for adoption of totalitarian controls”, “narrative terms and phrases”. It is disturbing to see how long the list has become. It feels like this has all really ramped up in the last few years, but I find myself wondering if perhaps I just wasn’t paying enough attention. Nowadays, it’s hard not to notice when you start hearing these “narrative terms” repeated to you verbatim in casual conversation. A family member was talking to me about J6 not too long after the congressional dog and pony show, and they actually said they thought the “insurrection” was “a threat to our democracy”, in just those words!
And let us not forget to notice the way in which everything is labeled as its opposite. This is especially prevalent in the names given to legislation.
From my limited understanding of what they call NLP, Neuro Linguistic Programming, that's exactly how words and phrases repeated by an "authoritative" source whether verbally or in print register in our minds and viewpoints. I recently had a weird moment when it dawned on me that the lion's share of how I have viewed my world, country and myself has probably been affected by these multi generational quasi military/intelligence PSYOPS. I could be crazy and of course I'm paranoid, but I think teams of linguists, psychologists and who knows what other kinds of "manipulators and magicians" are paid heftily to cook these things into our daily reality.
Sounds like Winston Smith's job in Orwell's 1984 "Ministry of Truth." Lies become truth; hate becomes love.
Lihn, you're out of date. According to the most recent experts, there is no such thing as a "vagina". It is called now "front hole" or "bonus hole". And there is no such thing as a "woman". You can, however, use the term "non-man" to describe some of them.
https://www.foxnews.com/world/uk-cancer-trust-suggests-bonus-hole-term-vagina
https://www.newsweek.com/johns-hopkins-accused-trying-erase-women-its-lesbian-term-1806134
As everyone knows, the late great George Carlin hated euphemisms. One of his best examples was how "shell-shock" became "battle fatigue", then "operational exhaustion" (like something that "might happen to your car" as he said), and finally "post-traumatic stress disorder".
This article reminds me of a Linguistics class I took in the Anthropology department at a community college in California several years ago. The text book stressed that the "thing" being named comes before the name. In other words one can't change the general perception of a thing by altering the name of the thing.
The text gave the example of "naming" dark skinned people (captured and enslaved in Africa now) in America. Can they be given a dignified name in a society in which they are held in contempt by the majority "white" population?
At one time (in the 19th century) the "n" word sufficed, apparently. Then that became verboten, unacceptable. Then there was "negro", or "black" or "colored" or a whole list of additional words (labels) too tedious to expound upon.
The problem seemed to be no word will uplift and dignify a maligned and hated group.
Today America seems to have uncomfortably settled on the term "black" as differentiated from their "white" neighbors.
But the underlying problem still makes us uneasy. That is contempt, even hatred of the "Other."
"The flaw is not in the stars, Brutus. 'Tis in us." (Or something like that.)
Now that food looks very yummy and healthy. And healing, too. Wish I were clever enough to make up a word for that!
“The homeless is now the ‘unhoused’ because, I’m guessing, the old word conjures up images of destitution and squalor, of young people driven insane after weeks or even years on the streets, of old people freezing on sidewalks. Being new, unhoused hasn’t had time to be muddied or piss splattered, but this delusion can only last a second or two. Meaning the same, it’s just as wretched as ‘homeless.’”
Beautiful. I was once a silent party to two distinguished scholars, one an African-Americanist literary critic, the other an Asian American historian of Asia, attempting to school one another to say “diaspora” and “enslaved.” Tough old broads, you would like them. But no one can escape the silliness.
Hey man,
You draggin' my mud through the name? Jeje! I am sorry to hear of your skin condition. I too am having some hand issues. The Spanish language is going through changes (I deny any responsibility) as well. Maybe not in a buzz-word manner but quite a bit in masculine and feminine terms.
For us 'miraculously' lucky esl teachers, we get a few queries about English terms which I wasn't aware of such as cismale or dead-naming. Some years ago, fisting went unexplained because of class age.
Bumper stickers don't exist here.
An 'oldy but a goody': unhinged.