The word “liberal” was once considered a compliment. It meant being fair, principled, and thoughtful. The Age of Enlightenment was born by “classical liberals” with their then-fanciful notions of government by government, legal equality for all, and the consent of rights possessed by individuals.
Later, ideologies such as collectivism and class oppression gained support among the intellectual class. The word “liberal” has been hijacked and destroyed beyond recognition. The word was used to refer to almost everything, from well-intentioned do-gooders to harsh class warriors, from big-government socialists to tyrants who silenced and ostracized dissenters for the good of society.
Over time, “liberals” lost support. When the label became a political epithet, the left threw it away like a hot potato and moved on to “progressive” as its new favorite label. Although “socialist” and “Marxist” are also accurate.
Here's the point: In the constant war of democratic persuasion that we call politics, How you say it and the expressions you use is often more important than what you say. For some reason, the left always seems to have the upper hand in the game of verbal messaging.
Get an abortion. Since the heyday of the eugenics movement, Democrats have generally supported abortion while Republicans have opposed it. Both sides were labeled pro-abortion and anti-abortion.
Eventually, Democrats realized that “pro-abortion” was offensive to many people, so they changed the label to “pro-choice,” making the decision to terminate a pregnancy look like a normal consumer transaction. “Pro-life” has come to mean Republicans demand that all babies be delivered to term.
Most Americans are abortion-centrists and are willing to support legal abortion up to about 12 weeks. However, according to a Gallup poll, 60% of pro-choice Democrats believe abortion should be legal at all times up to the moment of birth, compared to 60% of pro-life Republicans. Less than a quarter think all abortions should be banned.therefore The left's clever use of labels allows it to hide the fact that its views on abortion are much further removed from the mainstream than those of the Republican Party..
“Racist” may be the most overused word in the language. During the civil rights movement, there was a broad consensus that “racism” meant the practice of judging fellow citizens by the color of their skin rather than by the “content of their character.”
But even if race relations improved overall, that definition was not enough for racists like Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson. They denied that color blindness itself is a positive goal. They argued instead that racial identity is an inherent attribute that defines humans and explains virtually all human behavior.
In support of this, the media and the left have subtly changed their rhetoric regarding racial equality. Equality before the law is a precious right bequeathed to all Americans under the Constitution. Instead, the left has devised a new definition of “fairness.” It is now considered a good goal that means equality of outcome and guarantees permanent employment for professionals in this field.
Nevertheless, the SAT, welfare reform, legitimate law enforcement, and anything with even a modicum of merit was deemed racist. As a result, charges of “racism” are today largely inconsistent. “Playing the race card” is perceived as lacking a real argument for your point. Worse, blaming all racial disparities on “racism” could undermine the hard work of addressing the real causes of racial inequality.
Institutions are usually reluctant to admit that they use gender or racial discrimination in personnel decisions. But rather than come clean about their practices, they adopted the term “affirmative action” to do exactly the same thing. The majority of Americans are not fooled or amused.
There is clearly a world of difference between the legal immigration that nurtured and defined America and the tsunami of illegality that is currently plaguing us. But media commentators use “immigrant” to describe lawbreakers and legal immigrants alike, as if only bigots believe there is a real difference.
Finally, bills in Congress often have intentionally deceptive names.. The Inflation Control Act was a hilarious recent example. This bill was actually a package of green subsidies and other exorbitant subsidies that have zero chance of curbing inflation, continuing to chase climate chimeras.
Words can be powerful tools for pursuing truth or falsehood. Classical liberals should condemn those who deliberately use words to lie.
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Dr. Thomas C. Patterson is a former emergency medicine physician and Arizona State Senate Majority Leader in the 1990s. He is a past president of the Goldwater Institute.
