Anyone steeped in politics knows the name, Frank Luntz. Luntz bills himself as a consultant and pollster but has spent much of his career developing talking points for the Republican party. Mr. Luntz rebranded the “estate tax,” ominously calling it the “death tax.” In 2002 he advised former President George Bush to use the less threatening words “climate change” instead of “global warming.” On cue, the Republican party convinced the public that Democrats wanted to use the phrase climate change because cold weather still existed, using stunts like bringing a snowball into the Senate chamber. Unfortunately, climate scientists took the bait and started using the phrase. Recently liberals and climate experts are moving toward phraseology like climate crisis or emergency.
Racist wordsmithing was used in the 50s and 60s civil rights era when the Dixiecrats used words like agitators in the South. The late GOP operative and architect of the Southern Strategy, Lee Atwater, sought to clear his conscience before his death, revealing how the Republican party needed to change its racist tune. Instead of repeatedly using the N-word, he said, “…that hurts you, backfires. So you say stuff like, uh, forced busing, states’ rights, and all that stuff, and you’re getting so abstract.” Democrats offered weak resistance in lieu of a full-throated condemnation. The word liberal morphed into progressive because liberal Democrats backed down, thinking it would hurt their election prospects. I am roiled every time I see a Democratic politician sit silently when a Republican refers to them as a member of the Democrat(sic) party. Some might say I am making too much of triviality, but for me, it is not the triviality of the words; it is the surrender of thought and identity.
Rep. Pat Fallon (R-TX) entered the fray in a House Oversight Committee hearing on gun violence yesterday. In a disgraceful attempt at perverse gallows humor, he accused two vociferous protesters of starting an insurrection, “Is this an insurrection,”Fallon said. “I don’t want another Jan. 6, do we?”Rep. Fallon’s attempt was met with a caustic response from Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI) before calling a recess.
Republicans are amassing a list of code words that is growing weekly;
Snowflakes- Liberals
Drag Queen- pedophiles.
George Soros- Jews
Chicago- Blacks
San Francisco Values- Gay
MAGA- white, Christian, straight, male
That is just a short list (feel free to add to it) of examples and confirmation of the creeping damage language can have when placed in the wrong mouths. Let me be clear that, unlike the book bans, this is not an attempt at censorship or restricting ideas but a small attempt at a warning, sort of like yelling fire in a crowded theater or inciting a riot. As someone who participated in my share of protests in the late sixties and seventies, I understand the nature of civil disobedience is to make the world uncomfortable. Making people uneasy is sometimes a way of sparking change. The former President released a photo of himself beside a picture of NY DA Alvin Bragg holding a baseball bat as if ready to take a big swing. That post is not about sparking discomfort; it is about sparking violence.
Continue to Vote for Change