The Power Of Language

The Left has always known how to use, or more accurately, misuse language.  They have a long history of using words as weapons.  It’s not hyperbole to say that tyranny starts with words.

Although Chinese Communist Chairman Mao is quoted as having said, “All political power comes from the barrel of a gun”, (in 1927 at the start of the Chinese Civil War), it is the use of language that planted the seeds of that mindset.

Karl Marx is credited with the development of the anti-capitalism system known as socialism. The strong enforcement of this system is what gave rise to communism. Marx first published his “Communist Manifesto” in 1848. This was followed up by a far more in-depth, detailed 3 volume work entitled “Das Kapital” in 1867.

Another example of a system that started out with words is National Socialism or Nazism.  (In German, the word is nationalsozialismus, or the National German Workers’ Party; or NSDAP)  It was an attempt by Adolph Hitler to create a “nationalist” socialism as an alternative to international Marxism and capitalism. This too started with words. In 1925, Hitler’s book “Mein Kampf” was published. By the end of WWII, over 10 million copies had been sold. The book is still being printed and sold world wide.

However, neither Marx or Hitler were original thinkers. The seminal beginnings of communism/socialism as we know it go back to the 1600s. Some scholars take it even further back to ancient times.

Regardless of the time frame, what’s amazing though is that something so subtle as language, both written and spoken, can cause great change. While that changes isn’t overnight, language nevertheless plants the seeds that can cause either chaos or contentment.

There are two separate, yet intertwined, fields of study that deal specifically with language:

Homiletics pertains to carrying the meaning of words or text across time to communicate its meaning and significance. It can also refer to homilies and/or conversation, and sometimes is called the “art of preaching”.

Hermeneutics is the study of the methodology and methods of interpretation; this also relates to the use and study of the Bible.

Some of the most meticulous and scholarly work concerning the use of language is by the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951).  Austrian by birth, he taught at Cambridge in the 1930s.   His best-known writings are  “Tracucus Logico-Philosophicus”, “Philosophical Investigations”, and “The Blue And Brown Books”. In the proverbial nutshell, though, a lot of Wittggenstein’s work comes down to the concept that all language only has the meaning assigned to it by its popular usage.

Okay, so thank you for making it through my introduction/history lesson. I decided to approach this topic because it’s become so apparent the Left manipulates language at every opportunity.

I first started noticing this way back in the 1990s. I had gay/lesbian co-workers at more than one job I had then. The folks I knew weren’t the in-your-face militant types, and it was through them that I first heard the LGBT label. Only back then, the “G” came first.

Soon, however, more letters started appearing-“A”, “Q”, and eventually half the English alphabet.

Add to this the bizarro world of gender-inclusive pseudo pronouns. Currently, Facebook has a list of over 50 “gender” pronouns to choose from when filling out your online profile.  A good portion of the list actually sort of cancels itself out; just read the list sometime.

But this is how it starts.  The subtle, slow pace of word manipulation.  One day, GLBT becomes LGBT and no one notices or cares if they do. Then other letters appear, other “genders” appear, and suddenly you find that you can get into legal trouble and even lose your job because you unknowingly identified someone with the “wrong” label. The writer Derek Hunter calls this mindset the “Euphemism Nation”.  (Townhall.com 11/8/19)

Anyone who has been paying attention knows that language has been skewered by the left, with the help of the media. Political correctness dominates higher education as well as several corporations.

Collusion (a secret agreement or cooperation for an illegal purpose) may sound sinister, but it’s not even a federal crime unless there is a violation of anti-trust law. The media and the Left have used it to mean criminality, albeit wrongly.

Beware also any time you hear the Left start talking about “democracy”. First of all, we’re a constitutional republic, not a democracy. But according to the Left, the type of government they say we have (a democracy) is completely threatened by the mere existence of President Donald J. Trump. Really? How can he be a threat to the type of government we don’t even have?

If I took the time, and had the space, we could probably discuss dozens of such examples of language manipulation. With just a short article, though, I don’t have that option. But remember this: tyranny starts with words, and the end goal is control.

“In a society they control, you will have no rights, no voice and no future.  Leftism always ends in tyranny and murder, which is why we’re blessed to have the Second Amendment.  And if you are ever disarmed and at the mercy of these aspiring monsters, the only safe space will be a mass grave.” (Kurt Schlichter, Townhall.com  12/9/19)

Let’s practice some empirical awareness. Start paying attention to EVERYTHING the Left is saying.  Learn to tune into that word manipulation. Sometimes subtle, but increasingly more and more out front. Listen to what they say, then watch what they do. Tyranny starts with words.

It’s been a while since I said anything about the next music project I’m working on.  SALT 2 (with a unique sub-title) is almost completely recorded. The operative word here is “almost”, though. And after all the recording is complete, there’s still a lot of related things to take care of. So, with that in mind, right after the first of the new year, I’ll be announcing some funding opportunities that involve several Petra and GHF related items.   Please check out my FB page at www.facebook.com/DeGroffProjects for more information.

Thanks in advance for your support.