Discussion about this post

User's avatar
David Mikulec's avatar

What if it's not what you think it is? As a recovering Republican, I was there. And I agree, there's nothing moral about any of this.

For far too many, their concerns for life end at the birth canal. I mean, their actions give them away: they won't support any of the government's social programs designed to feed, house, educate and keep people healthy. They flat out refuse to support any kind of national healthcare initiative. But they do love their wars. Pro-life evidently ends at the US border.

That's my opinion.

Expand full comment
Mark L Taylor's avatar

You raise an interesting question but I would urge you to use the more accurate term "anti-choice" instead of "pro-life". Viewed from the perspective of George Lakoff (his book, "Don't Think of An Elephant" is an excellent introduction to neurolinguistics), words are not neutral; they carry opinion-shaping emotional weight. When the term "pro-life" is used there is an automatic bias built in --after all, who but a monster is against life?

The more accurate "anti-choice" would actually strengthen the good point you are making in the column.

Republicans and the right have mastered neurolinguistics. Thus a reasonable "inheritance tax" becomes the more repugnant "death tax". Climate damaging legislation has terms like "clean air" or "clean water" slapped onto them. The cozy "climate warming" (everyone loves to be warm) was a term actually chosen and promoted by the oil industry to stem the use of more accurate terms like "climate crisis" or "climate collapse". The media fell in line and Democrats don't have a clue about neurolinguistics.

As a former journalist I know there is a great newsroom pantomime about supposed objectivity. Yet at the same time editors will slap an extremely biased and inaccurate term like "pro-life" onto a headline on a story that most readers will not read (most readers of newspapers and websites scan headlines). Like dripping water drilling its way through stone, biased language does form and deform public perception, debate and policy. We journalists need to use the power of language to reflect reality.

Really, check out "Don't think Of An Elephant".

Expand full comment
4 more comments...

No posts