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• Straight and Crooked Thinking (Score:3, Interesting)

  by Simon (89)

  The problem comes from the fact that many people aren't aware that they use emotionally charged words, and then go on to argue their case by begging the question given the charged nature of their words.

  "Slaughtered" is a good example. US soldiers "slaughtered" someone and, therefore, (as the unspoken assumption goes) since "slaughtering" is evil and bad, then the US soldiers are evil and bad.

  Replacing "slaughtered" with "killed" removes some (but not all) of the emotive nature of the word. There was a l
  • Re:Straight and Crooked Thinking (Score:1)

    by pudge (1) on 2002.06.18 10:23 (#9674) Homepage Journal

    Yes, that's the fear, and I admit that sometimes I do that, but usually only when goofing around. Another example (from a similar discussion elsewhere) was "terrorist". That is an exceedingly difficult word to define, and I usually don't attempt to, but when someone says to me "this is terrorist and that is not" as a means to prove some nation is just as bad as another, and then I ask him to define the term, he shouldn't get mad at me for asking. :)
    

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    • Even Muddier Water (Score:1)

      by chaoticset (2105)

      There are those who have an extensive theory of 'fourth-generation warfare' [d-n-i.net].

      --
      
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      You are what you think.