When you write a check to the IRS, is that charity? According to UK-based philosopher Alain de Botton, that’s what we should call taxes, because the word “tax” is “colorless, odorless and offensive.” Yes, he’s really serious.
Modern political language seems to be intended to conceal the truth rather than make facts clear. It’s no wonder that nobody can agree about what’s going on when almost everybody is busy redefining words to mean what he wants them to mean — in order to make a point.
For instance, in normal conversation, if you say that someone’s budget has been cut, those words have a specific meaning. The money in the budget is something less than it was before. In politics, though, it can mean something altogether different. A “budget cut” might mean that a budget went up — not down — but that the rate of increase wasn’t as much as had been previously planned.
This language is dishonest, and its intent is to conceal the fact that real overall budgets are almost never cut. Politicians can claim to have cut budgets, even though spending still goes up.
Mark Bodenhausen was a principled libertarian, but he was an even better human being
We learn lessons as we mature, but it’s usually too late by then
When you’re finally facing death, how many people will love you?
Shock merger: Democrats, GOP to join in creating new ‘super party’
In the great new culture war over Thanksgiving shopping, I’m neutral
This is my private confessional; the truths I write often scare me
Deep-seated shame makes it hard for me to take my needs seriously
I’ve lost all interest in begging anyone to fix the political system
