This is nonsense:
Lakoff says conservatives have been taking language seriously for 30 years, ever since they joined together to resist a left they feared was a threat to traditional values.
Conservatives haven't been taking language seriously, they've been taking ideas seriously. They haven't "devised language," they have been refining their ideas:
They have created 43 think tanks and spent $2 billion. They devise language that reinforces their values and distribute it through broadcast commentary, books by conservative thinkers and other outlets.
Ideas first. Language follows as you try to develop and make the ideas clear.
Lakoff's comment, if true, makes clear that the left, or "progressives" as he calls them, are no longer the owners of serious thought:
"The highest principle in the conservative moral system is extending and preserving the moral system itself, where the highest principle in the progressive moral system is helping individuals who need help," Lakoff said.
Altruism is admirable but is not an adequate foundation for a moral system. In the political realm it leads to disastrous results.
By the way, I think there is an error in the article. In this paragraph I'm sure Lakoff meant to say, or did say "Republicans":
"And pretty soon the Democrats are talking about their plan for tax relief," Lakoff said. "It gets into the synapses. They've gotten into our brains and we have to change that. It took a lot of years talking about small government before it made sense. It had to fit into a conceptual system.' |
