Did you just say, "War is Peace?"

As most of us know, language is quite powerful.

Bush and Co. (Karl Rove, Dick Cheney, "neo-conservative think-tanker, Frank Luntz," etc.) have coined very effective phrases, such as "tax relief," "death tax," "culture wars," "culture of life," "compassionate conservative," "liberation of Iraq," etc. This is known as neo-conservative language "framing."

This "cognitive" framing is surprisingly powerful and surreptitious. For example, more Americans refer to the issue of reproductive rights as "Pro-Life vs. Pro-Abortion," instead of as "Anti-Choice vs. Pro-Choice."

One such Orwellian phrase, in particular, is "the global war on terror," and it's acronym, "The GWOT."

"The GWOT" is generously sloshed around in the media, by the White House, by Republicans, and now, quite ironically, by ALL of the DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES.

Yes, they all went for it, hook, line, and sinker—like rainbow trout with a slimy, silicone worm in their mouths—they have ALL chewed on this cleverly-crafted phrase, slipping it into their speeches, Web sites, press releases--you name it!

HOWEVER, it is only John Edwards (so far), who has admitted (very recently) to his faux pas of perpetuating this neo-con jargon. Actually, Edwards called it "a Bush-created political phrase," and he said that he will no longer use it! Yes, John Edwards saw it for what it was, and he decried it! (My hero!)

Here's the full story--paraphrased for your busy schedules—from this week's TIME magazine:

At last month's Democrat debate in South Carolina, moderator Brian Williams asked the eight Democratic presidential candidates to raise their hands if there "is such a thing as a global war on terror." Senator Hillary Clinton's hand shot up. After hesitating noticeably, Senator Barack Obama joined her. However, John Edwards was among those who did not.

"This political language has created a frame that is not accurate, and that Bush and his gang have used to justify anything they want to do," Edwards said in a phone interview from Everett, Wash. "It's been used to justify a whole series of things that are not justifiable, ranging from the war in Iraq, to torture, to violation of the civil liberties of Americans, to illegal spying on Americans. Anyone who speaks out against these things is treated as unpatriotic. I also think it suggests that there's a fixed enemy that we can defeat with just a military campaign. I just don't think that's true."

The White House, for its part, insists President Bush isn't changing his policy--or his vocabulary.

Source: www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1617535,00.html

Get Smarter: George Lakoff's lecture, "Moral Politics: How Liberals and Conservatives Think," which delves into "framing," and metaphorical thought--

video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3114412735990235786

Need a laugh (and a cry): www.studentsfororwell.org