mcdaniel@uiucdcsb.UUCP (12/01/84)
This was posted locally today by another user (Bill Hohensee). I have
taken the libery of reposting it here. This seems like a good place for it.
/* Written 1:16 am Dec 1, 1984 by hohensee@uiucdcs in uiucdcsb:general */
/* ---------- "Killing the language" ---------- */
I recently received this from a friend ... thought others might enjoy it.
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I thought you might be interested in the National Council of Teachers of
English doublespeak (based on Orwell's 1984) awards for 1984. The State
Department won 1st prize for replacing the word killing with "unlawful or
arbitrary deprivation of life."
Second prize: George Bush for equating liberals with Nicaraguan leftists.
Third: Casper Weinberger for the remark he made after the American soldiers
were removed from Lebanon to ships offshore: "Nothing has changed. We are
not leaving Leabnon. The Marines are being deployed two or three miles to
the west."
Runners up:
The National Transportation Safety Board for calling airplane crashes
"controlled flights into terrain" in its investigation records.
The Pentagon for calling peace, "permanent pre-hostility," calling combat,
"violence processing," and for referring to civilian casualties in nuclear
war as "collateral damage."
The Pentagon was also cited for calling the October 1983 invasion of
Grenada a "predawn vertical insertion." !!
So much for the honest use of the language!!!
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I suppose there may have been a more appropriate place for this ...
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