Doublespeak Terms that Turn Your Stomach

[titan1968]

According to the Oxford Dictionary, to discriminate can mean to 'make an unjust distinction in the treatment of different groups of people on the grounds of race, sex, or age.'

If one grants more opportunity to a discriminated group, as is the case in a positive action programme, don't we take away opportunities from the 'majority'? Aren't we discriminating against the majority? Again, I fail to understand how positive discrimination can still be positive?

I'm not trying to split hairs. I just find the term illogical.

Actually, this one makes sense. To discriminate means to distinguish between one thing and another by some criteria. It's original meaning has no positive or negative connotation.

However, in practice, when applied to races, discrimination has come to mean granting less opportunity to one race over another. That clearly has a negative connotation.

So the term "positive discrimination" would mean to grant more opportunity to a particular race. For example, if Native Americans are discriminated against in the work place, an affirmative action program could compensate for that by applying "positive discrimination".

Although this makes sense, it is still annoying. So it belongs on this list of Doublespeak.

 

[B_big dirigible]

"Redeployment".

 

[a610guy]

Hate when my manager starts every
department memo with "Team"

If we're a team, how come he's never "at bat"?

 

[CPearl]

These labels need to be scrapped.

I agree. I have met many, many people that are fiscally conservative but socially liberal. What color is that party? Purple?

 

[Caelestis]

"Ethnic Minority" - everyone is a minority of some sort.

"Coloured Person" - White skin shows colour (blushing red, blue from cold etc) better than black skin. Surely that means that white skin is coloured? Also white is the abundance of colour. Black is the absence of colour. We have a black girl next door. She's not English-African. She's not coloured. She's black. So what?

And this shouldn't be a shock, and is more political bullshit than anything, but I'll never forget Tony Blair's original election pledge: "Education, Education, Education!". Then he shut down the whole university grants system.

 

[B_big dirigible]

"Ethnic Albanian".

This was often invoked by the press to mystify us all further about goings-on in the Balkans. The trouble is, there doesn't seem to be any such thing. The inhabitants of Albania are basically of two tribes, the Ghegs (mainly in the north of the country) and the Tosks (mainly in the south). Both have been there for a long time, though neither has much of a political history. As with just about everybody else in the Balkans, the trivial differences between the two tribes are magnified into questions of life and death.

But in any case, "Albanian" is a nationality, not an ethnicity.

 

[SpeedoGuy]

"Empowerment"

That's one of those words upper management likes to smother employees with in slogan posters, vision statements, or during team building meetings. I've learned what it means is: Do as you're told.

 

[earllogjam]

. I've learned what it means is: Do as you're told.

I always thought that was the term "attitude adjustment".

 

[B_Kshelby67]

organic

not exactly a phrase, but it is thrown around so much. I really don't think people actually know what it means. "ohhhhhhhhhhhh its organic! that must mean it is better!!!!" Ask them to define it.... they have no fucking clue

 

[rob_just_rob]

"Heritage". The guys who use this word are the same ones who were running around in white robes and hoods, fifty years ago.

"With all due respect". Means "none at all".

 

[HotBulge]

Shame on me... I used this term in a post a few days ago.

HYPER-FEMININE - the exaggeration of gender-stereotyped behavior that is believed to be feminine. Hyperfeminine women, as well as some gay men and male-to-female transgenders, exaggerate the qualities they believe to be feminine. They believe it is their job to boost men's egos by being passive, naive, innocent, soft, flirtatious, graceful, nurturing, and accepting.

In reality, it's an euphemistic adjective to describe women (or some gay men , etc) with relatively low self-esteem. The state of hyperfemininity is a resignation of one's duty to cultivate oneself.

 

[D_Tintagel_Demondong]

Probable Cause.

Why is this doublespeak? Probably cause is a right granted to you by the 4th ammendment of the constitution. I assures you that you can't be arrested, detained, or have your property seized or examined without reasonable suspicion that you committed a crime.

Well, that's until the Homeland Security bill was signed. This illegal act allows Homeland Security officers to arrest and detain you without probable cause. They can also wire tap you for no good reason and do all kinds of other unconstitutional stuff.

"Patriot Act" is doublespeak, not "probable cause."

I'm going through some really old posts today. You probably don't even use this site anymore, but I still felt the need to reply.

 

[MalakingTiti]

Anti-Semetic pisses me off. It has been hijacked and made to mean Anti-Jewish. Semetic refers to a region and not a religion. Now the term is used exclusively when references are made to discrimination against Jews. I reject the term completely in the context it is now used.

 

[2322]

Anti-Semetic pisses me off. It has been hijacked and made to mean Anti-Jewish. Semetic refers to a region and not a religion. Now the term is used exclusively when references are made to discrimination against Jews. I reject the term completely in the context it is now used.

It does me as well. Arabs are just as Semitic as Jews are and I daresay the largest, "anti-Semitic," ethnic group as a whole are Arabs! If you mean anti-Jewish then just say it.