Uneasy Rhetoric

There is a good article in today’s UCLA Daily Bruin about word choice. Although I disagree to some extent with the article’s title - “Editorial: Words should be chosen for accuracy, not shock” - I think the reporter is on the right track.

Briefly, the article discusses the fact that the representative of a textbook publisher called CalPIRG “terrorists.” While I would certainly take the side of the students over the publishers, I will admit that, if the representative had wanted to be more effective, she would have been better off using a different word.

“Terrorist” is the new “Nazi.” It is a short-cut word, a way to express that something is evil. Unfortunately for the representative, its rapid overuse has turned “terrorist” into an instant cliche in the same way that calling someone a Nazi can pretty much shut down an argument, and not in your favor.