Joanne Freeman

Recent years have been a lesson in the vital importance of word choice. Was 1/6 a riot? An insurrection? An attempted coup? The differences in intent & implication are enormous

Thus the importance of noting that "suspending" parts of the Constitution & "terminating" them are NOT the same.

W/ or w/o action, dangerous words invite dangerous outcomes. Let's be clear on what's said. Let's not smooth over rough edges that offer a clear & present danger. Let's remember that words matter.

#politics

Dec 5, 2022 at 10:53pmWeb
Show threadNadia/Надя/नाडिया/娜迪亚/ ناديةDec 5, 2022
@jbf1755 I refuse to refer to it as anything but a coup attempt, though I've not really gotten into any debates about what to call it.
Show threadRedshoeDec 5, 2022

@jbf1755

Thank you for this. I noticed "suspending" being used a lot by others. I keep thinking of this quote in one of my favorite recent reads,

“Word are the medium through which belief systems are manufactured, nurtured, and reinforced, their fanaticism fundamentally could not exist without them.”

― Amanda Montell, Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism

Show threadJoanne FreemanDec 5, 2022
@Redshoe Lots of "suspending" going around, even among those on the left. Let's be accurate here -- as you note. There's an important difference (though both are dire).
Show threadStrappo HughesDec 5, 2022
@jbf1755 what is the practical diff brw suspending and terminating in this case?
Show threadJoanne FreemanDec 5, 2022
@StrappoHughes "Suspending" -- temporarily putting aside. "Terminating" -- ending. Both horrific, but "terminating" is worse.
Show threadJoshua WoodDec 5, 2022
@jbf1755 thanks, I somehow got “suspend” stuck in my head too, and I even took my own screenshot. “Terminate” is much worse. 🤦‍♂️
Show threadFenix🔥 Resistance Starts NOWDec 5, 2022
@jbf1755 Interpretation of those words is also subject to variation depending on who is hearing them and what side of the argument they are on. Republicans have turned the Dictionary into a matter of opinion instead of a tool of reference
Show threadSilkesterDec 6, 2022

@jbf1755
To some it was a #failedCoup, like tRump, his compicit aides, complicit members of both Houses and other co-conspirators like the #OathKeepers and #ProudBoys.
To some it was an #insurrection, since they understood the implication as #lawEnforcement participating in entering the #Capitol building with the expressed purpose to hinder government official in performing their duty.
To some it was a #riot, caught up in the moment, incited by the crowd + dear leader.
So all of the above.

HTH

Show threadArchaeoIainDec 6, 2022
@jbf1755 well-said. He is one of those politicians who gets a long way by being regarded as not very clever or skilled with words. On the contrary, somewhere in there is devastating skill which gains its power from his reputation as "just" a buffoon. He is a VERY dangerous wordsmith and person.
Show threadDougN ​ 😷 Dec 6, 2022

@jbf1755 we see the same issues here in Canada, whether what happened in Ottawa, Windsor, and Coutts was a truckers’ protest, a convoy, an occupation, or an attempted insurrection. Words matter. It was clear from the EA Inquiry that it was an occupation, and that there were insurrectionists present and primed to act.

#CanPoli #EAInquiry #Occupation #EmergencyActInquiry #EA #IStandWithTrudeau

Show threadSunaeThomasDec 6, 2022
@jbf1755 I agree with that!!