Talking Past Each Other: How Semantics Complicates Politics
<p>One of the thornier issues in linguistics is how to define words as their meanings shift over time, or even between people who perceive them differently. “Nice,” for example, used to mean stupid (Spanish <em>necio</em> still does), and had a whole range of vague meanings before settling on the one we now use. In business today, one person might call his or her boss a “chairman” completely innocently, but some colleagues would find that sexist.</p>
<p>Shifting definitions can cause confusion or even some offense, but it is rarely a serious problem. In the realm of politics, however, semantics can be a matter of life or death. In America, for example, nine judges in Washington regularly decide whether a condemned criminal will go to the gallows based on the way each chooses to define “cruel and unusual punishment.”</p>
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