Changing in language patterns

naorma

naorma

Dagobah Resident
Yesterday evening I had a discussion with a guy who lives in my area and wants to do some training in communication. As I have also done this we were talking a little bit and he asked me: “What did you take with you from this training?” Now this is a question that always makes me feel a little strange. When I came to think about it this morning – something that I always do, smoking outside and rethinking about some events last days – I suddenly realized what it was that always bothers me. This phrase has been implemented in modern conversation and I don’t like it.

The reason I found: When you say what did you take with you it always implies the necessity of taking things, forcing in a way the greed in you, and leading you in the direction of consuming things, which is a very inactive thing, btw. I thought what would be the better question and came to the result:: “What did you learn?” This means something different, meaning that you have made efforts to enlarge your knowledge. But this term is not used very often nowadays.

Years ago I read the book from Victor Klemperer „Ich will Zeugnis ablegen bis zum letzten.“ Tagebücher 1933–1945. “I Shall Bear Witness: The Diaries of Victor Klemperer, 1933–41”. Victor Klemperer - Wikipedia. In these books he describes very precisely the changing in language patterns during the rising of the Third Reich. It is a book with more than 1200 pages and I was fascinated and spent one week on this book, starting to read in the morning before I went to work and continuing immediately when I came back, doing nothing else.

At that time a lot of people where depressed when they finished reading this book. I was not. I thought, well now I know what is going on and I can pay attention! But of course this is hard, because nearly all of the people are using the new implemented terms of language and don’t realize what it means to them. In case of the guy I was talking to I was “successful” because he agreed that this phrase “What did you take with you” implies greed and he dislikes being greedy ….

Just some thoughts . . .
 
Well, I think I need to read the book you have mentioned because I sure have noticed the changes in language and the new meanings being inserted covertly into terms that have otherwise meant something else for long periods of time. Lobaczewski talks about this in "Political Ponerology" and it is definitely something we ought to be observing and even recording.

Obviously, the most extreme change I think is that of the term "gender". But there is so much more than just that going on. It really is Bizarro World!
 
If we are going to track and record, I might throw a few which really annoy and get on my nerves. Than I would remember the Stalking techniques and that helps to deal with this.

"What's keeping you up at night?" or "What are you working on currently?" or "Give me a five minute update of your world and keep it on point?" or "Send me a list of five wins and/or blockers in your area?" or "How's everything; under control?"
All are insulting questions as they almost infer that you are not being productive and now need to explain quickly and summarily the things you are working on and they better be aligned to the company's goals and you should be making progress. Also, it is expected that you explain the blockers as something that you are dealing with quite effectively and making progress still. Only don't complain about things you are struggling with and do not show emotions as that paints you as an unstable personality and someone who cannot deal with pressure, adversity and difficult personalities. And you better be aware of anything and everything in your area and have full control over events. Essentially, they want to see if you are able to shut up, deal with the psychopaths and still be an efficient worker.

"Thank you very much for leaning with us on this!"
A more flattering way of saying thanks to to someone who helped you out in a politically sensitive situation. It seems like a disingenuous way of thanking someone to be honest.

"If you require any assistance, feel free to reach out to me."
Basically, it means that sorry, I just rained on your parade by implementing a new process, change which you have no choice but to follow. If you are unhappy, you can contact me in writing but I might ignore it and/or give you the run around by playing game of "continuously asking for more information about trivial matters".

"I am not the expert so, I just follow what I am told?"
This one is the worst. A typical cop-out by an authority who does have the power to make appropriate decisions concerning the matter at hand but since he/she/they have risen to the position via nefarious means or stroke of luck and don't want to lose their position by making a decision which is not on trend or popular, rest be damned.
 
If wanted i could give examples, but for quick reaction: Since years, the politicians and managers use a infantilicised language, where opinions take the place of facts, verbs are used as nouns, and sentences are strings of sub sentences rather than statements with a begin, end, object and subject. No wonder this habit undermines deductive reasoning in those subjected to it.
This 'modern' habit was at first not followed quite as much in Belgian dutch, or with German speakers, and always annoyed me.

My switch to gathering information and writing in English, as with the forum and Sott, as well as my daily life between non native Dutch speakers, made for a dilution compared to my former language and thinking and personality, regrettably turning more approximate and less precise, and much less satisfying intellectually. Another handicap is not knowing exactly how efficient my language expression works in/ to those addressed with it. Puns, double entendres, creative personalised language does not work the same anymore.
Globalisation towards English does the same, i guess, to all non native English speakers, it does bring the world more together, but on a lower level.
 
Interesting topic indeed. There are many words and phrases that people use (especially nowadays) that I am reacting pretty allergic towards and refuse to say. I especially noticed this trend picking up speed with the whole Corona business (and it was already pretty bad before that!). When I have time I‘ll share some of those words and phrases here. I often find myself annoyed/disgusted/dismayed when I hear someone saying those things and wondering why many people don’t seem to have a problem with using those words/phrases.

One simple example is the word „pandemic“ that people started to use to describe the Corona nonsense, as soon as the mainstream called it that.
 
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Besides the linguistic part I‘m also reacting pretty similar when I see someone engaging in strange body language and refuse to do it.

One good example of this is the „fist greeting“ that has replaced the handshake (especially now!). When I was first exposed to that nonsense (quite some time before Corona even started) I refused to do so and found it ridiculous and denigrating. I think it started with the young generation. When people tried the fist on me back then I refused and shook their hands, making it clear to them (also in words) that I won’t do that crap and find it strange.

Now it is a different story because of Corona: I always try to use the hands, but when I notice that people have a problem within it, I do the fist for their sake (with inner dismay, that I don’t show).
 

A list of 100 politically correct words and phrases (comments and emphasis are mine):​

  1. Homosexual – Gay
  2. Homeless – Outdoor urban dwellers
  3. Insane – Reality challenged
  4. Perverted – Sexually dysfunctional
  5. Prostitute – Sex worker / Sex care provider
  6. Stupid – Intellectually impaired / Unschooled
  7. Dishonest – Ethically disorientated
  8. Dustbin Man – Sanitation Engineer
  9. Insult – Emotional rape 😬
  10. Bisexual prostitute – Equal opportunity prostitute (comment: Not correct concept. There are more than two genders now...)
  11. Poor – Economically marginalised
  12. Immigrant – Newcomer (comment: Bomb'em, bring'em and increase "diversity")
  13. Illegal immigrant – Irregular immigrant / undocumented worker
  14. Right wing protest – Riot
  15. Left wing riot – Protest
  16. Drunk – Inebriated / chemically inconvenienced
  17. Terrorist – Freedom fighter / rebel / protester / insurgent (comment: Either you are with us or...)
  18. Global warming – Climate change (comment: Ice Age? Anyone?)
  19. Job losses – Job restructuring
  20. Criminal – Behaviourally challenged
  21. Broken Home – Dysfunctional family
  22. Caretaker – Site engineer
  23. Fat – Metabolic overachiever (comment: Gotta love them fat bombs!)
  24. Slum area – Economically deprived area
  25. Foreign food – Ethnic cuisine (comment: Racist food? At this point, no surprises!)
  26. Housewife – Domestic engineer (comment: Cute one, I must say)
  27. Jungle – Rain forest
  28. Natural disaster – Global warming incident (comment: Yes, blame it all on CO2)
  29. Sex change – Gender reassignment (comment: "Good luck with that one," says DNA)
  30. Tramp – Homeless person
  31. Unemployed – Economically inactive
  32. Preferential treatment – Affirmative action
  33. Racist – Someone who disagrees with the far-left
  34. Nazi – Someone who disagrees with the far-left
  35. Fascist – Someone who disagrees with the far-left
  36. Husband – Partner
  37. Wife – Partner
  38. Dictator – Leader who refuses to obey the UK government
  39. Tyrant – Leader who refuses to obey the UK government
  40. Regime – Government that refuses to obey UK government
  41. Crime rate – Street activity index
  42. Robbery – Wealth redistribution (comment: Robin Hood would be proud)
  43. Vomiting – Unplanned re-examination of recent food choices (comment: Nice one. 10/10)
  44. Lying – Economical with the truth (comment: It gets worse, see number 55)
  45. Wanted criminal – Person of interest
  46. Patriot – Troublemaker / pest / nuisance / agitator
  47. Promiscuous – Sex addict
  48. Chairman – Chairperson / Chair
  49. Fireman – Firefighter
  50. Merry Christmas – Season’s Greetings (comment: Shouldn't it be "Merry Winter Festival?", see number 54)
  51. Blackboard – Chalkboard
  52. Illegal voter – Undocumented voter (comment: Trump knows)
  53. Bribe – Public service bonus
  54. Christmas – Winter Festival
  55. Lies – Alternative facts 😲
  56. Printing money – Quantitative easing (comment: Not falling for that one anymore)
  57. Immigrants – Labour supporters
  58. Illegal subletting – Irregular subletting
  59. Shoplifting – Irregular shopping
  60. Black sheep – Outcast
  61. Blackmail – Extortion
  62. Postman – Mail carrier
  63. Manhole – Utility hole
  64. Blacklisted – Banned
  65. Murder – Unauthorised termination of life (comment: The wokies are aware of free will!)
  66. Rational fear – Phobia
  67. Uneducated – Unschooled / Lacking a formal education
  68. Flip chart – Easel (Flip is a derogatory word for Filipinos)
  69. Mexican – Hispanic
  70. Dustman – Sanitation engineer
  71. Ghetto – Economically deprived area
  72. Housewife – Domestic engineer (comment: Duplicate. Not falling for that one either! 😆)
  73. Illegal aliens – Undocumented migrants
  74. Ugly – Visually unfavourable
  75. Lazy – Motivationally deficient
  76. Unemployed – Unintentionally at leisure / non-waged
  77. Smelly – Nasally disturbing (comment: How else can you smell? With your toe?)
  78. Best man for the job – Best person for the job
  79. Man in the street – Average person
  80. Waitress – Server
  81. Failure – Non-traditional success (comment: Always look at the bright side...)
  82. Forefathers – Ancestors
  83. Man-made – Artificial
  84. Manpower – Human resources
  85. Mankind – Humanity
  86. Right-hand man – Chief assistant
  87. Christian name – Forename
  88. Sportsmanship – Fairness
  89. Tax man – Tax officer
  90. Workmanlike – Efficient
  91. Steward – Flight attendant
  92. Stewardess – Flight attendant
  93. Deaf – Hearing impairment
  94. Disease – Disorder (comment: That one is popular, isn't it?)
  95. Businessman – Business person
  96. Actress – Actor
  97. Manageress – Manager
  98. Spinster – Bachelorette
  99. White lie – Lie (comment: Not surprised if this becomes "Truth", oops maybe it is... see number 55)
  100. Plastic surgery – Cosmetic surgery
 
One longstanding phrase that's always bugged me is 'It's a challenge". or "I find it challenging". It's so wimpy. I found myself wanting to scream, "No, it's a PROBLEM", that need solving or an obstacle to be overcome. Or wondering why a person felt themselves incapable of saying they were having trouble with something. As if they could only function with life issues being sugared over. It completely set my teeth on edge.

I chalked it up to the whole 'self-esteem" thing that began to be in vogue when my kids were in school. Some teachers were just awful with it. So cloying. Even then, I could feel something off. Fortunately, my kids were enrolled in extracurricular activities with clear, measurable benchmarks that could only be met with hard work, and even then, talent had a lot to do with it. The experience saved them from a lot of the nonsense they were being fed in their education.
 
naorma said:
Yesterday evening I had a discussion with a guy who lives in my area and wants to do some training in communication. As I have also done this we were talking a little bit and he asked me: “What did you take with you from this training?” Now this is a question that always makes me feel a little strange. When I came to think about it this morning – something that I always do, smoking outside and rethinking about some events last days – I suddenly realized what it was that always bothers me. This phrase has been implemented in modern conversation and I don’t like it.

The reason I found: When you say what did you take with you it always implies the necessity of taking things, forcing in a way the greed in you, and leading you in the direction of consuming things, which is a very inactive thing, btw. I thought what would be the better question and came to the result:: “What did you learn?” This means something different, meaning that you have made efforts to enlarge your knowledge. But this term is not used very often nowadays.
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Interesting. Yesterday I was in a meeting where the question was asked what we needed from the other parties that were present. That question also bothered me, and I circumvented it by saying what I thought would be a good thing. I was there to contribute to solving a problem between several parties. I wasn't there to state my needs, which as you say implies "the necessity of taking things", and which IMO encourages the worst traits in a person. It's a rather materialistic way of looking at things.

Thinking things over it seemed as if I had stepped into an alternate snowflake reality, one that wasn't mine, where people were playing the blame game, and indulging in self-pity without taking any responsibility for their own actions. After reading this thread it made me realise that the language used by the person who led the meeting most likely invited the other parties to turn it more into a therapy session than a business meeting. I couldn't believe my eyes and ears and I think that this kind of meeting wouldn't have taken place say 20 years ago when people still had to be a bit more resilient and pragmatic?

Perhaps the whole mediation industry is also based on these changes in language, promoting an anti-spiritual victim mentality where people are reinforcing each other's victimhood as common ground which strengthens all these petty tyrants that surround us.
 
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