WORD FATIGUE

I love words. I especially love words when they are strung together by great authors, poets, song writers, and stirring orators. Words are the paint and brushes by which writers create their art and speakers grasp and hold the attention of their audiences. The problem I have today is that some great words have been hijacked by special interest groups and have become quite hateful. Not all words, just some words and some of these words just make me tired. This essay will examine a few such words that have become tiresome to the ear and to the eye.

The first great word is green. I used to love the word green. It is the color of money. It is the color of trees and grass. But now if I never hear the word again it wouldn't bother me. It has been driven down my throat by so-called environmentalist radicals to the point of torture. This lovely innocuous word has, to me, become a swear word. I am a conservationist and an environmentalist but I am not green. Frogs are green.

My next word is eco-anything. Do you understand what I mean? I have lost all interest in anything that starts with eco. To those who insist that I pay particular attention to this, sorry, you have lost me with your zeal to advance your agenda. I guess I have eco-fatigue.

Word number three is diversity. This used to be a very acceptable word. It described differences. Well guess what? Today there are not supposed to be any differences. Today everything is supposed to be the same. Again I offer my apologies. There are differences, and as the French would say, "Viva la difference." Being different doesn't make you bad, it just makes you different. One can still be equal while being different. Whether or not you are acceptable to the majority is mostly up to you. It is not up to law or any other societal mores. Spare me any other mention of the word diversity. I will continue to share my time with those I wish, not with those I am supposed to.

My next problem word is bio-anything. Again an overused under-necessary word. This is another example of agenda driven political correctness. I have grown to detest anything that starts with bio, especially bio-diversity.

That brings up the next word. Organic. I believe this word serves only to increase the price of a commodity. This again is an over used worn out word that has lost all of its original meaning. I wouldn't eat anything organic if I had to starve. First I don't believe the claims of organic farming and secondly most have been proven to be false. I will just continue to wash my hands and wash my food. If that doesn't take care of it, oh well, my bad.

Rap is a tiring word also, but my music was criticized when I was young so I guess I 'll just let that be. Still, though, it is hard to use the word music and rap in the same sentence.

My final word is gay. This is definitely a word that has been hijacked by a special interest group who apparently didn't like the word homosexual. The dictionary says it means joyous and lively. That definition works for me. As for me, when it is necessary to write about homosexual people, that is how I will refer to them. I will save gay for its original meaning.

I am sure if I thought about it, there would be a lot more words that have been destroyed by people or groups for their own benefit. I am going to try to stay true to my understanding of the original meaning of words. I will continue to endeavor to write words using their original meaning and hope that you, my readers, will understand the message.

Ron Scarbro August 16, 2009