It’s Time For Conservatives To Retire These 4 Euphemisms

Conservatives often discuss how the Left warps language to suit their own objectives — especially when attempting to advance their sex-driven secular religion. Look no further than the absurdity of labeling mothers “birthing people,” calling abortion “healthcare,” rebranding pedophiles as “minor-attracted persons,” or insisting that “trans women are women.”

Although conservatives may scoff at such absurdities, the rapid leftward shift of American political culture — driven largely by this doublespeak — inevitably drags well-meaning conservatives along for the ride. In his essay “Politics and the English Language,” novelist George Orwell observed: “If thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought. A bad usage can spread by tradition and imitation, even among people who should and do know better.”

What are some of the “bad usages” that have crept into the Right’s speech?

“Abortion Kills Babies”

Few conversations contain more euphemisms than that surrounding abortion. As previously mentioned, the Left makes the ludicrous claim that “abortion is healthcare.” They also use phrases like “a woman’s right to choose,” “terminate a pregnancy,” and “fetus” — the Latin word meaning “baby” — so that they can more comfortably talk about murdering human beings.

Yet among conservatives — the same group that argues “guns don’t kill people, people kill people” — the phrase “abortion kills babies” has gained significant traction.

Let’s further develop the firearm example. It is, in a sense, correct to say that a gun kills a person. It is also, in a sense, correct to say that a bullet kills a person. Yet the problem with asserting that “guns kill people” is the intentional obfuscation of the morality behind the action. People kill people — not the tools or the means by which they do the killing.

Murdering someone with a firearm is not a morally neutral event. Unless you are the most ardent materialist to ever walk the face of the earth, murder via firearm is not morally equivalent to, say, a bridge collapsing and crushing the unfortunate soul who happened to be walking underneath. 

Those on the Right, however, frequently say that “abortion kills babies.” To borrow from pro-gun language — “abortion doesn’t kill babies, people kill babies.” To be even more precise, mothers and fathers pay hitmen — abortionists — to murder their children, usually for the sake of convenience.

If abortion is ever to end, conservatives must be honest about the matter — and pass laws that do the same.

“Biological Man”

The Left’s transgender craze is awash with contradictions. Again, as previously mentioned, Americans are expected to believe that men can conceive and give birth.

Transgender ideologues believe that sex is a biological construct while gender is a sociological construct. As Michael Knowles pointed out a few years ago, progressive activists have no problem with saying “biologically female penises” or “biologically male uteruses.”

Yet conservatives’ osmotic adoption of the term “biological man” — or “biological woman” — gives ground to LGBTQ ideology by acknowledging that one can be a man in some way other than biological.

One’s sex, of course, is derived from one’s DNA. Even from their embryonic state, men have one X chromosome and one Y chromosome, while women have two X chromosomes. Changing one’s genetics is impossible — and perhaps the best way to make oneself existentially miserable is to go to war with one’s own biology.

Although conservatives would ostensibly agree with the above, what exactly do they mean by the term “biological man”? Can someone be a “spiritual man”? Perhaps an “emotional man”? 

Especially for conservatives who profess Christianity and belief in the Bible — which teaches that human beings are matter-spirit composites, and that God grants men and women distinct roles and duties — the term “biological man” is all the more confusing.

“Culture War”

To a large extent, the tension in American life is cultural. Roughly speaking, there exist two fundamentally juxtaposed cultures in the United States: those who are deeply influenced by biblical ethics and lead lives with at least some mind toward a personal, just God; and those who are increasingly nonreligious and driven by secular ideology.

Influential voices in the latter group, however, disparage this conflict with the term “culture war” — especially when discussing topics like LGBTQ ideology, abortion, education, and any other issue that pertains to the nuclear family or threatens to undo it altogether.

The term “culture war,” at least for those on the Left, is not meant as a sincere description of America’s cultural divides. It is a tool used to scoff at those who would dare stick to their old-fashioned morality while encouraging others to do the same. Even as the Left determinedly seeks to legislate that morality — scrapping limits on abortion, decriminalizing pedophilia, making female inmates bunk up with men — they want to deter the Right from legislating theirs. 

However, there is no neutrality. It is not whether morality will be legislated, but whose morality will be legislated.

Use the term “culture war” with caution. Some conservatives have redeemed it — using it to emphasize their victories and point out leftist insanity. At the same time, do not allow the Left to leverage the term as a way to disparage your involvement in debates on matters that threaten to tear America asunder.

“Unapologetically Pro-Life”

During his 2020 vice presidential debate against Kamala Harris, Mike Pence uttered the famous line: “I’m pro-life, I don’t apologize for it.” A similar statement — “I am unapologetically pro-life” — has since reverberated among conservative lawmakers and pro-life groups.

Once again, on its face, there is absolutely no problem with unapologetically supporting the sanctity of life for preborn babies. Yet perhaps that is where the problem with the phrase lies.

Imagine saying “I am unapologetically anti-slavery” or “I am unapologetically anti-Holocaust.” There is no shame — no need to apologize — for opposing large-scale injustice, no matter what those on the side of that injustice may say. Tacking the word “unapologetically” onto the term “pro-life” needlessly surrenders ground to the notion that one should be ashamed of opposing abortion.

Consider Ben Shapiro’s advice on what to do if someone wrongly accuses you of racism: “If someone calls you a ‘racist’ with no evidence, your proper response should not be ‘Well that’s reasonable, let’s have a conversation about this.’ Because once you do that, you acknowledge that a reasonable person might think you’re a racist. Which means you’re a racist. If someone calls you a racist, you say ‘No, you’re just a jerk.’”

With respect to abortion and a host of other issues, conservatives need not fear punching back.

The views expressed in this opinion piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases