Language usage determines the way we think

Reader comment on item: [Beslan Atrocity:] They're Terrorists - Not Activists

Submitted by Bernard Kesten (United States), Sep 7, 2004 at 16:57

This use of the term 'militant' or 'activist' is not surprising. Most probably, this is done in order to influence the way in which readers think regarding those who are so labeled. George Orwell's 1946 essay "Politics and the English Language" is a discussion of how this sort of thing works.

In the words of Comrade Stalin: "The most important weapon in my arsenal is the dictionary. Let me choose the words ... by which you think and I will tell you what and how to think."

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