Socialism’s sneaky verbiage

OPINION:

Merriam-Webster Dictionary just changed the online definition of “sexual preference,” labeling it an offense term, and the fact the edit was made on the heels of Democrat senators scolding Supreme Court justice nominee Amy Coney Barrett for using the same term in reference to the LGBTQ community does not escape notice. It is hardly coincidental.

The left will do what it can to tear down normalcy and inject chaos into society, even to the point of redefining commonly accepted words and phrases, because that’s a path to Big Government.

That’s a road toward total government control.

That’s a sneaky tool of socialists and collectivists and Marxists and communists to inject their socialist, collectivist, Marxist and communist ways into society at-large.

It goes like this: Challenge norms. Tear down constructs. Create chaos. Then usher in government as the soothing source of stability.

Soon enough — and this is where America currently stands — it’s argued that only government, only government bureaucrats, only select government officials, are the ones who can solve the crisis that comes, are the ones who can bring peace and calm to the chaos in the streets.

“You use the term sexual preference to describe those in the LGBTQ community,” Sen. Mazie Hirono scolded at Barrett, during confirmation hearings. “Let me make clear: ’sexual preference’ is an offensive, an outdated, term. It is used by anti-LGBTQ activists to suggest that sexual orientation is a choice. It is not.”

So says the left anyway.

Sen. Cory Booker took similar offense with Barrett. Slate’s Mark Joseph Stern, meanwhile, wrote that using of the “archaic phrase” — meaning, sexual preference — “suggests that sexuality is a choice, that gay and bisexual people simply prefer to partner with people of the same sex — a preference that, with enough willpower, can be changed.”

This is not a minor point.

This is not just simple bickering over phraseology.

This cuts to the whole larger theme about family definitions, traditional values and, yes, God and God’s ordained will for humanity.

If the left can redefine family and sex and what it means to be male versus female — and even remove the labels of male and female — that means one of the most basic of absolutes is removed from society. That means the idea of God as a sovereign creator, all-knowing, all-powerful, is placed in doubt. That means the wisdom of mankind is elevated — to that equal to and eventually above God. That means God is unnecessary.

And for America, that means the concept of a country built of Judeo-Christian principles, grounded in the idea of individual rights coming from God, not government — that means that entire concept is degraded. Overturned. Erased.

What follows is a society in turmoil, with those who stand for God-given rights, the Constitution, limited government and traditional values in direct conflict with the social justice warriors, the so-called “tolerant” class, the leftists who buck moral restraints of any kind.

Voilà.

Here comes the government to crack down the chaos and instill a sense of order. And since God’s been relegated to the side as unnecessary, it’s a socialist sledge hammer that’s wielded. After all, individuals obviously can’t control themselves, right? Government must do the job for them.

This dickering over phrasing is not happenstance.

Collectivists know the power of the word.

Those who control the language, control the masses.

• Cheryl Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com or on Twitter, @ckchumley. Listen to her podcast “Bold and Blunt” by clicking HERE. And never miss her column; subscribe to her newsletter by clicking HERE.