POLITICS
A Westminster Dictionary You only have to glance at the news to be bombarded with political jargon from every angle. So, what are they really talking about?
Doublespeak: Language distor ting the meaning of words to make the truth more palatable.
Firehose of falsehood: Messages br oadcast r apidly and repetitively through multiple channels without regard for truth or consistency.
Flag-waving: Attempting to justify actions on the grounds that they are patriotic.
Gish gallop: Bombar ding an opponent with obnoxiously complex questions in order to make it appear as if they don’t know what they are talking about.
Glittering generalities: Emotionally appealing words applied without concrete argument or analysis
Paltering: The active use of selective tr uthful statements to mislead.
Status Quo: The cur r ent or r ecent state of things, usually defended by those who are resistant to change in terms of culture, society and organisation.
Dead Cat Strategy
This term refers to the introduction of a dramatic, shocking or sensationalist topic to divert attention away from a more damaging topic.
E.g. PM Boris Johnson reducing and eventually removing Covid-19 restrictions, perhaps in a desperate bid to distract from ‘partygate’.
Whataboutism
Technique used during discussions attempting to discredit an opponent’s position by calling them out for hypocrisy rather than directly refuting or disproving the argument. E.g. Johnson making allegations against Sir Keir Starmer about his supposed failure to prosecute notorious paedophile Jimmy Saville. (No evidence has ever been found to support these claims.)
Pork Barrel
The use of government funds to indirectly buy support, such as overspending on infrastructure and giving the contracts to allies.
E.g. £1 billion in contracts given to ‘friends and donors’ of the Conservative Party since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
And finally… ‘party’
A social gathering of invited guests, typically involving eating cheese, drinking wine and entertainment via quiz nights.
E.g. 15th May 2020; 20th May 2020; 13th November 2020; 27th November 2020; 15th December 2020; 18th December 2020; 16th April 2021 - in No.10 alone.
Others include...
Ad hominem: Attacking an opponent r ather than their argument.
Ad nauseum: Tir eless r epetition of an idea (e.g. ‘Get Brexit Done’).
Cult of personality: A public figur e using the media to create an idealised and heroic image of themselves.
Dog whistle: The use of coded or suggestive language in political messaging to get support from a specific group without provoking opposition.
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Party? What party? Lily O’Brien, Year 12, Watt House
