The Senate Votes on Tropes and the Troops

The US Senate will make linguistics history today. Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnell actually brought to the floor a bill based on a linguistic trope called "metonymy." The bill also makes history by trying to censure an ad. But the most "damning" part of the censure is not what is in the ad, but what is in the heads of people who use the metonymy trope.

Here's an example of how metonymy works. It is a mental operation. If you say, "The US invasion toppled Saddam Hussein," you mean it toppled the government of Saddam Hussein. The Leader stands for the Institution he or she leads. In a frame containing both a leader of a government and the government, the Leader can stand for the Government.

This metonymy works for generals as well. A general in uniform reporting to Congress can be seen simply as himself. But if you use the Leader-for-Institution metonymy, you can see the general as standing for the entire armed forces. Thus, an attack on the general can be seen, if you use the metonymy, as an attack on the entire military. The use of the metonymy isn't automatic in this case. People can use it or not. If not, an attack on the general is just an attack on the general.

The Republicans' own use of this metonymy is coming up in the Senate today. It is in a Republican bill to censure the use of the metonymy -- by the Republicans themselves!

If this seems strange, it is. But here is the situation.

MoveOn.org published their "General Petraeus or General Betray Us?" ad last week, pointing out deceptions by the general that would result in keeping the troops in Iraq, keeping them in danger of maiming or death. The general's deception, MoveOn indirectly pointed out, would result in harm to the troops, and so Petraeus' deception amounted to a betrayal of his own men, as well as a betrayal of the trust of the American people. Paul Begala, a moderate Democrat recently expressed his agreement with MoveOn. MoveOn did not say anything against the troops. On the contrary, MoveOn expressed concern for the safety of the troops.

Ari Fleisher's Freedom's Watch -- the White House's swift-boating group -- used the metonymy in an attack on MoveOn. Bradley A. Blakeman, president of Freedom's Watch, said "To question the character and patriotism of brave men and women who combat terrorism everyday is too much, it's in poor taste and it will not go unchallenged." MoveOn's questioning of the character and patriotism of a general caught in a deception adversely affecting the lives of his own troops was, via the Freedom's Watch metonymy, turned in to an attack on the troops. Who used the metonymy? Not MoveOn, but the Republicans attacking MoveOn.

Now the scene moves to the US Senate. Senator John Cornyn of Texas has introduced a bill saying the following:

To express the sense of the Senate that General David H. Petraeus, Commanding General, Multi-National Forces-Iraq, deserves the full support of the Senate and strongly condemn personal attacks on the honor and integrity of General Petraeus and all the members of the United States Armed Forces.

It goes on to condemn MoveOn as the source of the "attacks." Now how did "and all the members of the United States Armed Forces" get in there? By metonymy! A metonymy used not by MoveOn, but by Senator Cornyn himself! The bill is actually condemning the people who wrote and introduced it, Cornyn and Senator Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

This is indeed a red-letter day for the Senate. All linguists, English teachers, communications experts, and students of language nationwide should hereafter celebrate September 20 as Metonymy Day. Indeed, I recommend that some member of the Senate introduce that declaration into an amendment to some bill or other.

Comments

[Kenedeno]

Let em be martyrs!

Death by pork fat.

Now, it doesnt take a rocket scientist to figure that one out.

[ajax2]

With 22 Democratic Senators voting against speech and for a blatant WH lie, (the ad did not disparage the entire military), it is easy to see how Bush will swing the votes for his next blood lust.

[Plowboy]

Bush is about to ask for another $200 Billion to keep his war going. It is costing the American taxpayers about 3/4 Billion a day! Now watch those Democrats cave in and give him what he wants! So much for opposing the Neocon war! The Neocons own the Democrats too.
Now what's this shit about "supporting our troops"? This is the way to keep them all there until they die.
And speaking of dying, the Iraqis are dying at an attrocious rate, but never mind! those companies, like Blackwater, with the hired guns are raking it in at a good rate as well.
Cheers!

[malloryjustmallory]

This parrot learns a new word, repeats it over and ove but fails to address the real issue. In case you missed it, Mr. Lakoff, the government is stifling freedom of speech. That is what this whole business is about.

All of that aside, this uproar has only created new members for MoveOn and added to their coffers. And, I am proud to say that I donated even more to them after the action taken by the Senate.

Long live the freedom of the people to speak out!

By the way, where was George Bush when Ann Coulter slandered the 911 widows?

[TheQuestion]

It's odd I suppose but all of this kicking and screaming that the hawks are doing just turn me more anti-war. How about everybody else here ?

[truth101]

Professor Lakoff has isolated a singularly commonplace fact == we commonly speak of NAPOLEON invading Russia, Spartacus losing to Crassus, Eidenhauer landing at OMAHA BEACH, Alexander the Great and his legacy, etc etc etc. IT would be far more interesting to concentrate on the verb BETRAY AS ITS HAS BEEN USED GOING ALL THE WAY BACK TO SADDAM ORIGINAL INASION OF KUWAIT? Why didn't BUSH I bomb the highway? The PETRAEUS issue is just the afterglow,isn't it?

[BushSunkOurShip]

Cheney , Bush and the republican propaganda and BS has gone too d... far. It is time to stop these deciders and take our country back.
I am sick of the democrats continually kissing Bush's a....
They are too many republicans that have gain office running on the democrat's ticket. We have others democrats that are only looking for their political furture or they are without a backbone.
Congress and the Senate have given Cheney all he needs to take over this government with or with out a real threat to our country. Bush has destroyed our economy , democracy , honor and is destroying our military with extending their tour of duty and less time home.
Bush has shipped enough of our military overseas , that when he provokes Cheney's nuke bombing of Iran , in response Iran with most likely destroy many of our soldiers. Even if not , our soldiers with be overseas and Bush's "Blackwater will be here for when he called marshal law and takeover the control of this country.
So then Bush , can use his private conservate right wing army that reports to no one's laws and loyal to the person(s) giving them their money which is Cheney with our tax dollars..

[Ramirez]

Good post. I would question one statement, however.

You referred to, "MoveOn's questioning of the character and patriotism of a general caught in a deception..."

Actually MoveOn questioned the general's character and patriotism before he spoke, not after he was caught in a deception.

[JoshD]

While we are talking about language, why not bring up the word "troops"? I feel using the word "troops" to describe men and women in the military is somewhat dehumanizing. We should support our military men and women, not our Troops, which seems a bit abstract. Republicans must not support our Military, they voted against Senator Webb's amendment, something the military would like. I bet they were supporting the troops though. I guess troops fits better on a yellow ribbon than "Military" or "service members."

[certainot]

i suggest candidates and organizations who are attacked by these hypocrites begin wearing the attacks as a badge of honor. progressives don't have the uncontested repetition to tens of millions every day that is possible on RW talk radio to control the MSM agenda, but they may be able to distort it.

[OneFish]

I have been amazed by the continued success of the "bad guys" simple technique of attacking using any method they can dream up with little regard for courtesy or facts and then feigning shock at the gross display of incivility when their opponents so much as whisper the tiniest truth.

Can anyone explain why the technique continues to work?

[syllepsis]

Because the Democrats are not a political party worth your, or anyone's, vote:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lane-hudson/senate-democrats-to-netro_b_65226.html
Until there is a viable third party, there will be no shortage of Republican perfidy, and Democrats more than willing to call it patriotism.

[Clayton]

Why doesn't anyone report the Pentagon report released at 5:00 pm Sept. 17??

Why isn't this discussed??

It clearly points out that Gen. P. LIED!!

POLITICAL COWARD!!

By the way, I am a vet and I don't call a general a coward lightly.

[syllepsis]

The reason Cornyn and the trolls of the Party of God (I mean the Grand Old Party)are upset is that the 'betray us' meme was snatched by MoveOn when they were getting the 'betray us' line ready to use against the Democrats when Iraq is finally, irretrievably lost.

[Robert59]

This captures what the Republicans do best; side step the real issue. Others took the statistics and reached a different conclusion.
Today the general in charge of Baghdad talks about the city being safer. No kidding. Don't thank the Americans for making it safer, but the Mehdi Army in concert with the Iraqi National Police.

They didn't try to figure out who was Al Qaeda, a criminal, a Baathist, a patriot, etc., but concluded Sunnis are terrorizing Shiites. They too employed metonymy. Bad Sunnis means all Sunnis and they are unfortunately right. Without the support of the nongunslinging nonbombmaking Sunnis the bad Sunnis wouldn't survive. Their solution, as old as war itself.

Remove the threat. Instead of leaving their beloved city, they drove the Sunnis out. And since those Sunnis are gone things have gotten much better for the average Shiite whose biggest concern is his security. And they did it the old fashioned way, driving around and dragging off the street Sunni males, taking them back to their side of town, torturing them to get the names of more Sunni males, killing them and resumed hunting for more.

Sunnis got the picture and now Baghdad is safer. Would Petraeus have us believe this is a sign of reconciliation or a repeat of Kosovo?

[crescentdave]

You're never going to change the minds of fundamentalist republicans. They love the war. They love black and white. They love the no-bid profit margins of war industries and the benefit to stock holders. They live in fear. Control is everything. There is no change. Lie after lie and there's still at least 30% of the electorate that loves drinking the cool-aid. Ain't gonna change.

So. Surrounded by this millstone, aided and abetted by a media which is wholly incapable of peering beyond the murky confines of the beltway, MoveOn got rude. And juvenile.

So what. Facts don't work. The 30 percenters and media surely don't care- they don't change their votes nor their coverage. Even the moribund dems (elected by a majority absolutely SICK of this occupation of Iraq) continue to cower in their well-upholstered ruts.

Consider this ad ice water. There is no doubt bush is hiding behind Petraeus. There is no doubt Petraeus cooked the books. His facts are cherry picked and deliberately ignore larger, well-documented truths. He's the disingenuous syncophant who points out how shiny the brass railings on the Titanic are, just after the alarms go off. Meanwhile, soldiers die and are maimed for NO REASON other than saving bush's face.

And some of you people are worried about the ... efficacy of it all. Why don't you worry about your media which seems almost completely incapable of undertaking the most rudimentary fact checking? Hint: this ad is NOT about changing people's minds. It's about making people mad as hell about the dog and pony show. It's an ad that appeals to 70% of the country. This is what the myopic beltway bozos don't get and probably never will.

Brrrr.