TOD 11.06.07

Words are like the clothing for ideas. So learning how to dress our ideas effectively starts with picking the right words and avoiding the wrong ones. And just as clothes have function and style, words have logical and emotional content. For instance, how should you respond when someone says, “Well, I don’t believe in discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation?”

First, recognize the dangers. Although “discrimination” is a perfectly good word (I discriminate between lying and truth-telling and between coffee and tea), it has come to imply unfair oppression. “Evaluate” is better because it lacks the baggage. Likewise, “sexual orientation” is a flawed term because it ignores the distinction between desire and behavior. So a linguistically savvy response might be, “Well, I believe it’s wise to evaluate people on the morality of their behaviors, don’t you?” A slightly stronger version might be, “I believe it’s unwise to ignore a person’s immoral actions.”

The first step in showing beautiful ideas to others is refusing to allow your opponents to dress them for you.