johnny9fingers | (no subject)

This is bizarre.
My Interweb connection falls over, then picks up again, then falls over again.
Oh well.

I have been thinking a lot about 'Opposed Pairs' in language.
You know:

Black - White
Good - Bad
Left - Right
Up - Down

The reason I've been pondering such is a debate on Patriotism that my chum

readwriteblue instigated on the

politicartoons page.
Now

readwriteblue (fortune favour him in his tasks) is serving his country in Afghanistan at present, and posted a set of cartoons in the run up to the public holiday on Monday which dealt with Patriotism: and to my shame, not realising the nature of the American holiday, I equivocated and quoted Dr Johnson.

As an aside, in Blighty, our Rememberance Day is the 11th of November (The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, the time the WWI armistice was signed and ratified).

The reason I quoted the good doctor is because of the nature of opposed pairs: if someone claims an exclusive use of, let us say, 'Good', it renders those not in agreement 'Bad'.
If someone uses the word Patriot one looks for its opposite: which tends to be...traitor.

Now, I realise this wasn't what

readwriteblue meant (however, with me such realisation often dawns slowly) but it has been in the nature of a number of the arguments from others that one side embracing Patriotism leaves the other side traitorous: and this is often used to disguise the wrongness inherent in a position.

I still think the good Doctor has much to say about patriotism that we can all learn from.
But I should never forget those who are prepared to serve their country, and risk life and limb in their country's cause.

Henry V. Act IV Scene I

    Ay, or more than we should seek after; for we know
    enough, if we know we are the king's subjects: if
    his cause be wrong, our obedience to the king wipes
    the crime of it out of us.

Which sums up what all servicemen believe, else they could not serve.
Honour to them, but beware of your Kings, even if elected.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Kipling had much to say about Kings as well but failed to make the leap to elected ones.

In Canada, Remembrance Day / Armistice Day is Nov 11.

Said word inverses are used heavily by Bush. "if you're not with us, you're against us" rhetoric. I suspect such dualism is also heavily present in religious rhetoric.
eg: science OR religion. They're not inverses of each other as far as I can tell

here's an amusing one that's sometimes viewed as dualistic and "inverses" (although in a different sense):
student - teacher

Hell, I'm more than happy to be a student (for there is too much I don't know) or a teacher (for the limited amount I can impart).

I've never known a teacher who wasn't also a student. I have known students who weren't teachers.

Hence I find it a funny "duality" :)

"Which sums up what all servicemen believe, else they could not serve."

In the US many young, socio-economically poor, mostly people of color, end up joining the military because they have few if any other options available to them. Military recruiters prey like hawks. Governmental so-called education legislation ("No Child Left Behind") mandates that schools hand over contact information about students to the military for recruitment purposes. Wealthier and whiter parents know how to opt out of this. Military recruiters tell lies upon lies to get enlistees, often things like, "If you enlist, you won't have to go to Iraq."

Patriotism might have something to do with it sometimes.

Armies always recruit servicemen from the underclasses. But in order for the recruits to do other things which they have to, they normally have to believe they're in the right, surely: they can't all do it for the fun of it, or just because they're following orders.
Or do I extrapolate from my subjective (and somewhat prissy position) to the general, without good reason?