• yesman@lemmy.world
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    9 months ago

    It’s a unique tragedy of the human animal that how we label an atrocity is central to the question of what to do about it.

    An alien might very well assume that humans worship words because some of them are symbols of real power to eclipse any icon, fetish, or talisman.

    Has any holy book ever inspired the devotion that the dictionary enjoys? What is a Supreme Court judge other than a robed literary priest endowed with the power to declare what words mean?