Politicians, particularly those from parties which get to hold power, have to explore the outer limits of word meanings. This is because when in power you have to do things (not just say things), and some of these things are controversial. If you are going to do things that are widely unpopular, or on the threshold of illegal, you have to push rhetorical boundaries.
If you get enough support – it helps to have one the world’s most powerful media baron on your side – then after a while, your ways of talking get normalized, and no longer sound like something out of Kafka.
Earlier this month, Abbott announced that the government would seek to overturn the World Heritage listing of 74, 000 hectares of Tasmania’s forests. Now, with the Liberals back in power in Tasmania, Abbott is promising what he has called a “renaissance of forestry”.
If you get enough support – it helps to have one the world’s most powerful media baron on your side – then after a while, your ways of talking get normalized, and no longer sound like something out of Kafka.
Earlier this month, Abbott announced that the government would seek to overturn the World Heritage listing of 74, 000 hectares of Tasmania’s forests. Now, with the Liberals back in power in Tasmania, Abbott is promising what he has called a “renaissance of forestry”.
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