Dear Editor, Mary Kenny, under the heading “Why we must change this fatal phrase” (IC 14/07/2016), reminded us of the writings of George Orwell, who said whoever controls the language controls the political power.
Today, she says, we are presented with the hurtful, and harmful, phrase “fatal foetal abnormality”. She rightly criticises the use of this phrase. Instead, we should use the more sensitive and medically correct phrase, “life limiting condition”. She urges an energetic campaign to change this loaded use of language, and use the more accurate LLC.
Unfortunately, this is not the only example. In today’s post, I received separate letters from The Life Institute, Pro-life Campaign, and Family and Life. It is indeed regrettable that I have to criticise their approach, as each are doing Trojan and thankless work, against much superior odds.
Each refers to “the Eighth” and “the Eighth amendment”, implying, at a cursory glance, support for the (majority) media phrase “repeal of the Eighth amendment”. The latter further implies the innocuous removal of an archaic legal requirement, and not the removal of life equality provisions for mother and unborn child.
Pro-abortion people know exactly what is meant, pro-life people know what is meant, but, I believe, the majority, who are dependent on the media for their information, do not know, or want to know. Further, pro-abortion people are dependent on the “niceness” of pro-life people not to spell out too deeply, that we are in fact talking about the deliberate, and often brutal, taking of unborn human life.
We should not be too surprised, therefore, if we get, and deserve to get, the same number of Yes’s to this barbaric practice, as we got last year on the marriage referendum.
Yours etc.,
Donal O’Driscoll,
Blackrock, Co. Dublin.
