[lit-ideas] A Congeries of Cons

From: "Peter D. Junger" <junger@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: ANTHRO-L@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, Literature and Ideas List <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Thu, 10 Aug 2006 10:55:21 -0400

                            A Congeries of Cons

   The  other  day  I  heard on the TV, while I was trying to take a nap,
   some  talking  head discussing how the Republicans had framed the word
   "liberal"  so that it now has almost exclusively negative connotations
   and  how  the  Democrats had not succeeded in coming up with s similar
   frame to use against the Republicans.

   And that got me to thinking.

   It  seems to me that there is one term -- "Neocon" -- that describes a
   group  of people on the right who -- what with the war in Iraq and all
   --  are  almost  universally despised. The trouble is, of course, that
   the  Democrats can hardly get away with applying the label "Neocon" to
   all  their  opponents,  for most of them, however distasteful they may
   be, are not exactly Neocons.

   But,  thinking  that,  I  suddenly  realized that even if they are not
   Neocons,  all  of those opponents can be framed as some sort of "cons"
   and justly smeared with the opprobrium that is attached to their "Neo"
   congeners.

   So  here  is  a  list of "cons" of various sorts. (I have not bothered
   with  definitions,  since  normally  they  will not be needed when the
   labels are applied.)

     Neocon, Retrocon, Quasicon, Me-Me-Con, Mexicon, Texicon, Psuedocon,
     Econ,  Geocon, Globulcon, Paleocon, Scardycon, Killercon, Wimpycon,
     Whoopsicon,  Contracon,  Lexicon,  Hemi-Semi-Demi-Con,  Republicon,
     Anticon,  Greedycon,  Anti-Americon,  Bullycon, Bellycon, Jellycon,
     Parasiticcon, Crypticon, and Idioticon.

   I could go on, but I'm sure that you get the idea.


--
Peter D. Junger--Case Western Reserve University Law School--Cleveland, OH
 EMAIL: junger@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx    URL:  http://samsara.law.cwru.edu   
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[lit-ideas] A Congeries of Cons

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