471K views · Aug 4, 2012 · 2:40 · 0 HN recommenders · 5 mentions · discussed 2020–2024
A short George Carlin routine on how the term shell shock was softened into combat fatigue and then PTSD. He argues that euphemism hides the reality of suffering.
Why Hacker News points people here: It is cited in debates about euphemism and language policing, usually by commenters who think softer terms change nothing.
“I’ll betcha, if we’da still been calling it ‘Shell Shock,’ some of those Vietnam veterans might have gotten the attention they needed at the time.”HN comment, 2020
“I’ll betcha, if we’da still been calling it ‘Shell Shock,’ some of those Vietnam veterans might have gotten the attention they needed at the time.”
Carlin on how the term 'shell shock' mattered for veterans
“I’ll betcha, if we’da still been calling it ‘Shell Shock,’ some of those Vietnam veterans might have gotten the attention they needed at the time.” — George Carlin this video
“You can't be afraid of words that speak the truth.”
Carlin on soft language and Americans' trouble facing reality
"You can't be afraid of words that speak the truth. Even if it's an unpleasant truth ... I don't like words that hide the truth, I don't like words that conceal reality, I don't like euphemisms, and American English is loaded with euphemisms, because Americans have a lot of trouble with reality. Americans have trouble facing the truth, so they invent the kind of a soft language to protect themselves from it. And it gets worse with every generation." - George Carlin on Soft Language ( this video )
“George Carlin had a word or two to say about this phenomenon”
Carlin on symbolic renaming that changes nothing
It really is not about that. The problem is that some people feel the need to bend over backwards, making symbolic gestures that do not change the underlying issue. As if renaming 'whitelist' to 'allowlist' is going to turn any neo-nazis into angels. George Carlin had a word or two to say about this phenomenon: this video
“George Carlin skit.”
Carlin skit on shell shock becoming PTSD
PTSD is also lumped in with shell shock, a jarring of the braincase after explosions (usually during a war) with physical damage. It's unthinkable to me they lump it in with mental problems. George Carlin skit. this video
I'm pretty sure that they're aware of the concept but not the term CSAM. CSAM is just the latest iteration of the term we use for the concept due to the euphemism treadmill. this video
