Cornelius, I am just wondering why it is considered a free speech to call a human being a dog while it is an insult to call a human being a liar. We all know that in China and Vietnam, dog meat is a delicious food. In Western Nigeria, dog is a known sacrificial animal to ÒGÚN deity. To me nothing can be more degrading to a person than to be ranked as a delicacy in the pot of soup of the Chinese or a sacrificial animal to Ògún deity, not even when the person barks like a dog in responding to every speech directed to him/her.
To call somebody a liar can only be an insult if there is no proof/evidence to show that the person has lied or is lying. To say one should not call a person, who has lied or is lying, a liar is just like granting to that person freedom to lie. Why should a liar not be called a liar? Even Presidents and Prime Ministers can be called liars when they lie. For instance when Blair and Bush invaded Irak militarily they told the world that they were going to war inorder to destroy weapons of mass destruction possessed by Saddam Hussein governed Irak. Tony Blair went to the extent of telling the world that Saddam Hussein could assemble his nuclear arsenal within 45 minutes. The war started 20 March 2003 and ended 1 May 2003 which means that the war lasted, roughly, 42 days or 60, 480 minutes. Saddam Hussein was not captured until 13 december 2003. If we follow Tony Blair's alarm that Saddam Hussein could assembly his nuclear devices in 45 minutes, it would mean that Saddam Hussein had 1, 344 minutes to his favour since the war did not end within or after 45 minutes. After the war, Blair and Bush were unable to show captured weapons of mass destruction from Irak. In that situation, it could not be an insult to call George Bush and Tony Blair liars, even though they were President and Prime Minister respectively, because they lied that Irak under Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. It may be it feels better for some on this forum if they are addressed as not telling the truth than calling them liars.
S. Kadiri
Skickat: den 4 september 2016 17:17
Till: USA Africa Dialogue Series
Kopia: USAAfricaDialogue@googlegroups.com
Ämne: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Re: Stop!
Sir,
It is not a session of the British House of Lords - or the House of Commons where a constitutionally ordained speaker (somewhat akin to your Moderator's function Sir) maintains forum decorum/ etiquette, but we admit that expressions such as "unmitigated stupidity" and the word liar is a pretty strong word with which to paint a friend, decorate an opponent or tarnish an enemy - even if he/she merits the title - as the Rev. Ian Paisley found out when he accused a fellow Hon. Gentleman in the British House of Commons of being a liar - for which he paid dearly.
Despite the predominance of the English Language as the vehicle of our polite exchanges and not discounting whatever pretensions we may have about Holy Westminster, we are aware that cultural considerations such as the respect due to elders, should also be observed (reasonably) here in this forum...
An uncertainty that gives no peace of mind : Could acceptable (accepted by whom?) euphemisms and circumlocutions such as Churchill's "terminological inexactitude" pass thine blue litmus test?
Yours Sincerely,
Cornelius
Stop (blues)
The end.
On Sunday, 4 September 2016 16:12:01 UTC+2, Toyin Falola wrote:
Dear all:
To repeat, please don't insult anyone but make your arguments.
There is no point to call anyone a liar. Present your facts and counter opinions and let us all decide.
PLEASE!
Moderator
Sent from my iPhone
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